If you haven't heard?!

[Carloscda]

Jim Bunning's Block on Unemployment Benefits

If those repubs won we'd be seriously F***ED RIGHT NOW!!

White House: Bunning?s Block on Unemployment Benefits is ?Fundamentally Not Fair? - Political Punch

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[FORD]

Bunning is a fucking idiot. And like Steve Largent before him, a living testament to the fact that former professional athletes should never consider politics as a second career.

[sadaist]

Jobless Benefits to End, But Likely Only For a Couple Days

The Senate will pass an unemployment benefits extension this week, Sen. Jon Kyl said Sunday, but said it was right of Sen. Jim Bunning, R-Ky., to hold up the legislation last week because the money to pay for it hasn't been found.

Speaking on "Fox News Sunday," Kyl said Bunning's decision to block a $10 billion temporary extension of jobless aid was to point out the hypocrisy of the Senate exempting the legislation from a just-passed bill requiring Congress to pay for legislation as it comes up, commonly referred to as PAYGO.

"All Senator Bunning was saying is that it should be paid for," Kyl said. "It will pass, though, because it's a temporary extension."

Kyl said the fate of a longer-term, $100 billion jobless benefits package is uncertain because it too does not fall under PAYGO.

Unemployment insurance and COBRA benefits are set to expire at the end of the day on Sunday for about 1 million out-of-work Americans.

The failure to pass an extension reflects partly the partisan gridlock that has stalled the Democratic legislative agenda and partly the power of one senator to use their privilege to object to votes that don't require a roll call.

But the Senate will likely be able to renew them with a Tuesday vote when the Senate returns to session.

Bunning, who is retiring at the end of the year after failing to win the support of his Kentucky colleague and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, has been a bit of an outcast in the past year. But his objection to the unanimous consent motion highlighted the habit of lawmakers to violate the very rules they put in place.

It also raised the question of whether Bunning was giving some payback to Senate Majority leader Harry Reid for abandoning an $85 billion bipartisan jobs bill for incremental pieces that he is bringing up one at a time.

"All of the programs that you have talked about could have been extended and for much longer periods if Senator Reid, your leader, had not blown up the bipartisan job bill," Bunning said.

Democrats argued that the vote was needed to prevent people from living without any safety net. They called it an emergency and said funding would be figured out later.

Vice President Biden called Bunning's actions fundamentally unfair, and claimed Americans don't understand the "types of games" the Republican lawmaker is playing.

"He's blocking the extension of unemployment insurance, which means if he succeeds, 1 million people, 1 million people next month will be thrown off the unemployment rolls †¦One million people will thrown into nothing but what I would call despair," Biden said.

Bunning's move may have only delayed legislation for a few days, but it has brought out the worst in some. So far this weekend, police have checked out two of Bunning's offices for bomb threats.

FOXNews.com - Jobless Benefits to End, But Likely Only For a Couple Days

[Seshmeister]

Mongiardo, Bunning camps trade barbs

In October, 2004 Bunning told reporters "Let me explain something: I don't watch the national news, and I don't read the paper. I haven't done that for the last six weeks. I watch Fox News to get my information."

[Seshmeister]

When Bunning retires this year you will all get to pay him a $140 000 a year pension for his time in the Senate even though he was already of pension age when he started.

It's an amazing coincidence that he hasn't tried to cut that jobless benefit...

[bueno bob]

When Bunning retires this year you will all get to pay him a $140 000 a year pension for his time in the Senate even though he was already of pension age when he started.

It's an amazing coincidence that he hasn't tried to cut that jobless benefit...

Don't give him any ideas...

[jhale667]

I like how this douche mentioned he was "sacrificing" watching a fucking basketball game so he could block this...what an ass.

Republicans sure have the best interests of taxpayers in mind with their agenda..."Unemployment benefits about to run out? Sucks to be you!"

[knuckleboner]

the greatest thing is that bunning has NEVER voted for ANYTHING that would raise the deficit.

you know, except for the 2001 tax cuts. which, as an added bonus, also passed under reconciliation.

goodbye, senator bunning. when you retire, the senate certainly will miss your hypocricy...

[hambon4lif]

I'm having difficulty understanding this guy....is he a Republican, or a double-agent undercover Democrat?
The reason I ask is because with one swift sleazy move over the weekend, this guy shot the Repubes dead in the foot as far as their chances of gaining majority come mid-term.

I have to laugh at the Repube reaction when they all came into work Monday morning....."He did WHAT?!?"

He seems to be more of a total embarrasment to the Republican party than a representative, which makes me question his disposition.
This guy's either eaten alive by bitterness, or truly the dumbest motherfucker to ever exist.....EVER!
We've had our Quayles and Palins, but this guy takes the goddamn cake.

[Carloscda]

truly the dumbest motherfucker to ever exist.....EVER!

EXACTLY!!

[Little Texan]

This guy's either eaten alive by bitterness, or truly the dumbest motherfucker to ever exist.....EVER!
We've had our Quayles and Palins, but this guy takes the goddamn cake.

I think he may have been beaned in the head one too many times in his baseball playing career.

[BigBadBrian]

The reason I ask is because with one swift sleazy move over the weekend, this guy shot the Repubes dead in the foot as far as their chances of gaining majority come mid-term.

He's not running for reelection and he is adamant that Congress come up with $10B to pay for this.

I thought the democrats wanted to solve the deficit problem?

Besides, he knows another unemployment bill is coming later in the week, one that will have the money to fund unemployment. This will all be forgotten after this week.

[jhale667]

He's not running for reelection

Because he was begged not to run again by the Repuke brass due to his "erratic" behavior of late.

and he is adamant that Congress come up with $10B to pay for this.

Oh, NOW he develops a conscience, how convenient!

I thought the democrats wanted to solve the deficit problem?

They do. But not by screwing people out of unemployment benefits and halting construction projects...

Besides, he knows another unemployment bill is coming later in the week, one that will have the money to fund unemployment. This will all be forgotten after this week.

Doubtful. He's made a complete ass of himself, and is hurting his party as a result.