U.S. Rep. Martin Heinrich
U.S. Rep. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., says President Barack Obama’s recent tax compromise with Republicans is concerning because it was “too one-sided” – and he’s hoping it doesn’t indicate a new trend for the president.
“I have to see where things go from here,” Heinrich said last week in an interview. “Compromise is not a dirty word. That is obviously part of what you have to do to move forward – but you have to stand up for your principles too.”
Heinrich said he doesn’t believe the tax compromise will provide enough stimulus to justify the debt it will create. He said before the vote that the bill would force the United States “ to borrow another $900 billion, most of it from China, that will be redistributed to America’s wealthy. We simply can’t afford that.”
The congressman said in the interview with NMPolitics.net there “are places still on the Hill where good, bipartisan work gets done.” He cited the House Armed Services Committee, of which he is a member, as an example. Earlier this week, the House overwhelmingly passed the Defense Authorization Act following bipartisan negotiations. The bill included two pieces of legislation Heinrich proposed earlier this year.
Heinrich he said he hopes the New Mexico delegation, which will shift from five Democrats to four Democrats and Republican Steve Pearce in January, will work in a bipartisan manner.
Heinrich said he recently met with Pearce, and while it’s clear they won’t agree on many issues, he believes the two will find common ground and be able to work together on issues such as helping the national laboratories.
Finding balance
Heinrich said there’s a balance that must be struck between standing up for what you believe and compromising. He maintains that Obama’s compromise with Republicans on the tax bill failed to strike that balance.
After he was re-elected in November against the tide to the right, Heinrich wrote in a guest column on this site that Democrats who won re-election “did so by having the courage to stand by our legislative decisions – to run on, and not away from, our records.”
Heinrich said last week that he believes Americans want their elected leaders to stand up for their values, regardless of whether they view things from the left, right or center. I suggested that Sen. Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M., and former Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., were both re-elected many times because constituents believed they did just that.
He agreed, pointing out that they were very politically different senators who articulated the reasoning behind their decisions and were able to win re-election in the same state.
“I think I’d be wise to look at their leadership as a model in the future,” Heinrich said.