IL-14: Lauren Underwood Claiming Mitch McConnell Will Only Pass Legislation by Unanimous Consent is FALSE!

Congresswoman Lauren Underwood

Underwood betrays herself as one of the “outrage industrial complex” McConnell said are complaining because he blocked partisan election security legislation

Congresswoman Lauren Underwood this week has been making blatantly false claims about why House-passed legislation have not moved in the Senate. She claims Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell demands “unanimous consent” for bills passed in the House to be considered in the Senate. That statement is completely false. On Tuesday, she told the Northwest Herald editorial board the following:

Underwood said many bills passed in the House could get a 51-vote majority or 60-vote supermajority in the Senate – such as universal background checks, staying in the Paris Climate Accords and election security measures – but are landing with a thud. Underwood targeted Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell for not advancing legislation that doesn’t carry unanimous consent. [emphasis added]

“I think that we have passed over 200 bills in the House, many of which have had Republican support—many things,” Underwood said.  “And the idea because they didn’t have unanimous support they can’t be considered, that is gridlock and dysfunction at a level that I had never even contemplated and I point to one man – Mitch McConnell – as being the problem.” [emphasis added again]

Northwest Herald, published online 9/4/19
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And yesterday, Underwood told the editorial board at the Daily Herald:

“You know the idea that the Senate won’t move anything, at all, unless it can pass by something called unanimous consent, that’s Mitch McConnell’s standard where all 100 senators have to agree with the legislation as printed on paper, no line edits, no amendments and that’s it, right? [emphasis added]

Daily Herald video interview published 9/5/19
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Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell

This issue Underwood raises of “unanimous consent” being required by McConnell for the passage of everything in the Senate is not even consistent with what Congressman Sean Casten said in his interview with the Northwest Herald last week. He didn’t mention “unanimous consent”, nor is this being said by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

So I Googled “Mitch McConnell unanimous consent” and the only references I found were articles from July about denying Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer’s request to pass, by unanimous consent, the House passed election security legislation, H.R. 2722, the Securing America’s Federal Election (SAFE) Act.

The SAFE Act was discussed in yesterday’s McHenry County Blog IL-14 update, and was discussed in some detail in an IL-06/IL-14 article published on 8/25. Here is what McConnell said concerning holding up the SAFE Act, from The Hill:

…McConnell objected, saying Schumer was trying to pass “partisan legislation.” 

Clearly this request is not a serious effort to make a law. Clearly something so partisan that it only received one single solitary Republican vote in the House is not going to travel through the Senate by unanimous consent,” McConnell said. [emphasis added]

Under the Senate’s rules any one senator can request consent to pass a bill, but any one senator can object.

The Hill, 7/25/19
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So now we see the real issue. Overly partisan legislation passed by the Democratic-controlled House with barely ANY Republican support, and now Underwood takes this to mean ALL legislation. This was discussed at length in McHenry County Blog articles, especially the 8/25 issue (link below for reference), but what was pointed out was 1 to 19 Republicans backing legislation in the House is not bipartisan, but partisan.

One believes if real bipartisan legislation passes the House, McConnell and Senate Republicans will be amenable to consider it, even if it requires a roll call as opposed to unanimous consent. And like it or not, Congresswoman, the bulk of the legislation passed in the House, with a few exceptions, are overly partisan and either straight-party, or had less than 20 Republicans voting in favor, including the following:

  • Gun legislation (H.R. 8/1112)
  • The SAFE Act (H.R. 2722)
  • For the People Act (H.R. 1)
  • Equality Act (H.R. 5)
  • American Dream and Promise Act (H.R. 6)
  • Paycheck Fairness Act (H.R. 7)
  • Save the Internet Act (H.R. 1644)
  • Humanitarian Standards for Individuals in Customs and Border Protection Custody Act (H.R. 3239)

So with Underwood’s outrageous claim, that is not even true, either she does not understand how the Senate works, or she is blatantly spreading false information about the honorable members of the Senate, led by McConnell. Or maybe she’s simply frustrated with the fact the Democratic Party she’s a part of is in the minority in the Senate, and the Senate is forcing House Democrats to work with the Senate in good-faith, and that is something Underwood is unaccustomed in the House.

Finally, let’s look at events from late July and McConnell’s position on blocking the House-passed election security legislation:

Last week [week of July 22], McConnell blocked election security legislation that Democrats attempted to bring to the floor. One of the bills pushed by Democrats in the Senate would require that candidates, campaign officials and family members notify the FBI of any offers of assistance from foreign governments. Another would require the use of paper ballots and boost funding for election security and infrastructure.
McConnell defended his procedural roadblock on the legislation, noting that unanimous consent requests from the minority party are frequently denied.

“This kind of objection is a routine occurrence here in the Senate. It doesn’t make Republicans traitors or un-American. It makes us policymakers with a different opinion,” said McConnell. “But the outrage industrial complex doesn’t let a little thing like reality get in their way.”

Roll Call, 7/29/19
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And McConnell closed his comments from July with this:

“Let me make this crystal clear for the hyperventilating hacks who haven’t actually followed this issue. Every single member of the Senate agrees that Russian meddling was real and is real,” said McConnell. “We all agree that the federal government, state governments and the private sector all have obligations to take this threat seriously and bolster our defenses.”

McConnell called the criticism of his action on election security “modern-day McCarthyism” repeatedly during his fiery speech.

He said that the original McCarthyism diminished the country’s ability to stand up to the Soviets during the Cold War because Americans were divided against themselves.

“McCarthyism did the Russians’ work for them,” he said, before drawing a comparison to today’s political climate.

“Now, here we are in 2019. Again, Putin and the Russians seek to provoke fear and division in our country,” McConnell said. “American pundits calling an American official treasonous because of a policy disagreement, if anything, is an asset to the Russians. It is disgusting behavior. [emphasis added]

Roll Call, 7/29
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And Underwood spreading, on purpose, false information to the newspapers and throughout the district while representing IL-14 is “disgusting behavior”, too. A difference of opinion is one thing, but abandoning her integrity is the real issue if Underwood continues her false statements.

Please, click the link to the Daily Herald and watch the video and observe Underwood on camera talking about Mitch McConnell. Don’t miss her facial expressions and body language.


Comments

IL-14: Lauren Underwood Claiming Mitch McConnell Will Only Pass Legislation by Unanimous Consent is FALSE! — 23 Comments

  1. I think it’s safe to say McConnell will not advance a bill unless the Republicans support it overwhelmingly.

  2. Are you sure Joe, because Lopez googled it…lol.

    He doesn’t open bills for discussion, he doesn’t do anything!

  3. Joe, why does Underwood have to spread misinformation, like she is doing now.

    I do not think it has to be overwhelmingly Republican support.

    The emergency border bill had little Republican support, yet the Senate turned it into a passable bill (and notice how Underwood in her Daily Herald video interview downplayed that).

    And why is Underwood the only saying this nonsense about “unanimous consent”?

    The DCCC hasn’t gone this far.

  4. McConnell has clearly said he won’t advance any legislation if it doesn’t have Trump’s support.

    That’s not how our constitution works.

    He knows that.

    His job is to bring every bill to the floor, debate it and, if passed, send it to the President.

    If the President doesn’t like it, he’ll send it back. But that’s not what Moscow wants him to do, so here we are……..

  5. Just going to have to wait until 2020 and kill the filibuster.

    Republicans have no clue just how politically toxic our getting worse by the day President is behaving.

    He’s drawing fake hurricane maps now.

    The only thing more pathetic than the guy in the White House is that the GOP stands by this lunatic in the White House and is pretending that everything is all good.

    It’s only going to get worse for your grand old party, John.

  6. I agree with Joe.

    Mitch isn’t going to bring up a vote just to have a vote, and Mitch wouldn’t bring up a vote if a handful of Republicans were planning on defecting and giving Dems a majority.

    Another way of saying this is that Mitch isn’t going to bring up a bill that is, for the most part, partisan.

    On some of the biggest issues, you’re not going to get bipartisan support — the issues are just too polarized and contentious to have significant reform that is bipartisan.

    Maybe the more relevant question is what have other House and Senate majority leaders done in the past when there was divided government.

    Did they bring up bills that were supported by the opposition and just a handful of people from their party or did they obstruct?

    Is there anything unusual about what Mitch is doing?

    People act like this is unusual, but I have a hunch this is very common in bicameral legislatures, including state legislatures.

  7. McConnell said his goal was to make Obama a 1 term president.

    McConnell said his proudest moment was denying Obama his Supreme Court pick.

    McConnell said he would push through a Trump Supreme Court pick if one became open within a year of the election if one became available.

    McConnell was presented with intel on Russian interference and refused to put out a joint statement with Obama.

    Stop with the BS that McConnell is a good faith actor in anything he does in Washington.

  8. This lady, who has no real nursing experience, sows discord. Voters will have a chance to send her back to private life in 14 months. Many reasons to vote for her Republican opponent including the fact that she once worked in the Obama regime.

  9. Call the fashion police on underwood. she is a multiple offender.

  10. Just as the Washington Post story said, it’s going to be a fierce fall, given all of the appropriations bills to run the federal government for next fiscal year must be passed by October 1, though I see a string of continuing resolutions coming for the rest of the year.

    What I hear is too many people taking shots at McConnell, but why does Underwood have to make something up that is untrue? Even giving her the benefit of the doubt and she confused herself with what happened with Schumer and the SAFE Act, Underwood is too smart to think that 1 instance when McConnell stopped a straight-party supported bill because it wouldn’t get the unanimous consent that Schumer requested applies to all legislation because of McConnell is a real stretch of the truth.

    If Underwood wants to say McConnell is holding up legislation fine. But this whole “unanimous consent” nonsense, and Underwood can’t even keep a straight face spreading that nonsense in the video link, reveals something about Underwood’s character that unless she course-corrects her rhetoric, may need to be corrected by IL-14 voters in 14 months, as bred winner said (at 8:39AM).

  11. Underwood is right about Mitch being an obstructionist, like Oh points out.

    But John is right that Underwood is not the most honest person or above the fray of politics.

    I think she’s overplaying her hand. It’s fine (politically, for her) if she takes votes that are left-of-center, especially if they align with her district’s voters, but now it seems like she’s openly pandering to these #resist people.

    It looks like she is suffering for it too. Did anyone see the recent NW Herald poll? More people said they would vote against her than for her.

    If she wants to win, she should focus on representing the average voter in her district, not the average primary voter. This ICE bashing and Trump bashing doesn’t just tick off the far right and most avid Trump supporters, it doesn’t sit well with a lot of people here.

    She won’t lose her seat because she wants to close gun show loopholes or wants to cap insurance costs, she’ll lose when people think she’s being disrespectful.

  12. As Underwood’s unofficial fashionista.

    I’ve advised large collar Dacron shirts, Polyester high waist Plum Smugglers and Pony Flap Tongue shoes.

    However, she’s thus far resisting my advise, for Lamb Chop Sideburns too detract from that impossible coiffure.

  13. Per The Hill in May 2016

    https://thehill.com/blogs/floor-action/281536-nearly-400-house-bills-stuck-in-senate-limbo

    “Of the 518 bills or joint resolutions passed by the House since January 2015, only 122 have passed the Senate, according to Congress’s Legislative Information System, which tracks the status of legislation.

    That leaves just shy of 400 House bills stuck in the Senate chamber. The total doesn’t include resolutions only taken up by the lower chamber, or concurrent resolutions, which aren’t sent to President Obama’s desk.”

    In 2016, the Senate was controlled by Democrats and Harry Reid. We all remember Harry Reid, right?

    He is the Democrat Senate leader who circular filed, or s— canned, hundreds of bills passed by the Republican controlled U.S. House.

    He is the Democrat Senate Leader who in August, 2012, without any proof, said on the floor of the Senate about Mitt Romney:

    “So the word is out that he has not paid any taxes for ten years. Let him prove that he has paid taxes, because he hasn’t.”

  14. Correcting, in the 10:16AM comment, was thorough and hit on something that raises a question or two, “…now it seems like she’s [Underwood] openly pandering to these #resist people.”

    So for context, the #resist people are the left, progressives, the more liberal wing of the Democratic party, members of groups like Indivisible, etc. With that context, what has changed in recent weeks that would encourage Underwood’s pandering? It’s no recent vote in DC, since the House has been on the August recess since July 26, and returns to work next week, so no recent votes/debates/issues before Congress is the cause.

    Yes, Underwood travelled to Central America and the border with Speaker Pelosi and other members of Congress in early August, and what she said at a press conference would appeal to the left.

    Underwood came out for the impeachment inquiry 2 1/2 weeks ago, and that is what the left would want, so she already came over to their side on August 20 with the impeachment inquiry open support.

    I can only think of 2 things that have happened politically, in this order, in the past 2 weeks: a) Catalina Lauf’s entry into the IL-14 Republican primary field, and the left’s/progressives’ reaction and b) Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, whom Underwood was quietly backing for President, dropped her presidential campaign, freeing Underwood to support another 2020 presidential candidate, and these progressives want Underwood to back Bernie Sanders openly.

    Concerning Catalina Lauf, the progressives have set up at least 2 faux parody websites against her, and have already said they’ll work against her, so the progressives are threatened by Lauf’s candidacy; and this reaction these same people had to Lauf’s candidacy was not done with Oberweis, Gradel, Rezin, Marter, et al.

    Given how tight-at-the-top the 3 front-runners for the Democratic presidential nomination are in polling, just as there is open competition for AOC’s endorsement between Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, attracting an open endorsement early from the youngest black woman in Congress might boost both candidates among black voters, who are still staying with Joe Biden, according to the latest polling. Additionally, the left/progressives do not want Underwood to back Biden, and they know he helped her campaign in Illinois last year for Congress.

    As Correcting pointed out, appealing to Democratic primary voters is not Underwood’s path to reelection, and given she does not have a progressive primary opponent for Congress, she does not need to. Still, Underwood would be wise to stay neutral in the presidential race, just as nearly all other members of Illinois’ congressional delegation is doing for now.

    And given presidential superdelegate counts, and Underwood is a superdelegate, are now treated, there is more reason to stay neutral as long as possible, and maybe the left, the progressives et al want her to commit to Sanders or Warren now, and keep her out of the Biden camp.

    We’ll see, just thinking about what political events have taken place recently that could be impacting Underwood’s behavior now.

  15. bred winner, your 1:21PM comment, let me answer your question from your comment:

    “In 2016, the Senate was controlled by Democrats and Harry Reid. We all remember Harry Reid, right?”

    Wrong. Republicans regained majority control of the Senate in 2014, and Mitch McConnell was Senate Majority Leader at that time and was doing so in 2016. The Senate Democrats were lead by Harry Reid up until his retirement, but in 2016, Reid was the Senate minority leader.

    But you are right about then-Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid, who as minority leader, was making use of the filibuster to scuttle legislation from the Republican-controlled House in the Republican-controlled Senate.

    The Senate is not called the “world’s most deliberative body” for nothing, and back when that article was written, the Democrats were doing it’s share of obstruction as the minority party using the filibuster.

  16. May our good Lord bless our Honorable Congresswoman and accomplished nurse Lauren Underwood. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen. Family-values, compassionate conservatives, keep praying for our Congresswoman in the same way you pray for our 73-year-old orange manchild, buffoon, six-times-bankrupt, sexual-assaulter-in-chief. Stay tuned…tic, tock, tic, tock, tic, tock…

  17. I was thinking her flip on impeachment had to do with some of the warnings we’ve been hearing about the economy lately.

    She could be betting on the economy to tank by the election, like a lot of economists, and then an impeachment wouldn’t look so bad.

    Dow Jones went from over 27 thousand on July 20 to under 26 thousand a month later when she came out for the impeachment inquiry.

    Consumer confidence is down.

    Job numbers were predicted to be meh (and from what I’ve heard that’s exactly what the new report showed).

    Manufacturing slowed down.

    The tariffs are coming.

    But the big kahuna was on August 14 when we had the dreaded “inverted yield curve” and stocks fell 800 points.

    Within a week, she was supporting an impeachment inquiry.

    From a historical perspective, we’re overdue for a recession.

    If anything, having Lauf in the race, who is clearly running as a pro-Trump candidate, would give Underwood more of a reason to tow a moderate, non-Trump Derangement Sydrome line in her district (not to support impeachment).

    That would disarm claims that Underwood is with the squad, is too far left for the district, etc.

    And she could still say she disagrees with Trump on certain policies.

    That would be more appealing to independents.

    This district is won in the middle, not the fringes, and even Underwood acknowledged that.

    She ran as a problem solver and often refused to talk about Trump on the campaign trail.

    Underwood’s motives are tough to figure out.

    Who is she?

    Which one do people think is more likely

    1. Lauren Underwood is always looking for an excuse to drop her moderate facade and go full squad.

    2. Lauren Underwood is moderate but occasionally has a squad-like outburst (like the ICE comments) to get in the news and attract nationwide donors plus to shut up her progressive detractors.

    3. Lauren Underwood is an independent woman — sometimes more left and sometimes more moderate.

    Whatever she is, her actions during the past few months are worrying many voters in the district.

  18. I heard there are two job openings for every job seeker.

    That could mean our economy has a long way to go before a decline.

  19. Lauren an “Accomplished nurse”? Explain. Provide evidence.

    On economy. Employment numbers never looked so good. Especially for African Americans and Latinos. Record low unemployment data for these. Thanks to Trump policies that eliminated numerous regulations that hindered businesses and tax cuts for companies and corporations.

    Regarding sexual assault. The leading Democrat dementia laden presidential candidate has over the years violated women with his kissing of them, smelling their hair etc. A previous Democrat presidential candidate and unfortunately a president had regularly violated women sexually including rape. He had been taken to court for his violation of Paula and then had to pay her $800k and then was disbarred. A Democrat politician of Chicago was found to have violated a young girl and went to jail. What is it about these Democrat politicians and violating women?

  20. And let me take a vote here….

    Who is surprised the lying, baby killing, race baiting, Fake-nurse, is lying?
    Nobody?

    Right, nobody!

  21. Apparently Underwood did not follow what went on during Harry Reids (D) tenure in The Senate.

    Republican bills were regularly thrown right into the trash.

    Democrats at the time cheered Harry Reid (D) on.

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