Getty Images
In June, Republican uber-activist Grover Norquist organized an event on Capitol Hill, intended as an opportunity to remind congressional Republicans that he expects them to respect his authority. How many of the 242 House Republicans showed up? "At most 20 members."
It was a sign of things to come. Six months later, the activist is looking at a congressional landscape that has less and less use for him.
Fewer incoming members of the House and Senate have signed the pledge against tax increases run by Norquist's Americans for Tax Reform, in a reflection not only of the seats that Democrats gained but of the success they've enjoyed in vilifying Norquist.
About a dozen newly elected House Republicans refused to sign the anti-tax pledge during their campaigns, and another handful of returning Republicans have disavowed their allegiance to the written commitment.
With Democrats picking up seven or eight seats, that means the pledge guides fewer than the 218 members needed for a majority. In the Senate, where Republicans lost two seats, just 39 members of the chamber are pledge-signers, according to the group's records. That is a drop from 238 members of the House and 41 senators who committed to the pledge at the start of the 112th Congress.
It's important to realize that Norquist having fewer friends is not necessarily a sign of Republican moderation. In other words, this is not a situation in which candidates are balking at "the pledge" because they're rethinking their party's anti-tax orthodoxy. From a progressive perspective, that'd be great, but it's not what's happening.
Rather, Norquist has been snubbed in part because some lawmakers are open to trading away tax credits, some don't like taking orders from D.C. lobbying groups, and some are just anti-pledge in general.
Whatever the motivation, the more policymakers reject Norquist's artificial, arbitrary constraints, the greater the likelihood of constructive work in Washington.
Leave a Comment:
What does Norquist do other than collect pledges?
He is involved in the NRA BIG..
Breaking laws. He should be arrested and charged for bribing government officials, treason, and being a TRAITOR to the USA. There is no doubt that everyone that signed his pledge was well compensated which boils down to bribery. Lock his ass up and all those that signed the pledge. Let you try and bribe a government official and see what happens to you. They seem to think they are above the law.
Not to worry, as soon as people realize their incomes are going shrinking buy 5-7% as of January (Clinton rate and payroll cut expiration) Grover will will be back on top.
Leslie #1,
He eats a lot of filet mignon and caviar.
It is time to neuter this dog. I don't recall voting for him, do you? I don't recall anyone dying and making him King of the congress, either.
He is just a want to be congressman.... He is a lobbist... Rep and Senators that sign his anti-tax mess give him power... If they don't sign he has no power..so who is he really??? Ask.com says......He asked many republicans to sign a pledge to oppose tax hikes, and distributes money legally to candidates who do what he wants, just like unions do, except that the FACT that he is conservative drives the liberals crazy.
How can you try and show elected officals that you have authority when nobody is backing you.... Norquist is a fools fool....
What Norquist does is peddle the fiction that digging in and throwing temper tantrums over tax hikes makes politicians "the grownups in the room". In other words, he strokes egos for fun and profit.
Right-wingnut talk radio simply adopted his strategy.
Yes, yes, yes..Leslie...I despise this traitor..this pretender to the Presidency..this this..
Pays a tad more than petition-gathering, I suspect...LOL.
Shooter--I would never have taken Grover for a top. And why in the world would you want to give this guy any kudos? What has he done for YOU? And did you hear the bell ring? Americans WANT taxes to go up, so we can finance our country. Pull your fingers out of your ears. It doesn't change anything to be willfully deaf.
The T.E.A. (Taxed Enough Already) Party is the product of Norquist's pledge. He has worked on the pledge for decades. He bragged that no Republican had been re-elected to Congress who had not signed the pledge. Remember George H. W. Bush's famous phrase: "Read my lips. No new taxes." When, as President, Bush did raise taxes, Ross Perot surfaced and, in a sense, became the first T.E.A. party candidate. Bush was not re-elected. Some argue that there would have never been a President Clinton if there had not been a Ross Perot.
What is appalling and frightening is what has been done to our language. The TEA Party name is but one of the efforts by Fox News-Koch-Rove-etc. to take names and concepts and redefine them so that they have exactly opposite meanings. The original Tea Party threw tea into Boston Harbor in Revolutionary times because they said no taxation without representation. The T.E.A Party today says, representation without taxation.
It has been an interesting phenomenon the way the .1%ers have operated on the linguistic level. Good terms like "fair","balanced", "freedom of speech", and "freedom of religion", are made to characterize behaviors that are the opposite. Not many people outside the Fox News "family" considers Fox News reporting as "fair and balanced." The term "socialist" has become evil, "capitalist" becomes an all-powerful good. They talk about "class warfare against the rich" when it is that super rich that are pillaging everyone else. One of their most successful phrases is "Government does not create jobs, business creates jobs." It is a lie that government does not create jobs and it is a lie that only businesses create jobs, but you don't hear as strong a defense against the phrase as there should be.
We are a nation founded on a government in which the people are supposed to rule, a government that meets the needs of the people. Norquist wants a government so small that it can be drowned in a bathtub and that only the needs of the .1% are met.
Very, VERY well said.
Shooter lost big...it holds no sway here.
Why people can't SEE the hypocrisy is beyond me.
@Shooter
I very well understand that I could see a tax increase. I can afford it and I realize that increased revenue is part of the way to decrease the deficit and stop the growth of the debt.
I call that doing my part for the country. The people that scream the loudest about the debt and deficit are usually the people least willing to make any sacrifice toward that end.
Never understood who this guy was and why Republicans were afraid of him. The Bushies ignored him.
well, he founded the islamic free market institute for one. He has a lot of islamic conections. Just the guy we want our politicians beholded to, huh?
Norquist is a gnome. A nasty nasty gnome. He needs to be made into a lawn ornament so he can do no more harm
cj, I'm glad you're so civic minded. Leave me out of it. I have better things to do with my money than give it to a black hole of fantasy.
Perhaps you've seen my idea around poverty programs. We spent a trillion dollars on means-tested welfare. That's $10,000 for every tax return household. Perhaps you'd like to tell me why it's better to fund Washington bureaucrats rather than give the money directly back to people?
Shooter, you don't realize who benefits the most from the SNAP (food stamp) program. Yes, those people who don't have to have their families go hungry and malnourished, but the REAL winners are the Wal-Marts who can sell their groceries and raise their prices at the same time. The Koch Brothers with their Georgia Pacific products like Northern Tissue and their cattle and gasoline. They are the REAL winners. Ever notlice what the Kochs are worth and how much they increased their wealth last year? They each "earned" 3 BILLION more. Each is now worth 25 BILLION. That adds up to 50 BILLION.
Jimes, you have an odd perspective. You're complaining about a store that brings you and others stuff that other people produce. Did you expect them to work for free? Do you work for free?
Perhaps you'd rather go without food or tissues or all the other things people make? You know, return to hunter-gatherer status?
Blanks, your perspective is that of an @!$%#.
Just sayin.
Addition by subtraction...
I've been saying for awhile now that the GOP is very good at naming things that do the exact opposite (Clear Skies Act, No child left behind). Sort of like their strategy to accuse opponents of the very things they do wrong. This was especially evident in the Romney campaign.
NCLB was passed 91-8 in the senate, and 384-45. I truly get a kick out of democrats who would blame bushII for that, yet would exonerate Clinton for deregulation (gramm-leach) when he signed it after a 90-8 senate vote. Whether you like deregulation and NCLB, they were both hugely bi-partisan.
Like Sarah Palin, Norquist is fighting to stay relevant and a power broker in the conservative movement. But his influence is waning and it will be all downhill after January 1, 2013. By the 2014 elections he will be a nobody who thinks he is an important somebody. Reality bites.
But do he and his family have a future in reality TV like the Alaskan Hillbillies?
I thought they cancelled that show because of low ratings.
I'm encouraged by the candidates claiming to be "anti-pledge in general." Sure, it's weaselly, since it's a way to drain the power of the anti-tax pledge without going up against Norquist directly, but if it works, I'll take it.
Taking gropers pledge is strictly a dodge for congress to avoid doing their job and making the hard choices they were elected to make. They can hide behind the pledge for not doing what is in the best interests of the country, if their voters allow them to do so.
The citizens need to get educated and vote out any politician who signs a pledge to not do their job. No job except congress is allowed to openly kick the can down the road until they are out of office and let someone else get blamed for making hard decisions.
Time is long past for congress to be held accountable for shirking their responsibilities. The citizens need to hold themselves accountable for the failure to hold congress and the government accountable. We ALL need to be accountable for our vote. Vote for the best candidate regardless of the letter behind their name and a lot of the shenanigans will stop.
Hope it doesn't take him as long as her to fade away. She still doesn't know it . Fox has just shown the world just how inept they are on a very grand scale & still people like her, Grover & poor Shooter still don't get it.
I'm sorry, what is it I'm supposed to "get"?
I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and not to any individual, political party, or ideology who believe they are superior to our great nation.
Grover - go back to Sesame Street. At least there you can still get funding.
Grover's his own "Mr. Poopyhead."
He certainly is! And the one with "working digits" that he hoped to win the election did not have sufficient digits to reach the office!
We must send Norquist packing. We can not have this kinds of people, making laws and rules on how thie country should be run! Packing in a way that, it would make all these kind of people stand up and take what is comming to them. I hear that the Taliban need these types of people!
All he has behind him is the NRA and they couldn't stop Obama with all their noise and threats so who cares. We are not going to be held hostage by anyone, especially this self important jerk.
It's important to realize that Norquist having fewer friends is not necessarily a sign of Republican moderation.
Depends. In the party of "You're either with us or against us", more and more people might find themselves on the "against us" list. When the powers that be within the Right decide who to embrace, we will see the direction the GOP takes.
2014 should be pretty interesting. The GOP has to remake themselves and sell that new image - I predict a confused mess.
Chris Matthews' constant pronunciation of his name as "Nordquist" is beginning to pay off!
Well, we in California kicked him out just now.
I saw him on my TEEVEE and he looked like he should be in an alley somewhere sucking a bottle of Mad Dog 20/20
Fight to stay relevant indeed . You have no clothes Nordquisling , you have no clothes .
They want to get reelected more than they want to listen to you . They are beginning to notice polls , like the one that says 70% support a tax hike on millionaires.
The last time they ignored polls it cost them an election
The last time they ignored polls it cost them an election
Not to mention both Romney and Ryan signed the pledge.
.
I didn't elect Norquist, and I don't know of anyone who did, so why should anyone have the kind of power he has wielded without the will of the people?
#10, Uffdayguy,
Exactly. And who died and made him King of the congress? What a weird, creepy guy he is, too.
uuuuuh...there are lots just like him hangin out on K Street. However, I agree we should take names and kick ass next election by removing ANYONE in Congress who signs such a pledge. It is way past time to put our collective foot down on the necks of these traitors. STAY ALERT! STAY ACTIVE! Keep those phone lines busy at the White House and Congress. They expect us to sit back now and be quiet. We must not be quiet, ever again!
Yes, keep running around in circles yelling "Gimmee!" at the top of your lungs.
And blanks runs around saying "mine! mine! mine!" at the top of its troll lungs.
Shooter appearse to be one of the self-centered, "I've got minem screw you" me me me crowd. God forbit his tax dollar actually helps an American.
Plus, poor Grover has to fight off attacks by that complete madman, Frank Gaffney, who claims poor Grover is a member of the Muslim Brotherhood or a fellow traveler of it. Don't you just LOVE it when these lunatic right wingers feud amongst themselves? Rove, Trump is calling....
I don't know which makes me happier - watching Norquist go down or Rove go down. But either way, I'm happy.
Thanks, thats just the visual I needed, Rove and Grover going down together ....
Bear love I'm not into.
.
The media really needs to start holding all these conservative and their obfuscation to the fire. They need an "Apples & Oranges" approach. When there is talk of raising taxes on the wealthy ( ie, the apples) and they counter with "jobs creators" the media needs to yell "oranges!" Warren Buffet is an apple. Berkshire-Hathaway is an orange. Taking a little slice from the apple will NOT affect the orange. Please... someone make this argument right to their faces!
I am beginning to believe that America has a lot of smart people who will not allow the highest bidder buy our government of some power broker buy our Congress.
He is toast. And don't let the door hit you on the way out. In my opinion, he is responsible for the congressional malaise that has been the rule for the past two years. He is an urban terrorist in my mind. And I have to say that those who signed the pledge are lemmings in the worst sense of the word.
Fear is a terrible thing, Grover was a blackmailing political operative that should be relegated to permanent obscurity.
Google "Benedict Arnold".
Traitors happen.
A huge AMEN!
Norquist " Americans for tax Reform " just a smoke screen to bully GOP members
Rachel I love your show and the work our doing. True progressive young Scholar and professional for the People.
Norquist is a no body the republican party works for us not him.
a "poopy head"for sure
Grover is in business. He has a mailing list that rents for good money to other likeminded fund raising leeches. It supports nice salaries and comfy offices as well was warm weather travel in the winter for him and his. It's a game anyone can play.
Fascinating isn't it that an un-elected individual could insist on and get a "pledge" to do something that compromises our elected official's (not mine but 'theirs'...) ability to make a policy decision on a case-by-case basis. Begs the question then; who are they working for? Oh yes...the guy who can potentially ruin their chances of a) running at all by denying campaign donations where possible or b) ruin their chances of running again [insert reason a)]. Also, look at that pic above. Would you go to a meeting hosted by a guy who is doing a very bad "Don Johnson" imitation? Get a life Norquist. Your days of living vicariously through elected folks is done. The train left the station without you bap bap!!
I am a progressive. I remember Rachel after the 2008 election talking about the sea change and decline of the Republican Party only for it to become more radical and hungrier to regain control of the House and most Governorships through this past election. I remember what Michael Moore said back in 2004 something to the effect that these people are like sharks, relentless and voracious in fulfilling their purpose. They are still anti-government and want to drown "The Beast." They are still for austerity at the cost of promoting the general welfare and the failures of the Euro-economy austerity and the success of the social-growth economy of Sweden. Are we living on borrowed time until 2014 with Obama and the Senate just sandbags against the rapacious Republican tidal surge? I hope not.
This IS treason. And his pride got in the way. None of us would have known about the pledge if he hadn't wanted the attention. Same thing happened with the Koch brothers, and all the "Citizens United" asphedoras who thought they could buy an election.
Good riddance to bad rubbish.
This IS treason.
Signing a pledge to an ideology putting that ideology ahead of what is best for the Country most certainly can be seen as treason.
At the very least signing the pledge is a betrayal.
.
Sedition, at the very least.
Let's not get carried away. There is a difference between stupid and sedition...
There is room for the two sides to negotiate but bottom line is taxes have to increase on the top 5%,tax loop holes need to be closed. Now the question is what happens with tax rates for the bottom 95%? The DEM say anyone under 250k stays at the current rate the GOP says no. What if, the rate below 250k stayed as it is, the rate between 251k and 500k went up alittle from the current rate, the rate from 501k and 1 million went up alittle more and those over 1 million paid that higher rate proposed by the DEM? Or set the current rate at below 500k and those above are at the higher rates. The country and economy thrived under Clinton with the higher tax rates on the wealthy and the wealthy doesnt drive the economy the middle class does. When the middle class has less tax to pay they have more money to spend, they buy more products, more product buying leads to increases in production needs and that leads to increases in jobs. Our society is consumer directed. Want to improve the economy then strengthen the middle class.
Unfortunately those extremists who are trying to rally the voters that the wealthy should not be taxed more are not acting in the best interests of the country but in the interests of those who fund them. This election was the most expensive electoral process in history on both the presidential level as well as congress and senate races. Couldnt that have been used for better purposes? We need election reform in this country to prevent such outlandish spending from happening again and we also need federal mandated election processes that are bipartisan and not influenced by local and state officials on either side.
Let's all put the retoric behind us and start working together on common problems and find solutions we can live with, break these things down into smaller issues deal with them and move to the next issue. Right now our prime issue is the budget and avoiding the fiscal cliff. Can we just sit down and both compromise instead of take stands and refusing to budge on anything?
I'm in Green Bay, the conservative heartland by any reasonable measure. And there was a saying here that all understood and respected: To he that much has been given, much is expected.
We used to measure our success not by how much we could hoard, but by the communities and society we built. And you would let Human Civilization itself crumble as you clutch your balance sheet.
Treasonous and seditious scum.
Jerold, I hope you were being sarcastic. The wealthy aren't fools? Explain Donald Trump! Liberals want taxes as high as possible, as that is the only way they can survive? Tell that to police officers, firemen, teachers, construction workers, and the millions of other liberal voters who work hard and provide vital services each day. They pay their taxes, and it's often at a much higher rate than the wealthiest of this nation. Yet, they are told they aren't paying enough, that they are lazy, and are the cause of the nation's ills. Meanwhile, dolts like Mitt Romney, (yes, he must be a dolt for the things he has done and said over the past years), pay far less, make far less of a contribution to society, and yet still whine that they pay too much. The wealthy paid much higher taxes under St. Ronnie, yet economic growth was much higher than it was under W, who gave them huge tax cuts. Maybe the wealthy are lazier and whinier than their predecessors of the past years. They certainly have taken arrogance and hubris to levels unseen in living memory. Jerold, I assume that since you are on this blog, you must not be a millionaire, which by your own definition, makes you a fool.
Jerold, slowly back away from the TV and turn off Fox News. Most of those "welfare bimbos" you speak of are actually in red states, where we are told the "real Americans" live. If you get tax deductions of any sort, such as a mortgage deduction, you are by the very definition a taker, not a giver. If you or your family has or will receive social security when you retire, you are by definition a taker, not a giver. If you or your family have received government student loans, you are by definition a taker, not a giver. If you have driven on tax-financed roads, used tax-financed police or fire services, attended a tax-financed public school, you are by definition a taker, not a giver. People didn't vote for Obama because they were getting handouts...they were simply smart enough to see that Romney/Ryan were two of the biggest liars to ever run for the top spots in government, and that their only goals were to take more of the middle class's income and transfer it to the rich in tax cuts to the wealthiest, paying for it with tax increases and service cuts for everyone else, all while working to enact social policies that polls over many years show are opposed by the majority of Americans. If you dont' like the election outcome, I hear that North Korea is accepting ignorant sheeple such as yourself. They don't pay welfare, don't have "SNAP WIC Food Stamp ADC crud"....they let those people die in prison work camps by the millions. In other words, a repub paradise!
Jerod, you are a fool and not living in reality. You are living in FEAR.
You would rather the country continue in a stalemate than even have discussions that might move the country forward. No decision on direction yet; just MOVE.
The's the Tomás de Torquemada of our time
What is with the scruffy, unkempt beard? Isn't that un-Republican, un-Tea Party like? Guess he has had a rough week. This, along with the "poopy head" comment should in and of itself stop anyone from signing his un-American pledge. Or for that matter, ever let him talk to anybody again in the Republican Party. Bye bye Mr. Poopy Head.