Eight Hundred Days Without A Budget

A new milestone in Democrat Party governance is reached.

Has it really been 800 days since Senate Democrats began failing to pass a budget? Why, it seems like only yesterday. Time flies when you’re watching out-of-control politicians throw around huge piles of money without even the pretense of restraint.

The Tea Party Patriots commemorated the 800-day anniversary with a trenchant press release:

“The Senate has a legal obligation to pass a budget every year but has not done so for more than two years,” said Jenny Beth Martin, National Coordinator of Tea Party Patriots.

“Democrats have controlled the Senate and the White House since the election of 2008, and the House of Representatives up until this year. Certainly they could have passed any budget they desired, including one with tax increases and spending increases. But they chose to ignore the 800-day gorilla in the room because they don't want to be on record supporting a budget that actually does what they want. Then the public could hold them accountable for their cowardly and irresponsible behavior in the face of national fiscal calamity.”

“This week marks the 800 Days of Infamy—800 days without passing a budget,” said Mark Meckler, National Coordinator of Tea Party Patriots. “This Senate, controlled by Democrats, will go down as one of the most irresponsible, do-nothing Senates in the history of the institution. May history judge them as harshly as they deserve, and may the electorate throw many of them out on their collective hind ends in 2012.”

A couple of days ago, Representative Paul Ryan (R-WI) offered these thoughts in a National Review piece written with Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL), the ranking Republican on the Senate Budget Committee:

While the House has passed a serious, credible budget that tackles this debt crisis head-on, 800 days — and $7.3 trillion dollars — have come and gone since the Democrat-led Senate has adopted a budget. Not only is a budget a concrete fiscal plan, but it expresses a philosophy of governing. Democrats’ refusal to pass a budget — and refusal to put their big-government economic theories on paper — is of extraordinary significance. Making matters worse, the only budget submitted by the president is a fundamentally unserious plan that doubles our debt and speeds us to economic decline.

The Democrats have not even proposed a budget. President Obama gave a speech on the topic a few months ago, but it was a demagogic campaign speech intended primarily to attack Paul Ryan – author of the Republican “Path to Prosperity” package of very concrete proposals – who was sitting in the front row.

Back in May, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) stated, “There’s no need to have a Democratic budget in my opinion. It would be foolish for us to do a budget at this stage.” Does he still consider it “foolish” fifty days later?

Eight hundred days of political cowardice, reckless irresponsibility, and dereliction of duty. Enjoy your milestone, Democrats. May the American people remember it well in 2012.