Peter DeFazio (D-OR) received a terse call from White House Chief of Staff, Rahm Emanuel scolding the Congressman for not towing the party line, or more accurately, the Obama line.
The White House chief of staff last month expressed frustration with DeFazio’s resignation calls for President Barack Obama’s top two economic aides — Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner and White House chief economist Larry Summers” and appealed for cooperation, according to DeFazio.
DeFazio has brushed off pressure from Al Gore and Nancy Pelosi as well
He has emerged in recent months as one of the most vocal liberal critics of the Obama administration, blasting the president’s team for not getting tough enough with Wall Street. He’s also taken on his own party for failing to move left-leaning legislation through the Congress.
Personal calls from Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and former Vice President Al Gore couldn’t persuade him to vote for the Speaker’s climate change bill. He also opposed the $787 billion stimulus, citing concerns that only 7 percent was devoted to infrastructure spending.
As regards the stimulus, the only part of the stimulus that has really worked to stimulate the economy is that 7% spent on infrastructure, one of my favorite topics.
