The Closing Argument: Dems Have Had Their Chances; They’re Out Of Touch And Out Of Time

• A day before voters cast their ballots, the contrast between Democrats and Republicans couldn’t be clearer.

• Polls show Americans are frustrated with the direction of Washington and see Democrats—led by President Obama—as failing to lead on the important issues we face as a country.

• Why elect a Congress that would return complete liberal control to President Obama and Nancy Pelosi?

• We’ve been there before and we’ve seen the results: more debt, higher taxes, and ObamaCare.

• Democrats have had their chances. They’re out of touch and out of time.

• Republicans are focused on the same things that middle-class families across the country are focused on: creating jobs, making sure our healthcare system is patient-centered, and keeping our country safe and prosperous for all.

President Obama Realized That A Democrat-Controlled House In 2014 Was “Crucial” To Reviving His Presidency:

Washington Post: “Stymied By A GOP House, Obama Looks Ahead To 2014 To Cement His Legacy” (Scott Wilson and Philip Rucker, “Stymied by a GOP House, Obama looks ahead to 2014 to cement his legacy,” The Washington Post, 3/2/13)

Obama Sees Winning Back The House As “Crucial” To His Second Term Priorities. “Obama, fresh off his November reelection, began almost at once executing plans to win back the House in 2014, which he and his advisers believe will be crucial to the outcome of his second term and to his legacy as president. He is doing so by trying to articulate for the American electorate his own feelings — an exasperation with an opposition party that blocks even the most politically popular elements of his agenda.” (Scott Wilson and Philip Rucker, “Stymied by a GOP House, Obama looks ahead to 2014 to cement his legacy,” The Washington Post, 3/2/13)

In July, Nancy Pelosi Predicted Democrats Would Win 25 Seats And Take Back The House:

The Washington Post Headline: “Nancy Pelosi’s Goal Is To Win 25 Seats. Here’s How She Thinks It Can Happen” (Ed O’Keefe, “Nancy Pelosi’s Goal Is To Win 25 Seats. Here’s How She Thinks It Can Happen,” The Washington Post, 7/16/14)

Pelosi Said Democrats Could Win The House In 2014. “‘We’re playing in about 70 districts. Twenty-five is my goal – I would like that. Seventeen is our must. I think we win 17 of those seats. We won 16 in the last election, but we lost eight. As [DCCC Chairman Rep. Steve Israel (D-N.Y.)] says, you don’t add by subtracting. Nobody knows. Nobody knows.’” (Ed O’Keefe, “Nancy Pelosi’s Goal Is To Win 25 Seats. Here’s How She Thinks It Can Happen,” The Washington Post, 7/16/14)

Democrats Are In Denial About Our Country’s Finances: 

President Obama Denied That Our Country Has A Debt Crisis. “And, so, we don’t have an immediate crisis in terms of debt. In fact, for the next ten years, it’s gonna be in a sustainable place.” (“Transcript: President Obama’s Exclusive Interview With George Stephanopoulos,” ABC News, 3/13/13)

Nancy Pelosi Said It Was A “False Argument” To Say We Have Spending Problem. “House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi on Sunday downplayed concerns about federal spending levels, arguing that Republicans’ laserlike focus on budget cuts is misplaced. ‘It isn’t as much a spending problem as it is priorities,’ Mrs. Pelosi, California Democrat, said on ‘Fox News Sunday.’ ‘It is almost a false argument to say that we have a spending problem.’ she added” (Ben Wolfgang, “Pelosi: Federal Government Doesn’t Have A Spending Problem,” The Washington Times, 2/10/13)

In February 2013, Steny Hoyer Said Our Country Has A “Paying-For Problem.” (YouTube.com, Accessed On 3/13/13)

A Democrat-Controlled House Passed A National Energy Tax:

Cap-And-Trade Passed The House On June 26, 2009.  (H.R. 2454, Roll Call Vote 477, 219-212, 6/26/09)

San Francisco Chronicle: “Obama Defends Climate Bill’s Cap-And-Trade Plan” (Richard S. Dunham, “Obama Defends Climate Bill’s Cap And Trade Plan,” San Francisco Chronicle, 6/25/09)

At The Time, The Wall Street Journal Called It “The Biggest Tax Hike In American History.” “Americans should know that those Members who vote for this climate bill are voting for what is likely to be the biggest tax in American history. Even Democrats can’t repeal that reality.” (“The Cap and Tax Fiction,” The Wall Street Journal, 6/26/09)

In 2008, Barack Obama Said His Cap-And-Trade Program Would Cause Electricity Rates To “Necessarily Skyrocket.” (Youtube.com, Accessed On 6/25/13)

Democrat Candidates Are All Running On ObamaCare—As The Law Grows More Unpopular:

DNC Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman-Schultz: “All Of Our Candidates” Will Run On ObamaCare In 2014. “DNC Chair Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D., Fla.) said ‘all of our candidates’ will run on Obamacare Tuesday in a debate with RNC Chair Reince Priebus on CNN’s Crossfire.” (“DNC Chair: ‘All Of Our Candidates’ Will Run on Obamacare,” Washington Free Beacon, 12/3/13)

Nancy Pelosi: “Democrats Stand Tall In Support” Of ObamaCare. “”I don’t think you can tell what will happen next year, but I will tell you this: Democrats stand tall in support of the Affordable Care Act,” Pelosi said.” (Sabrina Siddiqui, “Nancy Pelosi: Democrats ‘Stand Tall’ For Obamacare Ahead Of 2014 Elections,” The Huffington Post, 11/17/13)

Obamacare Website Costs Exceed $2 Billion, Study Finds. “The federal government’s Obamacare enrollment system has cost about $2.1 billion so far, according to a Bloomberg Government analysis of contracts related to the project.” (Alex Wayne, “Obamacare Website Costs Exceed $2 Billion, Study Finds,” Bloomberg, 9/24/14)

5 Million Americans Are Projected To See Their Plans Canceled, According To Insurance Industry Officials. “They said the widespread cancellations in the individual health insurance market — roughly 5 million and counting — are in line with what was projected under regulations drawn up by the administration in 2010, requirements that both insurers and businesses objected to at the time. Cancellations also are occurring in the small group market, which covers businesses with between two and 50 employees, they noted.” (Lisa Myers, “Insurers, State Officials Say Cancellation Of Health care Policies Just As They Predicted,” NBC News, 11/15/13)

Prices For Health Care Plans This Year Are Set To Change “Significantly.” “But the upheaval in insurance markets, with new carriers entering and the price of plans changing significantly, may make the coming year no easier than the last.” (Reed Abelson, “Experts Bracing For New Set Of Challenges In Year 2 Of Health Care Law,” The New York Times, 9/2/14)

Huffington Post Headline: “Obamacare Is More Unpopular Than Ever, Poll Shows”

• A Poll From The Kaiser Family Foundation Shows ObamaCare Disapproval At 53 Percent. “The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation’s health care tracking poll for July reveals that 53 percent of people view the Affordable Care Act unfavorably, a jump of 8 percentage points since June. July’s results mark the fifth time since April 2010, and the first time since January, that at least half of Americans are not supportive of the health care reform law.” (Jeffrey Young, “Obamacare Is More Unpopular Than Ever, Poll Shows,” Huffington Post, 8/1/14)

In September 2014, President Obama’s Approval Rating Hit Its Lowest Mark Ever. “President Obama’s approval rating has sunk to an administration-low 38 percent, Gallup pollsters said Thursday.” (David K. Li, “Obama’s Approval Rating Sinks Even Lower: Poll,” New York Post, 9/5/14)

Thousands Of Americans Will See Their Plans Canceled Before The November Elections. “Thousands of Americans will see their health plans cancelled before the November elections in a development that could boost critics of ObamaCare. The Morning Consult, a Washington-based policy publication, reported that nearly 50,000 people will lose their current health coverage in the coming weeks. The figure encompasses cancellations announced by insurance departments and providers in Kentucky, Alaska, Tennessee, New Mexico, North Carolina, Maine and Colorado.” (Elise Viebeck, “More Plan Cancellations Coming Under Obamacare,” The Hill, 9/30/14)

President Obama Has Become Increasingly Disengaged:

Fox News Headline: “Obama Takes Heat From Both Sides For Skipping Border On Fundraising Trip” (““Obama Takes Heat From Both Sides For Skipping Border On Fundraising Trip,” Fox News, 7/9/14)

Democrat Congressman: Obama Has Time To Shoot Pool And Drink Beer, But Too Busy To Visit Border. (Youtube.com, Accessed On 7/18/14)

Obama Waited Three Days Before Speaking On The December 2009 Attempted “Underwear Bombing.” “In December 2009, he was vacationing in Hawaii during the “underwear bomber” episode, when a man tried to blow up an airliner bound for Detroit. It was three days before Mr. Obama spoke publicly about the incident, touching off criticism that he had stayed silent and continued vacationing while a jittery nation absorbed details of another terrorist incident.” (Peter Nicholas, “On Hectic Day, ‘No Drama’ Obama Sticks To Schedule,” The Wall Street Journal, 7/17/14)

He Was Also Criticized For Not Displaying Enough Emotion During The Oil Spill In The Gulf Of Mexico. “A year later, he faced blowback from his response to a massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Critics said he didn’t display enough emotion, instead sticking to his calm demeanor.” (Peter Nicholas, “On Hectic Day, ‘No Drama’ Obama Sticks To Schedule,” The Wall Street Journal, 7/17/14)

Just A Day After The Benghazi Attack, Obama Attended A Las Vegas Fundraiser. (Youtube.com, Accessed On 7/18/14)

Los Angeles Times Headline: “Obama Meets With ‘The View,’ No Foreign Leaders During U.N. Assembly” (Kathleen Hennessey, “Obama Meets With ‘The View,’ No Foreign Leaders During U.N. Assembly,” Los Angeles Times, 9/24/12)

• In September 2012, Obama Didn’t Have Time To Meet With Foreign Leaders At The UN, But Was A Guest On ABC’s The View. “As Obama headed to New York for the annual meeting of the United Nations General Assembly, the president has no meetings with other leaders scheduled during his day and a half in New York. The low-intensity approach to the gathering was only underlined by the sitdown the president did make time for – an interview with the women of ABC’s daytime talk fest ‘The View.’” (Kathleen Hennessey, “Obama Meets With ‘The View,’ No Foreign Leaders During U.N. Assembly,” Los Angeles Times, 9/24/12)

At A Fundraiser, Obama Proclaimed It Was “Happy Hour With The Democratic Party” As Russian Forces Were Invading Crimea. “Minutes after issuing a stern warning to Russia and saying there will be a price to pay if it interferes militarily in Ukraine, President Obama headed to a “happy hour” with fellow Democrats. Speaking at a fundraiser for the Democratic National Committee, Mr. Obama struck a very different tone than he had less than 30 minutes earlier, when he appeared with little warning in the White House press briefing room and issued a vague threat to Moscow. ‘Well, it’s Friday. It’s after 5 o’clock. So, this is now officially happy hour with the Democratic party,’ the president told his cohorts. ‘I can do that. It is an executive action. I have the authority.’” (Ben Wolfgang, “Obama Declares ‘Happy Hour’ With Dems Minutes After Ukraine Tough Talk,” Washington Times, 2/28/14)

After Mourning The Deaths At Fort Hood In April 2014, Obama Immediately Headed To Two Fundraisers. “The White House won some negative headlines for scheduling a fundraiser during President Obama’s trip Wednesday to Texas to mourn the shooting deaths at Fort Hood U.S. Army base, but he’s actually attending two, one with House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi at a $17.1 million home.” (Paul Bedard, “2 Obama Fundraisers After Grieving Fort Hood Deaths, One At $17 Million Home,” Washington Examiner, 4/9/14)

Last Year, Obama Openly Mused If He “Should Just Pack Up And Go Home”:

The Hill Headline: “Obama At 100 Days Presser: ‘Maybe I Should Just Pack Up And Go Home’” (Justin Sink, “Obama at 100 days presser: ‘Maybe I should just pack up and go home’,” The Hill, 4/30/13)