Sept. 28, 2013, Fairfax, VA—Americans for Limited Government President Nathan Mehrens today issued the following statement praising the House of Representatives for offering a continuing resolution that will delay implementation and funding of Obamacare for one year:

“Americans for Limited Government applauds the House GOP for remaining resolute in their commitment to stop the Obamacare train wreck that is moving forward.”

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at (703)383-0880  or at media@algnews.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts including ALG President Nathan Mehrens.

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Sept. 27, 2013, Fairfax, VA—Americans for Limited Government President Nathan Mehrens today issued the following statement urging the House of Representatives to stand firm in its opposition to any continuing resolution that allows Obamacare to be funded:

“House Republicans can still win the day on the effort to stop Obamacare if they keep their resolve to fight the implementation of the law. Today’s Senate vote changes nothing and the House is under no obligation to bend to Obama and Harry Reid’s will. The specter of Obamacare hangs over our nation’s economy, threatening the health and well being of millions of Americans.

“The effort to stop Obamacare is now a high stakes game of chicken precipitated by Harry Reid’s unwillingness to talk to House Speaker John Boehner. Americans from all walks of life ranging from heavily Democratic unions like the International Brotherhood of Teamsters and the Nevada AFL-CIO to free market supporters like Americans for Limited Government agree that Obamacare is a disaster waiting to happen.

“If the House Republicans stand firm in their commitment to stop implementation of this law, they will find widespread support. And if Harry Reid remains obstinate, he will find many of his former political allies wondering why they ever supported him in the first place. Now is not the time for the faint of heart. It is time for those who believe in less government to hold the line and to once again send Harry Reid an offer he can’t refuse that funds the government and stops Obamacare from being implemented.”

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at (703)383-0880 or at media@algnews.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts including ALG President Nathan Mehrens.

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Sept. 27, 2013, Fairfax, VA—Americans for Limited Government President Nathan Mehrens today issued the following statement condemning the U.S. Senate for invoking cloture on a continuing resolution that ultimately will allow Obamacare to be funded:

“It is extremely disappointing that a number of Senate Republicans led by Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and Minority Whip John Cornyn joined Harry Reid in allowing Obamacare to be funded. The absurdity of these Republicans complaining about a procedural tactic when the lives and health of millions of Americans are at stake is inexplicable.

“Each of these Republicans have previously opposed Obamacare. With this vote in favor of cloture of a continuing resolution that allows Obamacare to be funded, they have effectively allowed Obama, Reid, and Pelosi to move forward with their train wreck of a plan. In doing so, they can no longer claim that they are willing to do anything it takes to stop Obamacare.

“Unless other actions are taken immediately to stop the implementation of Obamacare, the Senators who voted for cloture today own the law every bit as much as if they had originally supported it. There are some who will try to explain that the Republicans simply don’t have a majority in the Senate. However, unlike when Obamacare was passed, Republicans do have the votes to stop anything in the Senate if they only had the will. And today, by invoking cloture they gave away that power.

“This failure of courage exhibited today will haunt Senate Republicans well into the future.”

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at (703)383-0880 or at media@algnews.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts including ALG President Nathan Mehrens.

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Sept. 26, 2013 Fairfax, VA—Americans for Limited Government President Nathan Mehrens today issued the following statement urging every senator to vote “no” on ending debate on the continuing resolution that will ultimately allow funding for Obamacare:

“Some Senate Republicans have come forward arguing that it is unfair to characterize those who oppose Ted Cruz’s battle to defund Obamacare as supporting Obamacare.  Yet, how else should one characterize a vote to close debate on a continuing resolution that ultimately allows Obamacare to be funded?

“Cloture is the only vote that matters in the Senate. Any senator who votes ‘yes’ on cloture, is casting a vote that will allow Obamacare to be implemented — it is undeniable. That is the only vote the American people are going to care about. If you vote ‘yes’ for cloture, you support Obamacare.

“It is puzzling that Senate Republicans would then point to the difficulties of passing legislation as the excuse why the Cruz effort is doomed and should have never been attempted, when their alternative is most certainly doomed to failure. Sen. John Cornyn argued on the Sean Hannity program that Republicans just need to get a Senate majority in 2014, and then they could send legislation to Obama that deals with Obamacare, ignoring the fact they will still most likely lack the votes to even get to cloture on such a bill and most certainly will lack the votes to overcome a presidential veto.

“Then, the argument will be that Republicans just need the presidency to undo Obamacare, ignoring the fact that in 2016, the GOP will be even less likely to get a filibuster-proof majority in the Senate — something they have never accomplished — than they are in 2014. So, even if they win the White House, when Democrats filibuster any attempt to undo Obamacare, then the argument will again be they just need more senators to be elected in 2018 to get the job done.

“To follow the Cornyn so-called strategy to its conclusion, the earliest the American people might be able to deal with Obamacare would be in 2019, when it will have been the law of the land for almost a decade. In effect, the Senate Republican strategy to get rid of Obamacare is to allow it to be implemented. It accepts failure as its premise, and to call it plan is the most cynical, condescending trick of all, when it is simply surrender.”

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at (703)383-0880 or at media@algnews.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts including ALG President Nathan Mehrens.

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Sept. 24, 2013, Fairfax, VA—Americans for Limited Government President Nathan Mehrens today issued the following statement praising Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) for mounting a filibuster against funding Obamacare, and urged Americans to make their voices heard in this debate:

“One of Jimmy Stewart’s seminal roles was in Mr. Smith Comes to Washington where the title character that he plays takes on the entrenched Washington, D.C. establishment. Today, a real-life Mr. Smith Comes to Washington-moment is playing out on Capitol Hill as Sen. Ted Cruz fights both Harry Reid and the leaders of his own party to stop the implementation of Obamacare.

“No battle has ever been won by standing on the sidelines. It is time for Sen. Cruz’s Republican colleagues who have unanimously said they support overturning Obamacare to prove it by joining him in forcing the law to be defunded. It is not enough to vote against the law, while Harry Reid uses his Democrat majority to fund it. Now is the time for Senate Republicans to show that their campaign literature is more than just a shallow promise.

“It is time Republicans in the Senate to stand with Sen. Cruz, and it is time for the American people to make D.C. listen by calling their Senators today 202-224-3121.”

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at (703)383-0880 or at media@algnews.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts including ALG President Nathan Mehrens.

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Sept. 23, 2013, Fairfax, VA—Americans for Limited Government President Nathan Mehrens today issued the following statement urging the U.S. Senate to vote no on cloture for any continuing resolution that will allow the defund Obamacare language to be stripped out with a simple majority vote:

“Harry Reid cannot move anything in the Senate without the help of at least six Republicans. Now is the time for Senate Republicans to join their colleagues in the House and show they mean it when they claim to oppose Obamcare. There is simply no excuse for allowing the law’s implementation to take effect.

“At a time when the National Republican Senatorial Committee is raising money promising to stop Obamacare, it would be the most callous of political acts for Republicans to turn around and fund it.

“Any senator that votes for cloture on a continuing resolution that ultimately winds up funding Obamacare — will own it. Instead, Senators should be demanding a 60-vote threshold for any amendment to the continuing resolution, and then defeat any attempt that would remove the defund Obamacare language from it. Members would be well advised that allowing a continuing resolution to come to the floor where the defund language can be stripped out with a simple majority vote is the same thing as voting to fund Obamacare.”

Attachments:

“Senate Republicans actually do have the votes to stop Obamacare,” By ALG senior editor Robert Romano, Sept. 23, 2013 at http://netrightdaily.com/2013/09/senate-republicans-actually-do-have-the-votes-to-stop-obamacare/

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at (703)383-0880 or at media@algnews.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts including ALG President Nathan Mehrens.

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Sept. 20, 2013, Fairfax, VA—Americans for Limited Government President Nathan Mehrens today issued the following statement thanking the House of Representatives for passing the continuing resolution that defunds Obamacare:

“Americans for Limited Government praises the House of Representatives for passing legislation that will defund the health care law and prevent its most damaging, costly provisions from going into effect. We urge members to stand firm even in the face of Senate resistance, and to remain opposed to any continuing resolution that will allow funding for Obamacare to go into effect.

“Harry Reid has already declared the continuing resolution that defunds Obamacare to be dead on arrival in the Senate. House leadership should declare any continuing resolution that funds Obamacare to be dead on arrival in the House. If they capitulate, and pass a continuing resolution that funds the health care law, they will own it. The fight may be in the Senate for the moment, but that does not absolve the House of responsibility for whatever it ultimately enacts.

“For senators, this may be the last chance to get rid of the health care law before it goes into effect. To stop the destruction of the 40-hour work week. To help the American people to keep their health coverage of choice. To stop them from being funneled into a government-run, taxpayer funded insurance plan. With even labor groups on the left calling for the health care law to be fixed or repealed, it is as plain as day that the American people do not want this. Now is the time to stand with them.”

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at (703)383-0880 or at media@algnews.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts including ALG President Nathan Mehrens.

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Sept. 19, 2013, Fairfax, VA—Americans for Limited Government President Nathan Mehrens today issued the following statement urging the U.S. Senate to support a continuing resolution from the House of Representatives, H.J. Res. 59 as amended, that will defund implementation of the health care law:

“The message for the Senate is very simple: If you vote to fund Obamacare via the continuing resolution, you will own the health care law. If you vote against a continuing resolution that defunds Obamacare, you will own it, too.

“H.J. Res. 59 will eliminate the Medicaid expansion and the insurance subsidies via the state exchanges, as well as prohibit funding for the implementation of the law by the government. There is simply no other plan on the table that will get rid of this law before it goes into effect.

“The American people will make no distinction between those who are overtly in favor of the health care law, and those who obstructed the only plan that might have gotten rid of it. That is the choice facing every senator. That is the political reality.

“If you’re not in favor of stopping Obamacare before it goes into effect, you’re in favor of it. You’re in favor of the destruction of the 40-hour work week. You’re in favor of dismantling the best health care system in the world. You’re in favor of knocking people off their health coverage of choice and forcing them onto government-run, taxpayer-funded insurance. The American people do not want this, and it is time for the Senate to finally stand with them.”

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at (703)383-0880 or at media@algnews.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts including ALG President Nathan Mehrens.

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Sept. 18, 2013, Fairfax, VA—Americans for Limited Government President Nathan Mehrens today issued the following statement supporting passage of a new House Republican plan to reportedly include language defunding Obamacare in the continuing resolution, and urged members to remain firm in the face of Senate opposition:

“Americans for Limited Government remains opposed to any continuing resolution that allows Obamacare to be funded, and we are encouraged by today’s House Republican Conference meeting where a continuing resolution that defunds the health care law was announced. This is a good first step. The second step is to hold firm. We support passage of a continuing resolution that defunds the health care law in full, and urge members to remain resolved to see this through even in the face of Senate opposition.

“Even if Senate Democrats do not respond to labor union demands to fix or repeal the law, the House has no choice but to stick with this approach. If the plan is to just send this continuing resolution to the Senate to die, then that is unacceptable. When the Senate responds with a so-called ‘clean’ continuing resolution, the House needs to respond with another bill that funds the government except for Obamacare. If Obama and Reid want to shut down the government, that’s their choice.”

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at (703)383-0880 or at media@algnews.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts including ALG President Nathan Mehrens.

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Sept. 17, 2013, Fairfax, VA—Americans for Limited Government President Nathan Mehrens today urged House Republicans to fight like Australians on defunding Obamacare, contending that if it came to a government shutdown, the outcome would not be as purveyors of conventional wisdom predict.

In a letter addressed to House members, Mehrens called attention to the recent landslide election of Tony Abbott in Australia. In 2009, Abbott became leader of Australia’s Liberal Party by one vote, defeating Malcolm Turnbull who Mehrens wrote “had agreed to go along with the leftist majority in Parliament and fund a carbon tax scheme in Australia.”

The carbon tax “was about as popular as Obamacare is in the United States,” Mehrens noted. In the 2013 election, Abbott promised to roll back the unpopular tax on emissions.

“He did not make the mistake of believing that the talking heads of the media’s opinion givers had anything to do with the views of the public,” Mehrens wrote. Instead, Abbott went against the grain and reclaimed the identity of his party, which in 2009 was acquiescing to the Labor Party’s agenda.

Similarly, Mehrens urged House Republicans to “put policy before politics and fund the government with the exception of Obamacare.”

“On Obamacare funding, the media opinion is unanimous that in a test of wills the President will win. After recent events in the foreign policy arena that conclusion is laughable.  Who with a straight face could believe that Obama will shut down his beloved bureaucracy for a prolonged period in order to save a program that is despised by the voters?” Mehrens asked.

For now, the media elite and political establishment in Washington, D.C. are of the view that a government shutdown over funding Obamacare would favor Democrats politically.

But a recent poll by Rasmussen Reports found “51 percent of voters favor having a partial government shutdown until Democrats and Republicans agree on what spending for the health care law to cut.”

Moreover, Mehrens wrote, “As in all government shut downs (i.e. weekends) essential government employees are kept on the job while the non-essential are furloughed.”

He continued, “When Obama realizes that this means his Environmental Protection Agency will be slowed down in its attempts to shut down power plants, the Department of Justice will be hampered in filing frivolous lawsuits, the Internal Revenue war on anyone who disagrees with him will be hampered, and various other of his efforts to transform America will be hindered, he will no doubt rush to the bargaining table.”

Meaning, a shutdown might not only win public support if it means cutting Obamacare, but that could force concessions by the Obama administration on the health care law.

In other words, it might actually work. “Good policy is good politics as the recent Australian election demonstrates,” Mehrens concluded.

Attachments:

Letter to House Republicans by ALG President Nathan Mehrens, Sept. 17, 2013 at http://getliberty.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/LetterDefundObamacare-9-17-13.pdf

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at (703)383-0880 or at media@algnews.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts including ALG President Nathan Mehrens.

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