You’ve heard of the Republican “Pledge,” but are you ready for “The Card”?
House Republican leaders released a pocket-sized version of the Party’s “Pledge to America” Wednesday, possibly in response to some who criticized the pledge for its length. Democrats took it as another opportunity to knock the document, repeating criticism that the pledge lacked substance.
The “Pledge to America”, which has received mixed reviews from conservatives and liberals, is a 45-page document unveiled earlier this week that outlines a plan of action for a Republican-led Congress.
“With the pledge Republicans are offering specific plans to create jobs, to cut spending and to reform the way congress does its work. It’s all right here on the card,” said House Minority Leader John Boehner.
The card condenses the original 45-page pledge into two pages, highlighting the policy points of the document.
The card lists five categories including jobs, government reform, health care, congressional reform and national security. Below each category are bullet points of pieces of legislation that would be used to enact what the Republican Party sees as the priorities of the people.
The cards were written and printed yesterday, a House Republican leadership aide said.
“It’s a Cliff’s Notes version,” said Wisconsin Republican Rep. Paul Ryan told The Daily Caller.
Democrats criticized the condensed version, calling the card “vague.”
“It’s a grandstand to nothing,” California Democratic Rep. Lynn Woolsey told TheDC. “[Republicans] think the American people are going to vote for nothing.”
“Now they are specifically wrong and last week they were vaguely wrong,” said New Jersey Democratic Rep. Bill Pascrell, Jr.
Republicans insist, however, that the card addresses American priorities.
“This isn’t a campaign, this is about things we can do right now,” said Cantor.