Rep Scott Garrett Speaks at the Sussex County Lincoln Day Brunch
March 21,2015
Garrett Attends Events in DistrictCongressman Garrett is a strong advocate for Republican leadership at all levels of government, local, county, and state included. In February, the Congressman attended Lincoln Day events in Bergen, Sussex, and Warren counties, where he spoke about the importance of strong Republican leadership in New Jersey and listened to concerns voiced by constituents.Garrett Stands Up for Constituent Views
Supporting the Constitution and the rights that it stands for continues to be an issue of great responsibility for Congressman Garrett. He is the founder and chair of the Constitution Caucus, and on March 3rd, was the only New Jersey representative to vote against a bill that would support the Dept. of Homeland Security without addressing President Obama’s two immigration orders. “I cannot ignore the will of my constituents by supporting a bill that allows President Obama’s executive amnesty plan to continue unchecked,” he said. “I stand with the people of New Jersey’s Fifth District, law-abiding immigrants, and the constitution of the United States.”
Garrett for Congress Annual Golf Outing and Luncheon
Join Congressman Garrett on Thursday, May 28, 2015. The event will take place at the Farmstead Golf and Country Club in Lafayette, NJ. This is a fantastic opportunity to support the Congressman’s campaign while having an enjoyable afternoon on the golf course. Come with a group, or as an individual; we look forward to seeing you there! For more information, contact Anna Matthews at [email protected].
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Dems want to empower Boehner
By Mike Lillis – 03/22/15 06:00 AM EDT
House Democrats fighting for leverage in the GOP Congress are hoping they can empower an unlikely ally: Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio).
Democrats are outnumbered by more than 50 members – and have almost no power to bring bills to the floor.
But they see Boehner as a willing compromiser on must-pass legislation like funding the government and raising the debt ceiling – once the Speaker can convince his troops that the partisan route endorsed by his conservative wing has been denied.
By banding together in veto-sustaining majorities against conservative proposals demanded by Boehner’s right flank, Democrats hope to both sink those GOP measures and grease the skids for more moderate compromises.
“[The Republicans] have a majority party that’s deeply divided,” Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-Md.), the Democratic whip, said Thursday from his office in the Capitol.
“And … what we’ve learned is if we stick together – and we have been sticking together, we’ve been very unified – that it can empower Speaker Boehner at some point in time to say, ‘Look, I tried every which way I can think of to accomplish the objectives that our caucus wants to do. But if I can’t accomplish those, I will not allow the government to shut down, the debt limit to be not extended, or other things that are harmful to the country,’” Hoyer said.
Those dynamics were on full display in the recent fight over funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
“You want to rumble Rove?” Glenn pens open letter to Karl Rove
by Glenn Saturday, Mar 21, 2015 at 10:06 AM EDT
An open letter to Karl Rove: You want to rumble Rove? Come on to my show and let’s have it out. Bring it on. I would love to take you on WITH YOUR RECORD AND THE RECORD OF THE GOP. I could do it with my eyes closed and in a coma. You hung yourself on O’Reilly. By using my words to mock me, the audience heard my words. I would bet a good portion agreed with me. I was right at CPAC in 2011 and never invited back. What a shock!!! If you don’t think that the Republicans are progressive light then you don’t know the history of the movement started by Teddy Roosevelt and the GOP. There are good men and women in the party that believe in the constitution. Are you one of them? Do you seriously believe that Jeb Bush is not progressive light? Help me out with Common Core and Jeb Bush! How about Orrin Hatch’s role in targeting Mike Lee? Can you name a better, more honorable man than Mike? How about Mitch McConnell and his targeting of Ted Cruz and Mike Lee? How are things working out for all of the campaign promises? How about the deficit? The war? Defunding ObamaCare? Oh, didn’t the GOP vote to confirm Cass Sunstein? How is illegal immigration working out for you? (Actually, I know the answer: really well as your big corporate buddies love it. Especially down in the colonias). It is modern day slavery. Has Grover started any new Muslim Brotherhood front groups you and the Bushes can pass off as the good guys? How about some more FCC regulation on the Internet? Can you tell me one thing you have done? I mean beside the PATRIOT Act, the NSA and not stopping the IRS from massive abuse of power. Oh, I forgot! You did get to the bottom of Benghazi. Oops. Nope. It must be because you are swamped in actually fixing the VA system for all the men YOU put in harms way. Gosh, sorry. No, you aren’t even doing that. Wow. How do you find your way out of bed in the morning? Well maybe you don’t go to bed, because I know I couldn’t sleep if I were you or any of your cronies. So let me rephrase. You guys couldn’t find your way outside standing in an open door frame. How is the health of the three equal branches of government? I will say this; you are better than the president. You are only half as bad. You are only doing the fundraising dinners, while he is doing that AND playing golf. It is almost like you are progressive light. I know, you understand ‘strategy’ and I don’t. I know, you can’t push for these things right now! You will lose the presidency in 2016. No, now you have to compromise on things like immigration etc. so you can win the White House. THEN you will have the White House, the Senate and the House. That is when you really go for it … Right? Next time. Not now. That when things really change! Just like they did when you had both branches under Bush!! Crap. Another bad example. You guys have the spine of a worm, the ethics of whores, and the integrity of pirates. (My apologies to worms, whores and pirates) You are right about one thing, I have said this before. You are also right that you don’t need to worry about me. You need to worry about the American public. Because they have had it up to their teeth with you, the GOP and the DNC lies. You need to worry about yourself. After blowing almost a billion dollars on ‘I love government healthcare Romney,’ I would guess you don’t have too. Many more chances to save what is left of your career. It is sad that you can no longer hear the American People because they could save you. Instead you listen to your political consultants and the amazing thing is you still believe all of it. Can you not smell what you are shoveling anymore? The world has changed. The whole world is being redesigned. Not by government but by dreamers and doers. You are the taxi medallions in an Uber world. You don’t have to be young to see that. You just have to be open and honest. Instead, you just continue to shine up the progressive agenda of people like Jeb, pressure, corrupt or threaten freshmen and smear the good people of this country who believe in the actual principles enshrined in the Constitution. It is sad what the GOP has become. You would campaign against Reagan. (Cruz has the principles of Reagan- but all you see of Reagan was HOW Ronald Reagan won, not WHY he won). JFK would be too small government for the GOP as you see it. “Government isn’t the solution, Government is the problem”. You believe only government run by the Democrats is a problem. By the way: clever whiteboard trick. Only problem, the quote was right. Ted Cruz knew what you guys were doing and called you on it. He won’t play your game. Which is why millions of Americans support him and you and your progressive corporate fat cats will try to destroy him and anyone else that tries to tell the truth. Good luck with that. The future belongs to free people. The genie is out of the bottle. You will not be able to corral the spirit of America. Because it isn’t a person or a place. It is an idea. Do you know why America is failing? Because we don’t even know who we are anymore. Why? Because people like you only care about ‘interests’ instead of ‘principles’. Your interests, the party’s interests or national interests. Those all change depending on the day and situation. Principles never change. When you and the GOP find your unchanging and eternal principles – other than keeping your power and controlling people’s lives – let me know. The people don’t trust Washington anymore. You haven’t given us a reason to, we are not as dumb as you thought and we will never sit down and shut up again. #defundtheGOP. Find the person you believe in, not the party. George Washington was right. You have gone from being a man I thought was a good guy to a sad and quickly forgotten figure of the past. It is never to late to change. You just have to be willing to admit your mistakes and live by principles. I have done so. When will you?
GOP Seeks Higher Pension Contributions for Feds, Much Lower Spending for Civilian Agencies
By Eric Katz
March 17, 2015
This story has been updated.
House Republicans have once again called on federal employees to contribute more to their retirement, bringing back the effective pay cut in their fiscal 2016 budget blueprint.
Following the precedent set by Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., who no longer sits on the House Budget Committee, new Chairman Rep. Tom Price, R-Ga., included a pension contribution hike for feds as part of the $5.5 trillion in total savings the budget proposed over the next 10 years.
“In keeping with a recommendation from the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform, this budget calls for federal employees—including members of Congress and congressional staff—to make greater contributions toward their own retirement,” thelegislative text stated.
While the plan did not specify exactly how much pension contributions would increase, the commission on fiscal responsibility – known as the Simpson-Bowles Commission – recommended “gradually” increasing federal civilian pensions “so that new federal employees ultimately pay about one-half the cost of their pensions, and existing federal employees pay one-quarter.”
A Budget Committee spokesman confirmed that the 50-50 split would amount to a 6.35 percent contribution level from feds, the same level Ryan’s budget recommended last year.
INGLE: What’s gone wrong with Chris Christie?
Bob Ingle 6:31 p.m. EST March 6, 2015
TRENTON — Would the real Chris Christie please stand up? New Jerseyans who voted for a straight-shooting reformer and untypical politician are wondering if the guy they once loved was replaced by an imposter pod, like in the “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” movie.
One of the hotter topics around Trenton is a proposed Christie administration pollution settlement disclosed by The New York Times. Administrations going back to Jim McGreevey’s sought $8.9 billion from ExxonMobil. The Times reported the proposed settlement is a mere fraction of that, $250 million. It actually was only $225 million. A judge already has ruled the giant oil company is liable for pollution from refineries it once owned in Linden and Bayonne.
A former state Department of Environmental Protection commissioner, Brad Campbell, wrote in The Times that Christie’s chief counsel, Christopher Porrino, allegedly intervened to get a better deal for ExxonMobil, which was a big donor to the Republican Governors Association when Christie chaired it.
Speculation under the Gold Dome is Christie sold out the people of New Jersey for the equivalent of three cents on the dollar to balance his budget.
John Boehner’s Coward Complex
By: Jeffrey Lord | March 6th, 2015
Call him by the right name: House Speaker John Pelosi.
Question? If John Boehner is going to govern like Nancy Pelosi, why is he the Republican Speaker of the House in the first place?
John Pelosi is the guy who in theory is the leader of the Republican House majority but in fact is regularly engaged in pushing not the GOP agenda but undermining it to pass the Obama agenda. And in his zeal to do this he will spare no effort to attack his own members, most particularly those willing to stand with the conservative principles so well identified today with Ronald Reagan.
“Leadership coming after me.”
Thus said a conservative member of the House in an e-mail to me as the news made the rounds that a former chief of staff to House Speaker John Pelosi (sorry, Boehner) and a former chief of staff to Republican National Chairman Reince Priebus were leading a campaign led by the American Action Network that aired commercials attacking conservatives for opposing amnesty. The names would be Barry Jackson (Boehner) and Mike Shields (Priebus.) Not surprisingly, when the group’s American Action Network Forum was announced in 2010 the New York Times reported that “Republicans who are donors, board members or both include…. Jeb Bush, former governor of Florida.” Former Governor Bush, it appears, has since departed the group as he prepares his run for the GOP presidential nomination. But not to worry. Time Magazine reported back there in 2010 that “Sharing office space with American Crossroads is the American Action Network (AAN)…” That’s right. That would be Karl Rove’s American Crossroads.
The ad attacking conservative Republicans over the DHS funding was disguised, but of course, as being pro-defense against terrorists as it sought funding for the Department of Homeland Security. The ads fooled no one. They were a glossy, audio grade-A example of what a sell-out of principle sounds like. Like the bill the group supported, the ad was a cave-in to the Obama executive action on amnesty. Something Republican candidates across the country promised faithfully they would oppose. The commercial was the taped version of what Margaret Thatcher used to call the “socialist ratchet” with conservatives elected to oppose the leftist agenda in reality agreeing with it and working actively to move the country left. The code word for doing this in America is “governing” when in fact what is really meant is “capitulation” – as defined here in “8 RINO Rules.” The effect is to ratchet America further and further left, continually moving away from its founding principles. Just not as fast and but of course better managed.
If Not Now … When? Will the GOP Majority Ever Stand for Anything?
Jim DeMint / @JimDeMint / March 03, 2015
It is never the right time to do the right thing in Washington, D.C.
The phrase I heard most often from Republican leadership while serving in the House and Senate was, “This is not the right time to have this fight.”
Whether the issue was balancing the budget, school choice, patient-driven healthcare, eliminating earmarks, raising the debt limit, ending big, crony handouts like the Export-Import Bank or any stand against the continued growth, favoritism and intrusion of big government, conservatives were always told to wait. Wait until conservatives have the majority. Wait until we have the White House. Wait until we are reelected.
We’re seeing that “wait” attitude in practice today as the House votes on a “clean” Department of Homeland Security funding bill. Despite the fact that Republicans have majorities in both the House and the Senate that were elected on a pledge to fight against President Obama’s executive amnesty, and despite forcing through a big spending bill at the end of 2014 with the promise they would fight later on Homeland Security appropriations, they are now punting the issue entirely.
The phrase I heard most often from Republican leadership while serving in the House and Senate was, “This is not the right time to have this fight.”
On the other side of the aisle, I noticed a much different attitude, especially on big, liberal goals like government-run healthcare. Despite being faced with strong public opposition and the potential end to their political careers, the Democrats used false promises and every imaginable procedural trick to pass the government takeover of a sixth of America’s economy, along with one of the largest tax increases in our history.
Every Democrat in the House and Senate voted for Obamacare. And none of them even knew what was in it. Many have since lost their bids for reelection, but for liberals, the ends justify the means, and they are willing to accept huge political losses to advance their ideology.
Yet on the other side of the aisle—with the party that supposedly stands for individual freedom, limited government, free markets, American values and a strong defense—tomorrow never comes. Consider two major, pivotal issues in the future course of American history: Obamacare and executive amnesty.
The Republican leadership in Congress, K Street, Wall Street and all of their buddies in the media continue to rail that the conservative stand to defund Obamacare in 2013 hurt the party. But Republicans had one of their best elections in history in 2014, and one of the deciding issues in the election was repealing Obamacare.
The only evidence Republicans in Congress even had a pulse between the public lashing they received in 2012 and their overwhelming victory in 2014 was the fight they waged for a few days to defund Obamacare. And the leadership only pretended because of the pressure from conservatives who were demanding they follow through on their campaign promises.
However, there were times when I saw the Washington establishment will fight tooth and nail. They fight in bipartisan harmony against conservatives who push to eliminate earmarks.
I have seen the Washington establishment of Republicans and Democrats fight together for expensive bailouts, trillions in new debt, unfair and unaffordable amnesty, risky United Nations treaties, a misguided arms reduction treaty with Russia, a costly Internet sales tax, a new government travel promotion agency and more Washington control of education with No Child Left Behind.
I now hear some Republicans accepting and trying to “improve” Obamacare. And I see Republicans demanding that Congress fund the president’s unconstitutional executive amnesty and “move on to other things.”
What “other things” could possibly be more important than blocking the president of the United States from shredding our Constitution?
Some are saying we should leave it to the courts to decide, but Congress is a co-equal branch of government, and members all take oaths to defend the Constitution. If members believe these actions are unconstitutional, how can they in good conscience fund them?
Once the president succeeds in giving work permits, legal status, American jobs and public benefits to 5 million illegal residents, the next obvious steps will be to legalize and give voting rights to the more than 10 million illegal residents.
The only evidence Republicans in Congress even had a pulse between the public lashing they received in 2012 and their overwhelming victory in 2014 was the fight they waged for a few days to defund Obamacare.
Twenty-six states have taken a stand against the president’s action, and one federal judge has temporarily stopped the processing of work permits. But Obama’s Justice Department has demanded an expedited appeals hearing.
Do Republicans not know that funding the president’s unlawful actions now will allow the president to argue that Congress has confirmed his actions? Federal courts don’t often rule against the concerted action of the two other branches of government.
The absurdity of this situation is that fighting the president’s executive amnesty through Department of Homeland Security appropriations was the strategy created by Republican leaders. Now that the time to fight has arrived, the generals are running from the battlefield and blaming the infantry they told to lead the charge.
If the Republican majority in both houses of Congress is not willing to take a stand and fight against the government takeover of America’s healthcare system or the president’s arrogant usurpation of the constitutional powers of Congress, then what will they fight for? Who will stand with freedom-minded Americans who sent this majority to Washington to fight for them? I hope my former colleagues will ask themselves: “If not us, who? If not now, when?”
John Boehner allies fret coup attempt
Conservatives warn the speaker’s fate could be determined by how he handles the next seven days
By John Bresnahan, Anna Palmer and Lauren French
2/28/15 1:46 PM EST
Close allies of Speaker John Boehner are worried that his conservative rivals could move to oust him as soon as next week.
Removing a sitting speaker is exceedingly difficult, and such an effort would almost certainly fall short. Yet growing speculation about the possibility of it – coming after Friday’s embarrassing defeat at the hands of conservatives and House Democrats on the homeland security battle — shows how vulnerable the speaker has become.
Five years into the job, he’s a leader consistently buffeted by forces beyond his control. The legislative calendar guarantees it won’t get any easier: in the coming weeks and months there will be battles over the debt ceiling, budget, taxes, and spending cuts.
The question is how many more of these episodes Boehner can withstand.
Frustration with the Ohio Republican is mounting after dozens of hardliners voted Friday against his three-week funding package for the Department of Homeland Security. Hours of frantic leadership meeting ensued. After some backroom maneuvering with Democrats, Boehner was able to push through a one-week bill to keep DHS open.
GOP hopefuls line up for key Bergen freeholder elections
FEBRUARY 11, 2015 LAST UPDATED: WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 2015, 1:21 AM
BY JOHN C. ENSSLIN
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD
Four Republicans have declared an interest in running for three seats on the Bergen County Freeholder Board — and potential majority control of the board — this year.
Former Freeholder John Mitchell of Cliffside Park and Ramsey Councilman Ken Tyburczy are unopposed for Republican party line endorsements in the June primaries for the two three-year terms up for election.
They will take aim at seats now held by Democrats Tracy Zur of Franklin Lakes and Steve Tanelli of North Arlington, who are running for reelection.
Also, Dierdre Paul of Englewood and Daisy Ortiz-Berger of River Edge are vying for the party line in hopes of serving out the one year left in the term of James Tedesco, a Democrat, who left the board to become county executive.
Democrats currently hold a 5-2 majority on the board.
Administration officials are refusing to say whether they have an ObamaCare backup plan if the Supreme Court torpedoes the law.
But Republicans don’t believe them.
GOP lawmakers on the Senate Finance Committee repeatedly pressed Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Sylvia Mathews Burwell on the issue. But Burwell on Wednesday did not budge during a tense back-and-forth, with a half-dozen Republicans claiming that the administration must have a “plan B.”
“I’m asking, is there a contingency plan? Not what is the plan, but is there a plan?” Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) asked.
The case, which begins oral arguments next month, could make billions of dollars of healthcare subsidies disappear in 37 states. And with such high stakes, two former HHS officials said they are confident the administration is preparing a backup plan.
“Of course, they have one, they should all resign if they don’t,” said Tom Scully, an HHS official under former President George W. Bush. “And they certainly should not discuss it either.”
Former HHS Secretary Michael Leavitt, who left office in 2009, agreed. He added that he isn’t surprised that senior officials would rather face a day of bad headlines than signal weakness to the Supreme Court.
“If the court thought they had a plan, they might think, they felt like their case was weak,” Leavitt, who also served as governor of Utah, said in an interview.
Wednesday’s heated exchange was dominated by Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn (R-Texas), both of whom signed an amicus brief in support of the plaintiff earlier this year.
“You’re a highly intelligent, charming person, but you’ve refused to answer our questions, and to me, that doesn’t strike me as trying to work with Congress, but rather contemptuous of Congress’s responsibilities,” Cornyn told Burwell.
Sen. Dan Coats (R-Ind.) added that he believes it is “irresponsible” if the administration is not making plans for the “what-ifs” of the case, which will likely be decided in June.
Poll: Scott Walker and Rand Paul up in Iowa, Jeb Bush and Chris Christie lag
Scott Walker and Rand Paul are ahead of the GOP pack in Iowa, while Jeb Bush, Chris Christie and Ted Cruz are lagging behind at single digits, according to a new poll released Saturday.
The survey conducted for Bloomberg Politics and the Des Moines Register showed Walker at 15 percent among Republican caucus-goers, Paul at 14 percent, and Mike Huckabee, the 2008 victor in Iowa, at 10 percent. Retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson was the first choice of 9 percent of respondents. (Zapler/Politico)
GOP moves to oust Douglas Elmendorf as head of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO)
By Rebecca Shabad – 01/28/15 05:31 PM EST
Republicans on the Budget committees are interviewing candidates to replace Douglas Elmendorf as head of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), according to four people with direct knowledge of the process.
While GOP leaders haven’t publicly confirmed the plan to boot Elmendorf from the nonpartisan office, Republicans have approached several potential candidates about stepping in, sources say.
They also say the search is moving toward an end and that Republicans already have a shortlist of candidates.
According to sources, those approached include Alex Brill, a research fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and an economist on former President George W. Bush’s Council of Economic Advisers; Jeffrey Brown, a finance professor at the University of Illinois who also served on the Council under Bush; and Warren Payne, who was policy director under former House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp (R-Mich.).
“I would just say that we are looking forward to having a new director and some changes,” Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), a member of the Budget panel, told The Hill on Wednesday.
Iowa Sen. Ernst promises GOP focus on Americans’ concerns
Jan 20, 8:13 PM (ET)
By ALAN FRAM
WASHINGTON (AP) — Republicans controlling Congress will focus on people’s concerns about jobs and health care and steer the country away from President Barack Obama’s failed policies, the newly minted senator delivering her party’s official response to the State of Union address said Tuesday.
In remarks that mixed calls for bipartisan cooperation with a flexing of GOP independence, freshman Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, cited Americans’ worries about stagnant wages, lost jobs and canceled health care coverage. She called on Obama to cooperate with Republicans to simplify the tax code by lowering rates and eliminating unspecified loopholes, and to ease trade barriers with Europe and Asia.
“Americans have been hurting, but when we demanded solutions, too often Washington responded with the same stale mindset that led to failed policies like Obamacare,” Ernst, referring to Obama’s health care overhaul, said in excerpts from her speech released before its delivery. “It’s a mindset that gave us political talking points, not serious solutions.”
Ernst’s speech marked her party’s first State of the Union response during the Obama presidency in which the GOP has had majorities in both the House and Senate. It came as Republicans are hoping to expand their appeal among women and minorities in advance of the 2016 presidential and congressional elections.
“We plan to make Washington focus on your concerns again,” she said. “We heard the message you sent in November, loud and clear.”
The evening’s speeches came as the economy has been adding muscle, with economic growth accelerating and unemployment falling. In his remarks, Obama said it was time to “turn the page” on years of war and economic weakness and turn to investments that would strengthen the country.
McConnell promises dramatic change , putting the Senate back to work
By Alexander Bolton
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) told colleagues on the first full day of the new Congress to expect a dramatic change from his predecessor, Democratic leader Harry Reid (Nev.).
He pledged to decentralize power in the Senate, which had become concentrated in Reid’s office during the past eight years of Democratic rule.
“It’s time to change the business model,” McConnell said in his first lengthy speech on the floor as majority leader. “We need to return to regular order. We need to get committees working again. We need to recommit to a rational, functional appropriations process.”
He promised to “open up the legislative process” to allow senators on both sides of the aisle more opportunity to offer and vote on amendments.
That approach will mean working long weeks and later hours, he warned.
“But restoring the Senate is the right thing to do. And it’s the practical thing to do,” he said.
McConnell said the nation has lost faith in government and no longer trusts Washington.
N.J. Rep. Scott Garrett bucks House Republican leadership in vote for speaker
By Jonathan D. Salant | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
WASHINGTON — U.S. Rep. Scott Garrett, New Jersey’s most conservative member of Congress, voted against John Boehner for House speaker, separating himself from most House Republicans.
Garrett (R-5th Dist.) voted instead for Rep. Daniel Webster (R-Fla.,) , who was one of several alternatives offered instead of Boehner. Some of the opposition was driven by those House Republicans who want to be more confrontational with President Obama.
“With a new Republican majority in the Senate, a large number of my constituents have called on me to demand new leadership in the House,” Garrett said in a statement after the vote “I hear you, and I agree.”
Boehner (R-Ohio) who has been speaker since Republicans regained control of the House in 2011, was re-elected today with 216 votes. Webster had 12. A scattering of votes went to other Republicans. Most Democrats backed their leader, Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.)
Few lawmakers vote against their leaders, who can retaliate by denying coveted committee assignments, refusing to bring their bills up for votes, and decline to raise or contribute money to their campaigns.
