Not your granddaddy’s Bamboozlepalooza!!!
Today’s Roll Call (sub. req.) has a piece, announcing renewed White House-Congressional coordination pushing phase-out <$NoAd$> and what I guess is some sort of super-duper now-we’re-serious Bamboozlepalooza.
âWeâre looking at putting all the bells and whistles on the Social Security message train,â said Ron Bonjean, spokesman for Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.), who himself appeared to be off message last week when he said a Social Security overhaul, including private accounts, may not be possible until next spring.
Indeed, getting nervous Republican Members to publicly support the White Houseâs proposal is a key goal of the campaign, which begins this week with high-profile House and Senate press conferences and a staged Senate floor debate between Republicans and Democrats.
âItâs important that Republican leaders on the Hill and in the White House show Members that theyâre very serious when it comes to communicating the message on Social Security,â said Bonjean. âIt shows the seriousness that our leaders have toward reforming Social Security by pounding home our message on a weekly basis.â
Republican spindoctors in Congress hope that all the planned events over the next month will complement the presidentâs own 60-day speaking tour. Bush reached his 30-day midpoint on Friday.
It’s worth noting that most of the big quotes come from Hastert’s guy Ron Bonjean. And this whole piece may be something Hastert felt he needed to do after he found that severed horse head at the foot of his bad over the weekend. (After all, they’ve gotten better men than Hastert to recant after a trip to The Chamber.)
But, this definitely isn’t over.
So let’s see those senators and reps get up on the floor and announce their support for phase-out. Let’s draw the drum tighter. We can’t wait. Especially the switch-hitters like Chris Chocola and Heather Wilson and Jeb Bradley. For now let’s just start with the Conscience Caucus list. Who among them is going to flip?
