Leaders~ Moving America Forward~

[SunSeeker]

15. Amazingly smart and strong leadership.

It was a total win. As Rachel Maddow explained tonight, the income verification provision is already in the ACA; this "concession" amounts to little more than a clarification that this term is in fact there and will be enforced. Rachel used the analogy of saying it is about as much of a concession as Dems letting the GOP call the day after Tuesday "Wednesday." In other words, they got nothing. 

On the other hand, the Dems got a whole lot. The debt ceiling is raised and the government is back open while the GOP is finally forced to negotiate a new budget that will get away from the sequester terms (after refusing Dems' 21 separate requests to do so over the last year). What no one is talking about (only Rachel pointed it out tonight) is that the Dems ALSO got a whole list of funding items tacked onto the debt ceiling legislation: 
1. Colorado flood recovery  
2. Wildfire recovery 
3. Wildfire prevention  
4. Ohio River Construction project  
5. Payment of $174K owed to former Senator Frank Lautenberg's widow  
6. Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board  
7. LI-HEAP (low income heating assistance)

And that passed the House tonight with 87 GOP votes. It is a resounding victory over the Tea Party's attempted economic coup. I am thrilled.