Weekend Wrap: Dems Block Defense Bill, Troop Pay Raise

Senate Democrats block a defense bill, including a pay raise for the troops.  Ryan Zinke delivers the national weekly Republican radio address (and, he joined me to answer questions on why he now supports TPA).  The CSKT tribes file thousands of water rights claims, but don’t expect legal action just yet.  Are all of Obamacare’s federally funded co-ops about to collapse?  Laudato No: Praise not Pope Francis’s crude economics, according to a piece in National Review.  And, what the heck kind of vehicle was that on the Billings West End?  Those stories and more are in the Weekend Wrap.      

But first:

The Hill: Demanding budget talks, Senate Dems block spending bill for military

Senate Democrats on Thursday blocked spending legislation for the Pentagon, part of a broader strategy aimed at forcing Republicans to the table for budget negotiations.

On the other side of the Capitol Thursday, Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) accused Democrats of trying to block military pay raises.

“I get that Democrats want to spend more — they always do — but that shouldn’t get in the way of fulfilling our most serious responsibilities. Our troops come first. Save the politics for another day,” he said in a video.

.@SenatorTester needs to explain why he sided w/ @SenateDems & blocked funding for our troops and the critical missions they serve #mtpol

— MT Republican Party (@MontanaGOP) June 19, 2015

.@RepRyanZinke is quickly becoming a leading voice on national defense. #mtpol https://t.co/9L5qyqQyYU

— Heather Swift (@hswift) June 19, 2015

And, as this New York Times report points out…Senate Dems were for out before they were against it…again.

The Washington Post: A new strategy for Iraq and Syria (h/t  WSJ’s Capital Journal)

Charles Krauthammer writes that the U.S. objective right now in Iraq and Syria “is to defeat the Islamic State and to ensure the fall of the Assad regime,” which doesn’t require an American invasion or unquestioning support of Iraq’s government. “If we need to pretend to support the Baghdad government, fine. But our actual strategy should be to circumvent it and help our real allies,” Iraq’s Kurds and the Free Syrian Army.

By the way, speaking of Congressman Ryan Zinke (R-MT), who is delivering the weekly Republican radio address…I spoke with Zinke on Friday’s Voices of Montana to discuss why he now supports Trade Promotion Authority (TPA).  Click here to find that show and more on our podcast page.  The Montana Stockgrowers Association’s Errol Rice joined me in the 2nd half to discuss TPA as well. 

The Wall Street Journal: House Passes Fast Track Trade Bill

The House passed legislation to ease trade pacts through Congress, as Republicans and some Democrats revived hopes for President Barack Obama’s trade agenda less than a week after liberals sank a similar bill. The House’s 218-208 vote sends the measure to the Senate, where Majority Leader Mitch McConnell wants to pass the bill as soon as next week. Fast-track authority would give Mr. Obama the power to submit trade deals to Congress for an up-or-down vote, without amendments.

Flathead Beacon: Compact Awaits Congressional Approval

Rob McDonald, CSKT communications director, said the tribes’ legal team will follow through with filing 2,815 claims in Helena on June 25. Upon filing, McDonald said the tribes will request the state stay any action on such claims to allow the approval process to proceed without interruption.

McDonald said the filing of claims with the state Department of Natural Resources and Conservation, as required by Montana law and the compact, preserves the tribes’ water rights in the event that the agreement does not receive all necessary approvals. They’ll then file the claims with the Montana Water Court in Bozeman.

The Daily Caller: Are Obamacare’s 22 Health Insurance Co-ops Near Financial Collapse?

All but one of the federally funded co-ops are experiencing accelerating net losses. President Obama’s signature health care reform program established the co-ops to provide non-profit competition to private sector health insurance providers.

Many of the 22 co-ops could soon follow an Obamacare co-op that defaulted earlier this year, suffering $163 million in operating losses in a single year. That collapse left 120,000 customers without coverage on Christmas Eve.

http://www.nationalreview.com/article/420013/laudato-no-praise-not-pope-franciss-crude-economics-editors?utm_source=jolt&utm_medium=email&utm_term=Jolt&utm_campaign=Jolt06192015

National Review- Laudato No: Praise Not Pope Francis’s Crude Economics

(Writeup from Jim Geraghty’s Morning Jolt: Today NR expounds, formally, on Laudato Si’ — our editorial’s title, “Laudato No: Praise Not Pope Francis’s Crude Economics,” maybe says it all. NR’s magisterium is sharp and detailed. And, of course, hits the papal bull of the pope’s lefty admirers:

The same Western liberals who abominate the Catholic Church as an atavistic relic of more superstitious times, who regard its teachings on abortion and contraception as inhumane and its teachings on sexuality as a hate crime today are celebrating Pope Francis’s global-warming encyclical, Laudato Si’, as a moral mandate for their cause. So much for that seamless garment.

It may be that the carbon tax, like Paris, is worth a Mass.

Kicker…