Last month, responding to Rep.-elect Andy Harris’ (R-MD) hypocritical demand for government-sponsored benefits, Rep. Joe Crowley (D-NY) began circulating a letter among his Democratic colleagues calling on Harris and other members of Congress who want to repeal the new health care law to forego their own government health care plans. Two incoming Republican freshmen — Rep.-elect Mike Kelly (PA) and Rep.-elect Bobby Schilling (IL) — agreed to the deal immediately and now two others, Reps. Tim Walberg (MI) and Bill Johnson (OH) have also pledged to opt out of the federal employees’ health program:

– TIM WALBERG (R-MI): “Walberg didn’t take the federal plan during his first term in Congress, either. Walberg receives free health-care stemming from his 16-years in the state legislature.”

– BILL JOHNSON (R-OH): “This is one substantial way I can show that my commitment to the people of eastern and southern Ohio is to help them, not to gain exclusive benefits for myself,” he said, in a news release issued by his office. Johnson is not be going to be without health insurance coverage, however. He has health insurance available to him as a retired U.S. Air Force officer.

In reality, these two congressmen are still receiving health benefits from the government. Walberg is drawing on state benefits, while Johnson will be dependent on the military system, which is funded with federal taxes. Kelly and Schilling, meanwhile, will receive employer-sponsored coverage through their businesses. Meanwhile, the Wonk Room argues that if Republicans were really serious about “listening to the people who sent us here” — as they argued after the midterm elections — they would all opt out of their government-sponsored insurance plans.

Tim Walberg (R-MI), a proud birther who has threatened to impeach President Obama, won his election over Rep. Mark Shauer (D-MI) earlier this week. Shortly after his victory speech, Walberg spoke with the Jackson Citizen Patriot to outline his agenda. “(Voters) are repudiating what is going on by politicians in general, and more specifically, this administration,” he said. If President Obama does not follow the Republican “mandate,” Walberg made clear that he will force a government shut down:

He said Republicans can work together to get things done with the Obama administration, but that will be up to the president. If Obama, like then-President Bill Clinton did after the 1994 midterms, responds to the mandate from voters and understands he can’t disregard it, then he thinks Obama will do well. “If he doesn’t, he will shut government down,” Walberg said.

While Walberg’s threat is extreme, he is not the only Republican politician proposing a government shutdown. Newt Gingrich, architect of the government shutdown in the ’90s, has pledged that the new Republican Congress will close the government as a political tactic to force through their right-wing policies. Rep. Lynn Westmoreland (R-GA) told a Republican audience recently that a government shut down — including a closure of the Veterans Administration — would be one of the goals of the new GOP caucus. As Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) and other leading Republicans have made clear, they will force a “show down” with Obama by holding general government funding bills hostage until health reform is repealed. (HT: Michigan Messenger)

Former Rep. Tim Walberg (R-MI), who is running for Congress against incumbent Rep. Mark Schauer (D-MI), has campaigned by attacking the stimulus as a failure. Walberg has claimed the stimulus only killed jobs, and claimed that funds were spent on “socially conscious puppet shows” instead of infrastructure. As Political Correction noted, the puppet show claim is absolutely false. But Walberg has debunked his own claim that the stimulus failed to create jobs in a public forum he attended early in September. Speaking with community members, Walberg acknowledged that his son is employed by a contractor doing projects funded by the stimulus. Walberg’s son is among the 3 million people who gained jobs through the stimulus:

WALBERG: My son works for a cement-cutting contractor. They’re getting some overtime now. You know why? Because of the stimulus, doing government contracts. My son makes $10-an-hour, but when he works on a government contract, he makes $28-an-hour.

AUDIENCE MEMBER: It’s always been that way.

Watch it:

This week, the Center for Public Integrity released an explosive report detailing how dozens of lawmakers, including Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) and Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), privately requested hundreds of millions of dollars of stimulus money for their districts. The report added increased scrutiny to the stimulus hypocrisy first highlighted by ThinkProgress. While Walberg was not in Congress to request extra stimulus money, his family certainly benefited from a program his campaign pegs as a failure.