Earlier this month, Baron Hill cheered the passage of PAYGO rules by Congress.

What Baron didn’t mention was that the approval of these so-called “Pay As You GO” rules was accompanied by a record increase in the Federal debt ceiling to accomodate the vast new deficits created by the spending that has been advocated by Obama and voted for by Baron Hill.

This hypocrisy was not lost on ABC News:

President Obama used his weekly address to highlight the “pay-as-you-go” rule he signed into law Friday – within the bill which also raises federal debt limit to $14.3 trillion — a number which Obama does not mention once during his address.

Such interesting contradictions, such as voting simultaneously to skyrocket the debt ceiling while passing phony deficit reduction fig leaves, reminds me of the entertaining confession of Saint Augustine: “Lord make me good, but not yet.”

Of course, the problem with PAYGO is that there is no becoming good later, because PAYGO is a scam. It’s a hoax devised by budget-busting Blue Dog Democrats to try and hoodwink their constituents into believing that they actually care about the deficits they are voting to create.

What Baron can count on is that local newspapers, such as the News & Tribune, will parrot his press releases praising PAYGO without ever taking the time to investigate the facts about it. For example, the News & Tribune never mentioned that the PAYGO bill itself contained a provision that blew the roof off of the Federal debt ceiling.

On the subject of PAYGO, Citizens Against Government Waste notes just a few of its many problems and the hypocritical contradictions of so-called “Blue Dogs” like Baron Hill:

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A letter in Sunday’s News & Tribune:

Resident unhappy with Hill’s votes

Dear Congressman Baron Hill,

I believe you could save the taxpayers a lot of money if you would just throw the Constitution in the trash, get rid of the House of Representatives, and Senate, with the exception of Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, and, of course, the president. They are making all the laws anyway.

That way we could save all your salaries, the salaries of your staffs, the expense of your offices, the expense of all those “fact-finding trips,” their travel to and from Washington, and the expense of upkeep of the Capitol. Perhaps, we could rent it to the Chinese. They will probably be looking for a large office building soon.

You may be able to see the sarcasm in the above statement. I believe in the Constitution, even if you, as my elected representative, don’t.

As I understand that document, you are to represent your constituents, not your leaders. According to the polls, 61 percent of us are against the health care bill. That doesn’t seem to affect you in your vote.

You call yourself a Blue Dog Democrat. Your record doesn’t support that. I cannot vouch for all bills, but lately you have voted right down the line with Pelosi.

The so-called “stimulus bills” have failed, I feel, and now I am hearing that the president wants another one. I have always heard that, “an idiot is one who keeps doing the same thing and expects a different outcome.”

I wish you would take a page from the Democrat’s hero playbook — President Kennedy — and reduce taxes to the people that do the hiring, putting people to work.

Tax revenues go up and we will surely need to have more tax money to pay for all the free money you have given out. This has worked every time it has been tried, so we shouldn’t get a different result.

— Gordon McCall, Charlestown

Exactly. It’s like I said earlier:

Baron is always there when Barack Obama and Nancy Pelosi need him.

When the vote margins on the Obama-Pelosi agenda are close or when the issue is important to them, Baron is there.

When they don’t need him or when the issue is minor, Baron makes a big phony celebration of being “independent.”

When Barack Obama and Nancy Pelosi needed his vote for the $787 billion “stimulus” boondoggle, Baron was there.

When Barack Obama and Nancy Pelosi needed his vote to raise taxes on working Americans, Baron was there.

When crooked Congressman Charlie Rangel needed Democrats to vote to cover up his corruption, Baron was there.

When Barack Obama and Nancy Pelosi needed his vote for cap-and-trade to strangle Hoosier jobs, Baron was there.

When Barack Obama and Nancy Pelosi needed his vote for a government takeover of health care paid for by slashing Medicare, Baron was there.

When they need him, Baron is always there.

Show me one place where Baron voted against something on final passage that Barack Obama and Nancy Pelosi wanted when what they wanted didn’t pass anyway, and it will be the first.

Here’s who voted to not cap your property taxes:

Avery, Dennis (D-75)
Dvorak, Ryan (D-8)
Leonard, Dan (R-50)
Stilwell, Russ (D-74)
Bardon, Jeb (D-25)
Fry, Craig (D-5)
Pelath, Scott (D-9)
Summers, Vanessa (D-99)
Bartlett, John (D-95)
GiaQuinta, Phil (D-80)
Pflum, Phil (D-56)
Tincher, Vern (D-46)
Battles, Kreig (D-64)
Harris, Earl (D-2)
Pierce, Matt (D-61)
VanHaaften, Trent (D-76)
Brown,Charles (D-3)
Kersey, Clyde (D-43)
Saunders, Thomas (R-54)
Welch, Peggy (D-60)
Crawford, William (D-98)
Knollman, Thomas (R-55)
Smith, Vernon (D-14)

It’s true. Ben Nelson sold out the pro-life movement with his decision to vote for cloture on ObamaCare.

But Nelson, inarguably, got something for his state in exchange.

From the Washington Post:

Nelson secured full federal funding for his state to expand Medicaid coverage to all individuals below 133 percent of the federal poverty level. Other states must pay a small portion of the additional cost. He won concessions for qualifying nonprofit insurers and for Medigap providers from a new insurance tax, and was able to roll back cuts to health savings accounts.

A dirty secret of Harry Reid’s latest legislative Frankenstein is that it will push the costs of increases in Medicaid off onto the states.

Ben Nelson, at least, sold his vote in exchange for making the other 49 states pay for the cost increases in Nebraska, instead of Nebraska’s state budget having to pay for it.

What did Evan Bayh sell his vote for? Do Hoosiers, facing a huge budget shortfall as we do, get a similar exemption?

And if we don’t, why isn’t Evan Bayh threatening to kill ObamaCare to get similar special treatment for Indiana?

Why would Evan Bayh vote for legislation that will crush Indiana’s budget but give a free pass to Nebraska (and, in fact, make Hoosiers pay for Nebraska’s free pass)?

Why not be as ornery and contrary as Nelson and, at least, get a free pass for Hoosiers, too?

Why does Evan Bayh value Nebraskans over Hoosiers?

Roll call vote is here.

Baron’s statement is here.

Donnelly’s statement is here.

Ellsworth, as of this posting, is hiding (probably still begging Right-to-Life to leave him alone) and hasn’t put a statement out yet.

Poor Baron. He realized too late that he’s probably about to have an opponent capable of holding him accountable for his liberal votes. He hasn’t had that so far.

Accountability’s coming, Baron, and it’s driving a semi truck.

Again Congressman Burton standing up to Big Government and looking out for the Constituents in the 5th Congressional District! He pretty much tells it like it is!!

MSNBC.com paints a grim picture of the federal budget deficit:

WASHINGTON – The federal budget deficit has surged to an all-time high of $1.42 trillion as the recession caused tax revenues to plunge while the government was spending massive amounts to stabilize the financial system and jump-start the economy.

The imbalance for the budget year ended Sept. 30 more than tripled last year’s record. The Obama administration projects deficits will total $9.1 trillion over the next decade unless corrective action is taken.

Yes, after Democrats spent eight years lambasting George W. Bush for the budget deficit, President Obama is presiding over record deficit spending. Of course, the fiscal year that ended 9/30 isn’t Obama’s baby – it was enacted during the Bush administration. That said, Obama has proposed record increases in government spending including the “stimulus” bill. It just so happens that much of the “stimulus” will be spent as Democrats try to hold onto their majority in the House and turn back a GOP effort to repeat 1994.

Of course, Democrats argue that the objections to Obama’s deficit spending is based on race. That’s silly. A number of Republicans have been very critical of Bush, specifically Bush’s signature on a law that expanded the federal government’s role in primary and secondary education, a failed effort to grant amnesty to illegal aliens, his signature on a law creating a brand new federal entitlement program and his signature on the obscene “campaign finance reform” law authored by failed 2008 Republican Presidential nominee John McCain. One of the most consistent voices critical of Bush was none other than radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh.

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A counterpoint to some of my prior Mitch for President speculation, summed up shortly by Blue County in a Red State:

I’m not drinking Mitch’s cool-aid. He can boast of Indiana’s ranking on business taxes, or that we’re the best in the Midwest, but the fact is that he raised the sales tax to 7%, second highest in the nation. He signed legislation forcing Lake County to implement an income tax.

He is not a tax cutter, he’s a tax raiser.

I want to see Indiana on a road back to a 5% sales tax, and eliminating the income tax entirely, including the county “option” income taxes. Those 11 states that beat us in business taxes often have NO income tax whatsoever, and they all have lower sales taxes than we do.

Mitch boasts of drawing businesses to Indiana, but the fact is that most jobs are created by entrepreneurs, and entrepreneurs need low personal income taxes to get started. They’re constantly cash-starved, and every dollar that goes to income taxes is a dollar that’s not available to the business.

Mitch just doesn’t get that.

Mitch also signed the biggest tax increase on business in state history, but I digress.

Speculation is also emerging about former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum and Indiana Congressman Mike Pence.

The Environmental Defense Fund, which favors cap-and-trade legislation, commissioned a push poll in three conservative districts held by Democrats to build support for a renewed push for cap-and-trade legislation that will raise taxes on energy.

From Who Runs Gov:

It’s become a Beltway article of faith that Blue Dog and conservative Dems have to tread really carefully on health care because their vote on cap and trade earlier this year was tremendously risky in so-called “marginal” districts.

But is this really true? I’ve obtained a new poll done for the Environmental Defense Fund which found that in three conserva-Dem districts, backing cap and trade vote may not be a huge risk, after all. The poll, done by respected Dem firm Garin Hart Yang, found:

* In Blue Dog Dem Heath Shuler’s North Carolina dictrict, cap and trade is supported by 55% of voters, versus 29% opposed.

* In Blue Dog Dem Baron Hill’s Indiana district, cap and trade is supported by 45%, versus 30% opposed.

* In Dem Rep. Tom Perriello’s conservative Virginia district, cap and trade is supported by 42%, versus 25% opposed.

“We went into three districts where conventional wisdom held that Demorats took a tough vote on cap and trade,” Allan Rivlin, a partner with Garin Hart Yang, told me. “The poll shows that it didn’t hurt these members in these districts. It actually helps them. Even in districts that are represented by moderate or conservative Democrats, supporting action on climate change is the popular position to take.”

Garin Hart Yang is the same pollster that does Baron Hill’s campaign polling (or at least has in the past).

The full poll is available here (PDF warning) from Politico, which has already started to cite the poll as proof that this tax hike vote would actually be popular in these conservative (and in at least IN-9, coal-dependent) districts.

The question was one of those absurd “do you like clean air” questions that the respondent would have to think for a moment about before realizing that they were being asked about cap-and-trade:

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9-12-2009 the day History was made in the United States and it happened in our Capitol where the laws are made…DC! It was called the 9-12 Tea Party and it was huge, what ever the numbers, Police and Park officials estimate the crowd between 1 and 2 million…liberals have obviously downplayed it over the weekend as Conservative Blogger Michelle Malkin reports on her blog.

I followed the updates from DC on Twitter from the ladies at Smart Girl Politics, Tabitha Hale, Rebecca Wales and many others who were out in DC participating in the event. Tabitha and Rebecca did a wonderful job informing those who could not attend and they got the message out loud and clear. You can see the photos from Tabitha’s page here and here.

Whatever your thoughts on this Tea Party, remember this one thing, people are ticked off and they are not going to take this Government spending spree, shove down your throat Health Care and raise your energy taxes Cap and Trade! We as a people are tired of being pushed around and I can tell you that I will do everything that I can to get the right Candidates in office to do the right thing for our Country.

Whatever your opinion on this 9-12 party…this will go down in the history books as one of the largest events in DC as far as a protest goes. I am disappointed I missed it, but I know and have a feeling their will be another one soon! So keep up the fight y’all and fight hard!

Thanks to all of those who kept us updated through Twitter and Facebook!

Power Line:

You Can Fool 6 Percent of the People All the Time

Every once in a while you see something like this, and have reason to hope that common sense is not dead: only 6 percent of voters expect their own taxes to decline during the Obama administration. 42 percent expect their taxes to rise, while 40 percent expect little change.

Which means that when Barack Obama says that he intends to reduce taxes for 95% of Americans, almost no one believes him.

Quote in the title from Vodkapundit.

Despite a valiant effort by John Boehner to use the expanded prerogatives of the Minority Leader position to filibuster the vote, Nancy Pelosi and the House of Representatives have passed cap and trade legislation.

Video of a particular highlight of Boehner’s effort is below.

The final margin for passage was 219 to 212.

Eight Republicans were the margin for the bill’s passage. Two Hoosier Democrats–Baron Hill and Andre Carson–also voted for it and provided invaluable assistance in putting this new national energy tax over the top. Even Pete Visclosky voted against it (its provisions will kill industry in his district).

In a curious quirk, Baron Hill voted against bringing the legislation to a vote before he voted to make it the law of the land. No doubt he will seek to use the contradictory votes to again confuse the 9th District electorate; somehow I think that they won’t be fooled this time.

FiveThirtyEight breaks down a low-ball estimate of the cost of the legislation by state; by their math Hoosier households will pay $211 more a year.

By the math of my local electric company–when asked by the local newspaper that used to be owned by Democratic Governor Frank O’Bannon–the average Hoosier electric bill will increase by $50 a month if this legislation becomes law. Bill proponents claim that this amount will be reduced by recent amendments, but I have seen nothing substantive to actually back up that assertion.

The most common amount cited is that of $3,100, produced from an academic study by MIT.

Power Line even has a map about which states will pay and which will benefit from the legislation. With two exceptions (Idaho and South Dakota), every state that will benefit from the legislation will be a blue state either on the west coast or in the northeast. Flyover country gets screwed.

Regardless of the range, the costs of this legislation are very real. You can figure the cost in the immediate amount that your electric bill will go up ($50 a month) or in the costs you will pay when prices for everything go up as producers and businesses are inevitably forced to pass taxes on to consumers ($3,100 by some estimates).

Eight Republicans voted for this monstrosity.

They are:

Mary Bono Mack [California 45]
Mike Castle [Delaware]
Mark Kirk [Illinois 10]
Leonard Lance [New Jersey 7]
Frank LoBiondo [New Jersey 2]
John McHugh [New York 23]
Dave Reichert [Washington 8]
Christopher Smith [New Jersey 4]

Three of the YEA Republicans came from New Jersey (Lance, LoBiondo, Smith).

Two came from likely 2010 Senate candidates (Castle and Kirk).

One came from Obama’s future Secretary of the Army (McHugh).

And two Republicans, Jeff Flake and John Sullivan, did not vote at all.

Forty-four brave Democrats, including three Indiana Democrats (Donnelly, Ellsworth, and Visclosky) opposed the legislation.

Had those Republicans had that sort of fortitude, this bill would have died in the House. Now it goes to the Senate, where it will hopefully meet its end.