Republicans step up the anti-Obama-speak
Republicans in Washington are offering up some of the strongest language yet in their efforts to distinguish themselves from the 5-month-old Obama administration’s economic policies.
In recent weeks, GOP leaders and rank-and-file members have offered stinging rebukes of the Democratic control in Washington in terms that Democrats say have gone over the line.
That came as Rep. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) was drawing heat from Democrats for saying that he told Chinese leaders that “the budget numbers that the U.S. has put forward should not be believed” and that Congress would spend more than what is contained in the budget.
Just days before, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) said at a fundraising dinner for House and Senate Republicans that Obama’s efforts to stimulate the economy and save automakers have “already failed…
For their part, Republicans are mostly unapologetic. The rhetoric is part of a continued effort to portray the Obama administration as something of an inept “Big Brother,” unable to deal appropriately with the challenges created by the economy and, all the while, expanding government.
Ken Spain, a spokesman with the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC), said Democrats should focus on what they are doing, rather than what the opposition is saying.
“It would be nice if Democrats could spend some time creating jobs instead of growing the size of the federal bureaucracy and pointing fingers,” Spain said…
The first midterm election under a new president is almost always a referendum on how that president is performing. Election experts agree that, for the Republicans to make serious gains in the 2010 elections, Obama’s popularity needs to come down…
But Republicans say it’s not about rooting for failure, but rather keeping Democrats honest in their efforts to expand government.
“At some point Democrats are going to have to come to grips with the fact that they won the 2008 election and start governing,” Spain said…
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