Press Release from the Jenkins campaign:
Jim Jenkins, non-partisan candidate for U.S. Senate, said today that the tea party does not reflect the majority of Nebraskans’ views and the state is not nearly as partisan as the rest of the nation.
“I don’t believe, based on my experience, that we’re a tea party state. This is the group that helped shut down the government and held up the Farm Bill for a year and a half. From George Norris in our past to Ben Nelson and Mike Johanns in present-day, Nebraska is home to independent thinkers and doers, fair-minded people who pride themselves in providing resources and solutions, not fighting, badmouthing and destroying people who may not agree with them. The tea party strategy is not the Nebraska way,” Jenkins said.
“Shutting down the government, signing feel-good pledges that oppose even discussing tax reform, and refusing to debate immigration and a balanced budget may be popular to the extremists groups but are not positions that a majority of Nebraska voters support,” Jenkins said.
In a statewide poll of likely Nebraska voters earlier this year, 59% were either unsure or had an unfavorable opinion of the tea party.
The poll, conducted by the MSR Group in May also found nearly half have an unfavorable opinion of both the Democrat and Republican parties. An overwhelming 87 percent said political parties have “too much control in Washington”, and 65 percent said the two party system is “broken and doesn’t work anymore”.
Jenkins said Ben Sasses’ support from national tea party figures and organizations indicates his unwillingness to change the gridlock in Washington.
“Everybody’s entitled to their beliefs, but Ben is trying to hide the ball on the fact that he’s a lot more conservative than most Nebraskans,” Jenkins said.
“The tea party on the right and President Obama and liberal members of Congress on the left are causing hyper-partisan gridlock and failing to address the major issues facing our country. This dysfunction is undermining our economy, our security and worst of all, is undermining our democratic institutions,” Jenkins said.
Jenkins outlined a five-part bipartisan reform agenda to end gridlock and move the nation forward:
1. Fix the debt. Debate recommendations from the bi-partisan National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform, more commonly known as the Simpson-Bowles Commission that presented Congress and the President with a comprehensive plan to reduce the deficit.
2. Biennial Budget. Congress adopt a biennial budget process, an approach to budgeting utilized by many states, including Nebraska that allows for a more thorough evaluation of budget proposals in year one and a review of budget effectiveness in year two.
3. No Budget, No Pay. Unless Congress passes by the end of its fiscal year members of Congress will not receive pay. I also support legislation that suspends Congressional recesses until it has passed a budget. Failure to pass budgets undermines the greater economy and undermines the credibility of Congress with its citizens.
4. Immigration Reform. President George W. Bush presented a bi-partisan plan on immigration that had the backing of a significant number of Democrats.
5. Leadership Council. Congress should adopt a bipartisan leadership group each session that would identify the top legislative priorities.
“Nebraska doesn’t belong to a political party; Nebraska belongs to our people. We must seek bi-partisan solutions to the deficit, our burdensome tax code, and immigration. Unless you can develop a framework in Congress by which you actually debate, discuss and negotiate, we’re not going to be able to move forward,” Jenkins said.
Thanks to Dan Parsons for this news.