John Boehner Cries About Giffords, Heads Over To Cocktail Party

No Tears For AZ Shooting Victims From John Boehner--He's Got A Cocktail Party Fundraiser To Host
Priorities, people. President Obama, the First Lady and several members of the House of Representatives boarded Air Force One en route to the memorial service for the Victims of the Tucson shooting tonight. But Speaker of the House John Boehner isn't one of them. He's got a previous engagement: an RNC cocktail party Fundraiser. No, I'm not kidding: Speaker John Boehner will host a cocktail party for the Republican National Committee at the same time that President Barack Obama will be addressin...

Boehner Didnt Really Snub Obama, Giffords Rally
House Speaker John Boehner is catching a lot of flack for missing last night’s memorial service in Tucson, reportedly declining an Air Force One invitation from President Obama in order to slap backs and clink glasses at an RNC event. But a look at the timeline of events paints Boehner in a better light. Yesterday, House members attended a vigil for Victims of the Arizona Shooting Spree in an auditorium underneath the Capitol Visitor’s Center. As they trickled in, a House aide provid...

Premeditated Spin?
I understand that the spin coming out of the Right this morning is that the Tucson memorial was too much like a pep rally or even a campaign rally. Some are comparing it to Paul Wellstone’s Funeral, which righties ripped for being a political rally. Like someone made them the funeral police. I only watched a bit of the memorial, and did find the cheering a bit jarring. But, y’know, I wasn’t there. Experiences are much more intense for people who are really experiencing them a...

House to Consider Health Care Repeal Next Week
The House of Representatives will consider the bill to Repeal the President Obama's Health Care overhaul next week, the office of House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) said today. The new Republican majority initially planned to consider the Repeal bill this week as one of its first orders of business. However, this week's regular plans were put on hold after the Mass Shooting in Tucson, Ariz. that left Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.) in critical condition. "As the White House noted, it ...

Speaker Boehner skips Tucson memorial for RNC cocktail party
Stumble This! The new speaker of the House skipped a nationally televised memorial in Arizona honoring Victims of Saturday's shootings, opting instead to host a cocktail party Wednesday night. Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) declined an offer to ride to Tucson on Air Force One with President Barack Obama and other lawmakers, Politico reported. A Democratic leadership aide told the newspaper it was "disrespectful" of the speaker to miss the memorial service in order to attend a partisan political ev...

Boehner skips memorial for Ariz. shooting victims
House Speaker John Boehner did not attend last night's Tucson memorial service for Victims of the Arizona shooting rampage. Politico reports Boehner was at a Washington reception for Maria Cino, who is running for chairwoman of the Republican National Committee. An unnamed Democratic aide, speaking to Politico, said it was "disrespectful" for Boehner to skip the memorial. A Democrat identified as a senior congressional aide criticized Boehner in story by The Daily Caller for declining President ...

Boehner Slips
House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) turned down an offer by President Obama "to travel on Air Force One to Arizona for a memorial service on behalf of the Victims of Saturday's shooting, a decision that has upset some Democrats," Politico reports. Boehner instead attended a reception last night on behalf of Maria Cino, "a former top House GOP aide who is seeking the Republican National Committee chairmanship." "Senior Democrats -- who to date had been impressed with Boehner's response to the Ariz...

No, Boehner didnt snub memorial rally
This obnoxious meme began last night when word got out that House Speaker John Boehner didn’t travel with Barack Obama to Arizona for last night’s memorial in Tucson.  Boehner snubbed Obama!  He snubbed Giffords! As Brian Beutler points out at TPM, a look at the schedule makes it clear that Boehner had little choice but to stay in DC (via Radley Balko at Reason): House Speaker John Boehner is catching a lot of flack for missing last night’s memorial service in Tucson, repo

John Boehner and "Public Crying"
The phenomenon of Republican men championing the "public crying" of other men, including and especially men in visible positions of authority and power like Boehner, while leftist Democratic women condemn and ridicule the same can be explained in one word: politics. House Majority Leader John Boehner is all the talk these days. Yet interestingly, although his is the face of what could very well have amounted to the largest victory over their opponents this past Election Day that Republ...

House to resume health care repeal next week
Baltimore (CNN) - After a week-long pause in legislative business to honor Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, House Republicans will resume regular business next week- and hold a vote to Repeal the Health Care law. "Americans have legitimate concerns about the cost of the new Health Care law and its affect on the ability to grow jobs in our country," said Brad Dayspring, spokesman for House Majority Leader Eric Cantor. The Health Care Repeal vote had been scheduled for this week, but GOP leaders pos...

John Boehner Said NO
From Pirate’s Cove NY Times: More Gun Control! John Boehner: “No” by William Teach Why, yes, the NY Times editorial board is still beating the anti-gun drum, in an attempt to make sure a good tragedy does not go to waste. After discussing Rep Peter King’s silly notion of not allowing guns within 1,000 feet of politicians, something which criminals and wacko’s would surely ignore, because they are criminals and wacko’s. Representative James Clyburn, a Democrat of South C

Capitol Hill tries to find new normal
Four days after a gunman killed six people, injured 14 others and rocked the Capitol Hill community, leaving one of its own in critical condition, normal is nowhere in sight for Congress. On Wednesday, Congress set aside planned business to take up an itinerary that pulled a shocked community between matters of the heart and those of basic physical security, with a string of events that sought to soothe mournful souls and rattled nerves. Continue Reading Text Size - + reset Politico 44 The Ho...

Gingrich touts South Carolina ahead of visit
(CNN) - If Newt Gingrich decides to run for president, as it is expected he will, it appears the former House Speaker will put a lot of stock into the South Carolina primary. Ahead of yet another visit to the Palmetto State - this time to court Small Business owners in Myrtle Beach - Gingrich highlighted in an interview with McClatchy News that the state has a strong record of picking the GOP presidential nominee. "South Carolina has picked the last five Republican presidential...

House to resume work on health-care repeal next week
The House will begin debating the health-care Repeal bill next week, following a week during which legislative action came to a standstill in the wake of the Tucson shooting tragedy. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor's (R-Va.) office announced Thursday that debate on the bill, which passed a procedural hurdle late last week, is expected to begin when the House convenes early next week. A vote is expected Wednesday. "As the White House noted, it is important for Congress to get back to work, and ...

Freshman Rep. Grimm: Low-Cost Ways To Make Congress More Secure
Rep. Michael Grimm (R-N.Y.), a former FBI Special Agent and combat Marine, sent a letter to House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) Tuesday night recommending security training for Members of Congress. Grimm is against knee-jerk Legislation in the aftermath of the attempted Assassination of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.) last Saturday, but does suggest Members of Congress be trained to protect themselves. In an exclusive interview with HUMAN EVENTS on his security plan, Grimm said, “Legisl...

Colorado's Mark Udall Wants Democrats, GOP to Sit Together at State of the Union
Sen. Mark Udall, a Colorado Democrat, thinks members of his party and Republicans should sit together -- not on opposite sides of the aisle -- when President Obama delivers his State of the Union message to a joint session of Congress on Jan. 25. In a "Dear Colleague" letter reported by NPR and Politico , Udall said, "There is no rule or reason that on this night we should emphasize divided government, separated by party, instead of being seen united as a country. The choreographed standing and...

He was talking about you, NYT
From the New York Times lead editorial today: “Mr. Obama called on ideological campaigners to stop vilifying their opponents. The only way to move forward after such a tragedy, he said, is to cast aside “point-scoring and pettiness.” He rightly focused primarily on the lives of those who died and the heroism of those who tried to stop the shooter and save the Victims. He urged prayers for the 14 wounded, including Representative Gabrielle Giffords, the target of the rampage. Their st...

Boehner's role
Seems like he's still figuring it out a bit: Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) turned down an offer by President Barack Obama to travel on Air Force One to Arizona for a memorial service on behalf of the Victims of Saturday’s shooting, a decision that has upset some Democrats. Boehner is instead scheduled to attend a reception on Wednesday night on behalf of Maria Cino, a former top House GOP aide who is seeking the Republican National Committee chairmanship. Boehner is backing Cino’s ...

Some context on Boehner endorsement
Some context on John Boehner's official Endorsement of Maria Cino for RNC chair. Boehner goes out of his way to ensure he's never seen as a Kingmaker. When it comes to internal House politics, he stays out of chairmanship races, and often would rather let proposals fail than be seen as putting his finger on the scale. Cino is a longtime Boehner ally, and he thinks her "past experience would make her a great chair during this important time," an aide tells Politico "Speaker Boehn...

Abdication of duty
Abdication of Duty by digby So much for Bipartisan healing: Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) turned down an offer by President Barack Obama to travel on Air Force One to Arizona for a memorial service on behalf of the Victims of Saturday’s shooting, a decision that has upset some Democrats. Boehner is instead scheduled to attend a reception on Wednesday night on behalf of Maria Cino, a former top House GOP aide who is seeking the Republican National Committee chairmanship. Boehner is backing C...

Speaker Boehner turned down trip to Tucson to attend RNC fundraiser
Last night as President Obama was delivering his "We can be better" Speech in Arizona Speaker John Boehner was attending a cocktail party Fundraiser in Washington D.C.  Multiple Republicans joined President Obama on Air Force One for the trip to the Tucson memorial, including Representative Paul Gosar (R-AZ) and Ben Quayle (R-AZ).  Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Representative Debbie Wasserman-Shultiz (D-FL) were also on the trip.  Speaker Boehner was invited to join all ...

House Republicans Staging Annual Retreat: This Time, It's Members Only
It's politics as usual starting Thursday for U.S. House Republicans -- not that there is anything wrong with that. The new majority under Speaker John Boehner heads north to Baltimore for a three-day, closed-door, members-only retreat at a hotel near the Inner Harbor, an entertainment mecca on the waterfront. House leaders will entertain guests, such as former Speaker Newt Gingrich and former Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour -- but not President Obama, who made a splash at their retreat last year ...

Boehner Skips AZ Memorial to do RNC Politicking
Sen. Kristen Gillibrand, Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), and former Speaker Nancy Pelosi were in Rep. Gabrielle Gifford's Hospital room when she opened her eyes. The entire Arizona delegation, including President Obama's 2008 rival Sen. John McCain and his wife Cindy, were in the stadium watching the President console 14,000 mourners. Michelle Obama held tightly onto Gifford's husband Mark Kelly's hand. But where was Speaker John Boehner? Politico reported this morning that the newly ele...

Obama towers above Palin; Boehner rises to the occasion
What America has witnessed in the last 24 hours is a president of the United States who acted like a president of the United States, a Speaker of the House who acted like a Speaker of the House — and Sarah Palin, a pretender to the presidency who acted like a divisive, selfish, small-minded self-promoter. This is not about blaming Palin for anything, or commenting about her bizarre and typically divisive use of the phrase "blood Libel.” This is about pur

Boehner's blunder? House Speaker picks cocktail party over Tucson memorial
House Speaker John Boehner is taking heat from some Democrats after skipping out on Wednesday's memorial service for the Shooting Victims in Arizona and instead hosting a cocktail party for the Republican National Committee.   The Ohio Republican turned down President Obama's invitation to travel on Air Force One to Tucson, Politico reported.   "It is disrespectful for Speaker Boehner to skip joining the President's and Bipartisan congressional delegation to the Tucson Memorial so he could h...