“If the final bill is passed by establishment Republicans and House Democrats and does not include a balanced budget amendment as a requirement, it will be completely unacceptable and will be seen as a violation of the mandate that the tea party and like-minded people gave Republicans in 2010,” said Ryan Hecker
Posts tagged as:
John Boehner
Ryan Hecker, a Houston lawyer who was the impetus behind a Tea Party-backed document called the Contract From America, said that even though some of the items in the new Pledge are identical to parts of the Contract From America, Republicans in Washington cannot assume that releasing a set of promises will automatically win over Tea Party activists.
When asked about any connection between the two documents during Thursdays event, House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, downplayed any link. “We listened to all Americans as we put this together,” Boehner said. “Our members over the last four months have done thousands of town hall meetings, public forums, private meetings to listen to the American people and bring their ideas back to Washington.” However, after the event a senior member of the Republican House leadership told Fox News, “That document had a lot of influence on ours. No question about it.”
We are pleased that the Republicans were so heavily influenced by the message of the grassroots Contract from America that their “Pledge to America” includes many of our Contract’s planks, including the top-voted idea to “Protect the Constitution” by requiring every bill to cite Constitutional authority, rejection of Cap and Trade, the imposition of meaningful spending limits, repeal of government-run health care, and extension of the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts.
House GOP takes a cue from the Contract FROM America and issues a “Pledge to America.” The document combines both substance and a focus on fiscal issues. While there is much to digest (it weighs in a 20 pages!), it seems they have started listening to the American people and are ready to make your priorities, their priorities.
“I think (House Republican leaders) are definitely more credible now than they were in October 2008″ when many Republicans joined with many Democrats to support the Wall Street bailout, said Ryan Hecker [founder of the Contract from America initiative]. “They gain more credibility the more they listen.”
“I think it is great that House Republicans are listening to the people and borrowing from the tea party movement and the Contract from America project,” Hecker said in a press release. A handful of GOP lawmakers and candidates have signed onto the Contract from America since its inception, including Sens. Jim DeMint and Tom Coburn.
