# Stupid Republican idea of the day **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [March 26, 2009, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897 "2009-03-26T18:48:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 707
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2014, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/14121 "2014-04-16T20:37:34Z")
[Congressman Dennis Ross (R-Fla.), asked why he’s against raising the minimum wage, gives a rather . . . confused/confusing answer.](http://www.salon.com/2014/04/16/gop_congressman_dennis_ross_says_raising_the_minimum_wage_is_not_right/) ---
**Author:** ![andros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e480ec/32.png) [@andros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/andros)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2014, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/14122 "2014-04-16T20:49:27Z")
Nice one, Congressman! “If the government’s going to tell me how much I can get paid and when I can work and when I can’t work, then we have a serious problem in this country.” Congressman Ross, will you have the courage of your convictions to sponsor a bill eliminating, on a federal level, child labor laws, the 40-hour workweek, federal holidays, and paid time off? ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2014, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/14123 "2014-04-16T20:56:49Z")
> [@andros](#): > > Nice one, Congressman! “If the government’s going to tell me how much I can get paid and when I can work and when I can’t work, then we have a serious problem in this country.” > > Congressman Ross, will you have the courage of your convictions to sponsor a bill eliminating, on a federal level, child labor laws, the 40-hour workweek, federal holidays, and paid time off? Probably not: > [@](#): > > During a recent town hall event, Republican Congressman Dennis Ross was asked by a constituent whether he’d support raising the federal minimum wage. He said he would not. His reason? Because to do so would be “not right.” > > “I’m not suggesting that we do away with the minimum wage, that’s not it at all,” Ross assured the questioner, Arby’s employee Shaneeka Rainer. > > \ > > How Ross’ belief that it would be wrong to allow the government to “tell [him] how much [he] can get paid” can be squared with his earlier comment that he did not want to abolish the minimum wage entirely, he did not say. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2014, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/14124 "2014-04-16T21:46:13Z")
> [@andros](#): > > Nice one, Congressman! “If the government’s going to tell me how much I can get paid and when I can work and when I can’t work, then we have a serious problem in this country.” Hmm, who tells the congressman how much he gets paid, when he can work, and when he can’t? (There are two answers to this, both equally amusing.) ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2014, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/14125 "2014-04-16T22:12:42Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > So, the WSJ editorial board thinks that Rand Paul will lose for putting forth the outrageous notion that corporate power is too significant in our national political process. > > Da fuq? Clearly a feint. How happy the wall street urinal will be to proclaim that Ayn Rand Paul overcame the odds to hold onto his senate seat. He will then have _a mandate_. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2014, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/14126 "2014-04-16T22:28:44Z")
> [@Eutychus](#): > > [Phyllis Schafly wants the wage gap between men and women to be larger so they’ll have a better chance of catching a husband.](http://www.christianpost.com/news/facts-and-fallacies-about-paycheck-fairness-117959/) Oh, that is some messed-up shit right there. Some choice snippets (for the laaaadies!) > [@](#): > > … Suppose the pay gap between men and women were magically eliminated. If that happened, simple arithmetic suggests that half of women would be unable to find what they regard as a suitable mate… > > … The pay gap between men and women is not all bad because it helps to promote and sustain marriages… > > … The best way to improve economic prospects for women is to improve job prospects for the men in their lives, even if that means increasing the so-called pay gap… > > … women’s pay has effectively risen to virtual parity, but men’s pay has stagnated and thousands of well-paid blue-collar jobs have been shipped to low-wage countries. Nobody should be surprised that the marriage rate has fallen, the age of first marriage has risen, and marriage, in general, has become unstable. ---
**Author:** ![a35362](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3da27b/32.png) [@a35362](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/a35362)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2014, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/14127 "2014-04-16T22:56:35Z")
“Catching” a husband suggests that they don’t WANT to get married. They have to be hunted down and TRAPPED like ANIMALS. Ha, _gotcha!_ ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2014, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/14128 "2014-04-16T23:26:46Z")
> [@a35362](#): > > “Catching” a husband suggests that they don’t WANT to get married. They have to be hunted down and TRAPPED like ANIMALS. Ha, _gotcha!_ Hence elucidator’s comment upthread: [QUOTE=elucidator] Well, bear traps weren’t working for her, men kept chewing their feet off at the ankle. [/QUOTE] ---
**Author:** ![Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/budget_player_cadet/32/205_2.png) [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Budget_Player_Cadet)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2014, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/14129 "2014-04-17T00:19:41Z")
> [@Banning, trolling, etc.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/banning-trolling-etc/686228/68): > > I suppose that’s true - simply being a conservative, I mean. > > But Og help us if we dare to actually express ourselves and post anything of a conservative nature on this board. Does this count? ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2014, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/14130 "2014-04-17T00:25:06Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > Are there no men any more who want to marry money?! \ 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2014, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/14131 "2014-04-17T04:26:27Z")
[Texas Congressman introduces bill to withhold Eric Holder’s paycheck](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/04/16/blake-farenthold-eric-holder-paycheck_n_5161891.html?ncid=fcbklnkushpmg00000013) ---
**Author:** ![OttoDaFe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ottodafe/32/356_2.png) [@OttoDaFe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OttoDaFe)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2014, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/14132 "2014-04-17T06:15:34Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > [Texas Congressman introduces bill to withhold Eric Holder’s paycheck](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/04/16/blake-farenthold-eric-holder-paycheck_n_5161891.html?ncid=fcbklnkushpmg00000013) Isn’t legislation proposed by Jabba the Hutt automatically null & void? ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2014, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/14133 "2014-04-17T13:44:31Z")
Not if the Senate voted him emergency powers. ---
**Author:** ![Kobal2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kobal2/32/20_2.png) [@Kobal2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kobal2)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2014, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/14134 "2014-04-17T13:59:33Z")
> [@OttoDaFe](#): > > Isn’t legislation proposed by Jabba the Hutt automatically null & void? Why ? You’ll never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy than Congress. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2014, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/14135 "2014-04-17T15:18:35Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > [Texas Congressman introduces bill to withhold Eric Holder’s paycheck](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/04/16/blake-farenthold-eric-holder-paycheck_n_5161891.html?ncid=fcbklnkushpmg00000013) Well actually, there’s a serious Constitutional issue there. Holder refused to release documents related to Fast & Furious in response to a Congressional subpoena. If a Bush Administration official had done the same thing I would have felt it was proper to go after him. Though I guess this might give Congress the power to harass the Executive branch endlessly by going after their paperwork. Sounds like the sort of thing that should be sorted out by an objective Supreme Court … sadly, all we got is a bunch of right wing partisan hacks in the majority there. Still, an interesting question under all the bluster. ---
**Author:** ![andros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e480ec/32.png) [@andros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/andros)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2014, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/14136 "2014-04-17T15:32:56Z")
> [@OttoDaFe](#): > > Isn’t legislation proposed by Jabba the Hutt automatically null & void? I wouldn’t go so far as to call the brother a Hutt. I mean, he got a weight problem. What’s the cracka gonna do? He’s Texan. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2014, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/14137 "2014-04-17T15:33:28Z")
Call me crazy, but it seams reasonable to me. > [@](#): > > announced legislation Tuesday that would prohibit federal employees found in contempt of Congress from receiving government paychecks. ---
**Author:** ![andros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e480ec/32.png) [@andros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/andros)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2014, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/14138 "2014-04-17T15:44:42Z")
> [@Typo\_Negative](#): > > Call me crazy, but it seams reasonable to me. I won’t call you crazy, and **Evil Captor** has a point. There is a valid point amid the anti-administration bullshit, and Farenthold might well be sincere in his beliefs that Holder deserves to be in jail. But I’m concerned about the precedent set by the House holding a sitting cabinet member in contempt for the first time ever, and would be more concerned about creating a new law to further attack the same guy (and by extension, this administration in particular). The current House has shown itself adept at some seriously short-sighted, aggressive, bullshit tactics to discredit and minimize the current administration, and I firmly believe they’ve done the House, the Republican party, and the nation a great deal of long-lasting damage. Which is to say that I agree there are a number of important issues involved in the Holder contempt vote, and that they need to be resolved. But I also agree that this is a terribly poor way to do so. Just because it’s a discussion that needs to happen doesn’t keep this from being a SRIOTD. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2014, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/14139 "2014-04-17T16:10:15Z")
> [@andros](#): > > I wouldn’t go so far as to call the brother a Hutt. I mean, he got a weight problem. What’s the cracka gonna do? He’s Texan. “Crackers” are typically from “the South”. Texas is not part of “the South” and Texans are offended by such Yankistic ignorance. Even an backward, knuckle-walking peckerwood does not want to be labeled with a term more appropriate to Georgia or, God forbid, Mississippi. ---
**Author:** ![andros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e480ec/32.png) [@andros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/andros)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2014, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/14140 "2014-04-17T16:19:30Z")
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