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Editorial: Remember Republican votes on budget deal

 
For the second time in four weeks, most of Tampa Bay’s Republican U.S. House members have demonstrated they are part of the problem instead of the solution in Washington.
For the second time in four weeks, most of Tampa Bay’s Republican U.S. House members have demonstrated they are part of the problem instead of the solution in Washington.
Published Oct. 29, 2015

For the second time in four weeks, most of Tampa Bay's Republican U.S. House members have demonstrated they are part of the problem instead of the solution in Washington. Embracing rigid ideology over keeping the federal government functioning, they voted against the bipartisan budget agreement this week. They preferred to let the government default on its debt and shut down rather than support a reasonable compromise that ends these manufactured crises for two years.

Four House Republicans who represent portions of Tampa Bay again voted against the best interests of the nation and their constituents Wednesday by voting against the budget deal: Reps. Gus Bilirakis of Palm Harbor, Richard Nugent of Spring Hill, Tom Rooney of Okeechobee and Dennis Ross of Lakeland. After the vote, Ross retweeted the praise sent his way by conservative groups and individual voters. How long are Tampa Bay voters going to put up with such obstructionists who appeal to the most extreme wing of the Republican Party at the expense of everyone else?

Two Tampa Bay House members were among seven Florida Republicans who acted responsibly and seized the opportunity to end these showdowns over short-term measures to raise the debt ceiling and keep the government open through the 2016 elections: Reps. David Jolly of Indian Shores and Vern Buchanan of Sarasota. Good for them.

Jolly and Buchanan are mainstream conservatives. They believe in fiscal responsibility, controlling spending and reducing the federal debt. But they also recognize that working with the Senate and President Barack Obama requires compromise, and they would not risk defaulting on debt or shutting down the government to make a point. Jolly's blend of independence, pragmatism and conservative values should serve him well in his campaign for U.S. Senate.

This budget agreement, which the Senate is expected to approve today, includes provisions that should appeal to conservatives. It modestly increases defense and domestic spending and offsets that with spending cuts and other savings or revenue. It cuts Medicare spending at hospital outpatient facilities, tightens requirements for qualifying for disability under Social Security and tests incentives for those on disability to work part time if they can. It makes a small change in the Affordable Care Act by repealing a requirement that large companies automatically enroll new employees in their health plans, a requirement that has not gone into effect. But that was not enough for the conservative obstructionists who forget that government shutdowns are not popular with most voters.

Of course, that did not bother the Republican candidates for president who criticized the agreement during Wednesday night's painful debate. The opponents include Sen. Marco Rubio, who by attacking the questioner deflected the accurate observation that his irresponsible tax cut package would benefit the top 1 percent more than the middle class. Rubio will vote against the budget agreement — if he bothers to show up after missing a larger portion of votes this year than any of the other four senators running for president.

Florida voters should credit responsible Republicans such as Jolly and Buchanan who voted this week to keep government functioning — and hold the obstructionists accountable.