Heck, in the Budget Control Act of 2011 (aka the sequester), the Weeper said he got 98% of what he wanted!

The Weeper is no doubt already feeling heat from the TeaPeople, so he must inflame the conversation. TeaPeople like inflammatory remarks about President Obama!

any body else noticed? simpletons say hahaha allot, I mean allot.

there a couple of good examples above.

Ok Mr Speaker, you've been in Congress for a couple of decades now. Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid aren't exactly new items on the agenda. What are the (detailed) solutions again to these national issues again?

I'm more than certain he issued the reporter a detailed breakdown of what was needed in order to 'save' these programs, but the reporter probably just forgot to attach them to the article.

The reality of this debt is we need to work on it. Look inward at your self's. When you loose your job, you have to make big changes. You stop eating out, you cut back everywhere you can. And if your unemployed for very long, you loose everything. Business is much the same way. But in business you can't down size very easily, you almost have to quite and start all over. Government has a different roll to play. We all know we need to cut back, but where. The Army said to stop building Tanks, as we have 10,000 of them setting in fields rotting away. We don't need more tanks. Well congress said no???? Why? Seem's every time a cut comes that might cost jobs somewhere, congress say's no. But when it comes to taking things from the working class, the Reps can't take enough. Where did the money come from for Bush's 2 wars along with tax cuts? How much money did those wars generate for the rich? And who is going to get struck paying the bill's of the wars. That's right the working class. Naturally the rich only pay 10% or less taxes because they call there income capital gain. Change the name of income to capital gain and you pay little to no tax on it. Bull$hit to that nonsense. There is so much fat in Defense spending that needs to be cut, but that takes away from the rich. Less see if Bonner will take anything away from the rich. Never happen. Gotta take it from people that worked there whole life and paid into the system. That is where they want to take the money form. Can't stop the Drug company's and DR. Hospitals and Insurance company's from ripping off the Government. Hell no, they are rich, Can't touch them. Take it from the working people. We the people stood strong last election and didn't let the rich buy the election again. We need to stand strong now and get our country back from the Likes of the the Koch Brothers and others like them. They take and take and leave the mess for us to pay for the clean up. How many times have we seen this. These company's like Koch industry, all oil company's and any company that pollute the air, water and land, they should have to put money's aside to pay for clean up, when they are done taking.

It's kinda amusing for Boehner to say this considering Obama has ALREADY CUT SPENDING, just not to prehistoric, Grover Norquist (my namesake) wet-dream type levels...

Ron-1861300

Johntho,

I want a president that can work with others and close the deal - like Clinton and Reagan did. Obama's approach of not attempting to build relationships with the GOP, makes big deals very difficult to complete. His governing style was ok when the Dems had the House and the veto-proof majority in the Senate (albeit for only a couple months), but it hasn't worked well with a split congress.

====

This is such an oversold talking point. Name 10 Representatives and name 5 Senators that President Reagan allegedly built relationships with, President Clinton built relationships with and President Bush built relationships with.

It only takes 1 person to sign the bill into law, but takes many to vote on it. Take away the Speaker of the House and take away the Majority Leader in the Senate for all 3 of these Presidents and tell me of the rest of the 430+ folks on the Hill these Presidents allegedly got all chummy with?

Repojam posts:

Only in America.

The Weeper gleefully spouted off about 98%, now not at all..........It's Obamas' fault so says the Weeper!

Ron, 1.11

Ron.

"I want a president that can work with others and close the deal"

and I want a congress whose sole purpose isn't to make the president a one term president and whose only bargain is my way or the highway. Obama has reached out to congress on many occasions but your stinking tea bags has always slapped it away. America knows this and you paid for it this last election and will pay for it more as more people come to understand. The economy that Obama inherited was not his fault, and the obstruction of the republican party (tea bags) has hampered this countries recovery from the worst recession since the great depression. YOU show you ignorance with every post. YOU are the problem not the cure. If you had held George W. Bush to the same standard that you hold Obama too, we would not be in this situation today.

That's rich Boehner, you've walked away from the 4 trillion dollar grand bargain twice.......

Boehner is a gutless wonder! The more you see and hear of this guy the more you have to wonder!! He didn't have the guts to raise taxes! No, he and his fellow conservatives held the American people and the economic recovery hostage to his pledge to Norquest for 2 years. He'd rather take the last dollar from seniors or food from the mouths of the poor to meet his conservative agenda. It's not about solving a problem, crisis or need. It's about being a gutless, crybaby, my way or no way, privatized profit-socialized losses, "do as I say, not as I do," fiscal conservative hypocrite!

7 Things Democrats Would Have Freaked Out About If Bush Had Done Them

surely that list is much bigger considering not much of a difference between the two.

White Collar Auto

Pat just posted an article from THink Progress.

Really?

yeah you didnt know that is where all the truth comes from..and NBC...not like that Faux Noise outlet.

Go OBAMA!

Feisty Redhead Roselle, IL

The dead beat daddy strikes again!

Former Rep. and Tea Party darling Joe Walsh has filed a request in Cook County Circuit Court to cease paying child support payments because he is no longer employed, the Chicago Sun-Times reported on Monday:

You should of used that Bayer aspirin Joey!

------------------------------------------------------------------

And Dead beat Dad should get a J-O-B!!!

Chuck, the government is not a person, it has obligations that a person cannot even realize. To compare the national budget to one of your own is simply put, dumb.

Throwing working class seniors out to die after they paid for their benefits is NOT "courageous".

The President campaigned on a balance approach to deficit reductions. He laid out areas to bring in more revenue AND cut spending. If the cuts are not good enough for the republicans, why have they not specified any of the programs or areas they would like to see cut? Why would the president do their job for them? If you want cuts, name them so we can have a real debate. This crap of calling it the president's sequester is just another example of deception rather than govern.

They have also gone on all the Sunday shows and said that they have twice passed legislation to avoid the sequester which actually put the whole burden on the poor, working poor, and middle class and nothing from the affluent. That is not balance! And they did this knowing the president would veto it and the senate would not pass it... so basically they waisted time and tax dollar passing bills they knew wouldn't go anywhere. But what they do not talk about on the Sunday shows is that those bills they past twice were from previous congresses and no longer matter. Why are they not taking votes on those same bills anymore if they were so wonderful? because they don't want to have to pull a bill at the last minute AGAIN and be embarrassed because they don't have the votes. Now the republicans would rather talk smack about the president then do the people's work!

TO: Joe in Albany who wrote:

THIS is Hillaryous!

7 Things Democrats Would Have Freaked Out About If Bush Had Done Them

So what is this, only Republicans are allowed to mention the name "Bush" and only in some sort of phoney "good light" after he allowed us to be hit by terrorists, lied us into war, and made the terrorists 2nd dream come true by destroying the entire United States Economy that would hurt the American People for years to come?

I really can't understand why Republicans continue to attempt to make Terrorists their heros.

Sorry Chuck, should have read farther. you are right. Not dumb.

Laker Steve, the government is not a household budget. It can't even be compared. To drasticlly cut back in a time of recession will cost people jobs and cause a deeper recession. The govenment needs to spend in times like these, and cut back in the good times.

Stop projecting your own weakness, Weeper!

The weeper must have stayed up late watching Jimmy Fallon last night, so this morning he came out swinging and throwing a hissy fit. That piece he did on Weeper of the House was simply hysterical. The Busch Clydesdale being reunited with the farmer was just too, too much for poor Boehner.

Boehner doesn't have the guts to put down the bottle.

The White House has accused Boehner of walking away from "grand bargains," deals to reduce the country's deficits, in both 2011 and 2012 because he could not sell it to his base. Boehner's office vehemently disagrees with that notion, instead pointing the finger back at the president.

Boehner's Grand Lie about the Grand Bargain. How many times has Boehner agreed to things that were scuttled by the Far Right? I bet it happens every single day.

I have no doubt that the Tea Party's intention is to attempt to badly damage the economy through something like sequestration, then of course they will blame Obama. They already know their supporters do not think rationally when it comes to the President. And they will attempt to use this in the mid-terms and hope moderate Repub's play along (the 4 or 5 of them that are left). It's scurrilous but these are people who may be full of religion but who are dead empty on morals. If it takes dishonesty to obtain power with that they have no issue.

Every functioning Democrat better show up at the polls in '14 or we may have a completely avoidable disaster befall this country.

Boehner doesn't have the "guts", I mean "courage" to permanently get ride of the Hastert Rule and allow any member of the House to bring a bill to the floor.

Unfortunately gerrymandering has had the unintended consequence of driving the Republican party further to the extreme end of the right due to primary challengers. In a time of divide government this results in gridlock that makes government ungovernable.

The White House has accused Boehner of walking away from "grand bargains," deals to reduce the country's deficits, in both 2011 and 2012 because he could not sell it to his base. Boehner's office vehemently disagrees with that notion, instead pointing the finger back at the president.

This is what our government has devolved into...... a finger pointing blame game reserved for children on the playground.

I am simply exhausted with the endless hypocrisy and "I didn't do that, you did" rhetoric. The populace is deadlocked in divisive, partisan war while taking their cues from their respective talking heads.

How many times do we have to refute the loaded talking points and cherry picked stats for what they really are? How much longer do we have to listen to Mitch McConnell croak out some quip at the podium? Or watch these congressional schleps walk down the hallway with their pruned up entourage.... looking like they have purpose, meaning and professionalism? Or discover some new Tea Party whack job who (without thinking) rattles off some offensive and suicidal diatribe about women's birth control and rape? Are we still waiting for the GOP to reinvent itself? Can't wait to see that rollout <eye roll> Are we just waiting for the next fabricated Benghazi-gate or Drone-gate scandal to take our eyes off the important task of righting this country?

While I feel our democratic leaders share in this mess as well, continually I see the GOP for what it really is: A group of elected officials who have no problem putting their party before the country and its people.

They have confirmed this fact time and again. It's 2013....... taxes need to go up and loopholes need to close. We need to cut spending. We need to route fraud and waste out of our government programs. And mostly, we need to stop subsidizing the rest of the world. I.E. -> quit giving them $$ and our jobs. Quit fighting their wars and policing their ghettos. Quit buying their cheap ass products and funneling them to idiotic, blind walmart customers.

Our problems are here at home. Our public officials need to handle their backyard first and foremost. Ghettos are on the rise throughout the United States. Murder, theft, vandalism, rape, gun crimes, etc. are the norm in every big city. You'd think as an evolving species we'd be past this by now, but no. We mired in our own everlasting quest for more, bigger, faster and better.

Our legislators need to act responsibly to fix these issues instead of taking their toys and going home every time there is important work to do.

Boehner and his entire party have pledged an oath to Grover Norquist and will uphold that oath even if it means destroying the country. So I don't give a damn about his bs opinion

"Our priority is to deny President Obama a second term."

So, who's now focused on spending cuts? LMAO.

Yeah, that's the mature way of running our country. Dare the President, like you're dealing with a 10 year old. He'd best watch out or the President may take him up on the dare starting by cutting the Congressmen's salary down to what they deserve...ZERO. The Republicans are incredible stupid as well as being incredibly Anti-American. I keep coming back to 'Is this really the best the GOP has to offer in the form of leadership???' Every Republican, right down to the local dog catcher, needs to be voted out of office. These guys are just to stupid to be allowed to hold this kind of power.

REPUBLICANS Constantly refuse to sign on any budget deal when there are tax increases, loophole closures, and regulations

So for Boehner to say anything is just hypocritical as most of us sane folks clealry know who is causing the majority of problems.

Boehner is a do nothing speaker, an obstructionist... He should stop blaming the President for everything and put the blame where it belongs, the 232 members of the GOP...

The GOP is living in the past...

None of them actually has the guts to do what is necessary to save this country. And that would be to actually balance a budget and then start to pay off the debt.

You cannot spend money you do not have. Or is that concept a little too difficult for you to understand

LS sorta like Bush/ Cheney did for two wars and a drug program that were all unfunded and passed on to the current administration to figure out. Or has anyone paid attention to the news on the military budget. Two days ago the Air Force pulled the plug on a centralized computer system after spending 1 billion dollars and being 7 years over due but the kept two other contracts with the same company CSC open that are 13 billion dollars over budget and 12 years late. Congress also notified the Army that they are going to order 300 more tanks that the Army said they don't want. they already have 2400 of them that they don't use and hundreds more sitting in the desert in Arizona. Just a Make Work project. Cant we find anything better to build that war toys in this country?

How stupid can the Far Right get?

We had a great depression and the spending on WW2 and high taxes on the rich got us out of it. The rich wound up benefiting the most.

After WW2, the war created a huge debt and we solved it with infrastructure spending and high taxes on the rich. Better than war spending because we wind up with something for the effort. The rich again benefited the most.

All the economic down turns have been cured through spending and high taxes on the rich, which eventually benefit the rich the most from the recovery. Where we have failed is doing what is sinking Europe, austerity measures, which is what the rich want today.

You gotta ask yourself why move away from a proven method? Because the very brich have given up on America and are now Internationalists. They go for the cheap sweat shop labor and fuk America,

That approach will sink this country but the very rich don't care. They have managed to buy our congress who are traitors.

BTW: There are almost no Conservatives in government except perhaps in the Democratic party.

What a revolting situation.

Problem is that is you have $10 today you can't spend $16....unless someone floats you a loan for the extra $6. Then you have to have $18 tomorrow to pay him back and keep going. We should not be spending money we don't have NO MATTER HOW SLOW THE ECONOMY IS! Both parties need to grow up and make the cuts necessary to stop all the borrowing....... Because this borrowing is actually stealing our children's future and security.

@ Laker Steve

While I don't entirely disagree that we need cuts, I think that you are taking an overly simplistic approach. Budgeting on a national level ≠ budgeting on a household level. There's A LOT of differences involved. Most notably is the fact that our fiat currency and domestic and international demand for our paper is incredibly high. As weird as it might sound, the US is simply capitalizing on this demand by making use of our available underwriters rather than leaving money on the table by not leveraging on margins.

However, with that being said, I agree that the Debt:GDP is getting quite high for my tastes.

But also take into account two political aspects in-play here. First, Obama won with a sizable majority and Electoral Votes, in spite of voter disparagement in numerous battleground states. Second, the GOP is shedding members and exposing fractures in their ranks what with Boehner's recent SNAFU in backing away from his proposal over the hurricane-relief to the NE because of other political sidelining...the drama over whether Boehner would maintain his role as speaker was also fascinating.

Obama is capitalizing on the GOP's inability to hold credibility with the majority of the nation. Obama is also capitalizing on the increasing media reports regarding the gerrymandering of districts which resulted in the GOP maintaining their House majority in spite of losing the electorate. It's so painfully obvious it's like a flunky student with a string of F's in a subject suddenly Acing the final...there's a clear indication for CHEATING.

And the above doesn't even include the more immediate political climate of how sequestration will gut the Defense budget. Even though sequestration would hit a lot of social programs, the social programs are not largely within the "discretionary"-priority, meaning that much of it may be exempted from the sequestration by virtue of this definition if/when sequestration is put into effect.

Thus, Obama doesn't need to give up ground on spending cuts as much as the GOP would like him to (or I would for that mater). The simple fact is that the GOP has lost so remarkably that they don't have a leg to stand on. They are being forced to back away from their stances on immigration and they are finding themselves in the doghouse with women and moderate voters that defected years ago because of the GOP's abhorrent social agendas.

So ultimately, the GOP painted themselves into a corner, and their defense contractor lobby will mop the floor with them if they allow sequestration to happen. It's a lose-lose-lose for the GOP, and a lose-lose for the nation if sequestration happens. But it will be a lose-win for the Democrats because their base isn't going to defect to the GOP if sequestration occurs...quite the opposite in fact.

rdsdca1965 - you truly are a good little Republican - vulgar, crude, classless and a damned liar. And, my guess is YOU'RE the one who hasn't the guts to come out of the closet!

ron 1.11 - had Boehner and his group not vowed to work against the President instead of with him - there would have been cooperation. Every time he reached out they refused to work with him. Get a clue - Republicans in Congress are useless obstructionists who don't give a damn about the country - just Grover Norquist.

All your libbies attempts at Name Calling of the Speaker of THe House belies your inability to debate his points.

Boehner has no points. We don't have a spending problem. We have a jobs problem. The reason the deficit ballooned during Obama's first year is because the economy crashed, people made less money and therefore owed less taxes. As the economy has recovered and as people have started to make more money, tax receipts have gone up and so the deficit has going down.

Mr Boehner understood this problem during 2010, that is why he ran the mid-term campaign on a platform of "Jobs, jobs, jobs." It is unfortunate he spent the next two years working on abortion and 33 failed attempts at repealing Obamacare. He made the political calculation that the economy needed to be stagnant and people suffering in order for the country to vote Obama out of office in 2012. Unfortunately for him, the country isn't stupid - we know who to blame.

As far as the economy is concerned, this isn't rocket science. Fix jobs, and the deficit takes care of itself. On the other hand, if you want to "fix" spending, then you lay off people, who will then go on unemployment instead of paying taxes into the Treasury and the spending problem will get worse, not better. We already see this in effect; the economy contracted 0.1% in January, much to the delight of the Obama-haters, who are very upset at the idea that he actually is putting policies in place that help the country. As it is, though, the reason the economy contracted was because of defense layoffs - exactly what Obama's opponents want: smaller government.

The real societal problem that our country faces right now is the immense hatred coming from the Right for anyone who derives any benefit whatsoever from the government - even when they paid for that benefit in the first place, be it social security, medicare or unemployment insurance. It is impossible to compromise with such uncompromising hatred; Obama tried and got his head bashed in by them for doing so. It is to the country's benefit that he has now learned his lesson.

I don't think he's got the guts to do it

What's next? A double-dog dare?

TO:" jim-1455434 who wrote:

"Ha Ha Ha !!! Boehner tells the truth and extremist leftards go ape$hit !..."

Hold it! What? Boehner "told the truth"? Que the press.

Boehner accuses Obama of not having 'the guts' to cut spending

Haha! Now I have to agree with that one!! If there's one thing Obama knows how to do is to spend spend spend!!

National debt today: $16.52 trillion... and rising fast!

@Byron

We don't have a spending problem. We have a jobs problem. The reason the deficit ballooned during Obama's first year is because the economy crashed,

Sure, it's the economies fault. What's that river in Egypt named again?

TO: Laker Steve who wrote:

"Can't keep printing money we don't have..."

Why not, because Republicans are the only ones allowed to do that?

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

John Boehner is a side-show phoney who is completely crippled by his own Congress that loves to take Boehner to the woodshed everytime Boehner opens his mouth in public.

Since Republicans haven't been able to convince John Boehner to insult the President enough to the GOP's liking, they're bringing along that tobacco chewing trailer trash Ned Nugent to make sure Republicans act as ignorant as they possibly can.

Boner and the rest of the GOP bunch have the guts to cut all social programs to spend even more on the useless wars they started!

Boehner does this every time. He starts yelling and acting all tough. That's a tell. He's got no leverage, so he acts like he is Mr. tough guy, which is just his normal dog and pony show for his party. In the end, he will suck it up, but will come across like the hero of the GOP. Yeah, right, keep going with that. Nobody is wise to your game........at least those that don't pay much attention.

Chris@SLC

any body else noticed? simpletons say hahaha allot, I mean allot.

__________________________________________________________

Chris: Only a complete MORON would spell "a lot" as "allot" TWICE!!!

Moron.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Obama is capitalizing on the GOP's inability to hold credibility with the majority of the nation. Obama is also capitalizing on the increasing media reports regarding the gerrymandering of districts which resulted in the GOP maintaining their House majority in spite of losing the electorate. It's so painfully obvious it's like a flunky student with a string of F's in a subject suddenly Acing the final...there's a clear indication for CHEATING.

I am not really sure this is bad thing. Since Republicans have the majority in the House, they are now in the national debate, and the nation gets to see how inane their suggested policies are, as well as how immensely uncouth they are personally.

The country's political infrastructure is built on a two-party system. It is not in our interests, even of liberals, to have the Republican party commit suicide. The ideal situation is that the public, i.e. we, force the Republicans into sanity, or at least, badger them into electing sane leaders. There are indications that this is happening now, although, of course, I might be being too optimistic.

Once, the Republican party stood for fiscal sanity, personal responsibility and a strong, self-respecting nation - all good qualities. If they can return to those roots, we all benefit.

Another news report and their bias position on who's to blame for Obama's failure and his unwillingness to work with the House and Senate, which is his job.

With this slanted reporting, is there any wonder why so many folks are being misled and actually believe that Obama is doing a great job and the Republicans ARE against doing anything that is good for the country.

Haha! Now I have to agree with that one!! If there's one thing Obama knows how to do is to spend spend spend!!

That is his job. That's what we hired him for. His job is to spend what Congress authorizes and requires him to spend.

National debt today: $16.52 trillion... and rising fast!

See #1.72 above.

98% of what we wanted

That is a convenient sidestep to the reality that neither side wants the Budget Control Act of 2011 to go through as they wrote it.

But the 98% included a $Trillion in cuts then, no revenue, plus the sequester.

There's no argument they have about cuts proposed now being the "only ones" associated with the BCA of 2011.

Talk to the Hand and Albanian

simpletons say hahaha allot, I mean allot.

LIV's spell "a lot", allot

I think "allot" was part of the joke ("LIVs" no less, shesh)

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You cannot spend money you do not have

How soon we forget.

Deficits don't matter.

Quote Dick Cheney

the government is not a household budget.

This needs repeated and repeated. The people who say the gov't is the same as your personal budget don't know jack about macro economics.

By the way, Obama has cut billions of medicare fraud, a way to save without hurting Americans. Republicans would prefer to decimate Medicare instead.

I think Boenher has forgotten that the President has already signed a spending cut bill, it was the sequester. It's the Republicans who are trying to wiggle out of that one.

Eh? Nooooo. This is coming from the guy who approved of every bush/cheney budget?

"ZFacts' new Reality App has this graph, amazing facts (e.g. who ran the debt up by more than $1 trillion in 100 days), and much more."

This is a good article because it has links sprinkled around it that just keep getting better and better.

National Debt Graph by President

Now Mr. Boehner we don't want to see Michelle roll her eyes at you again publicly, do we?

By the way taxpayers, have you been keeping up on her monthly clothing bills? We don't want to fall behind and rack up interest charges now do we?

Looks like all the looney libbies have their panties in a wad! This failed president will say nothing new and do nothing new. More of the same....NOTHING!!!!

Perhaps some other people need to have the guts to win elections, if they are so discontented.

Congress spent the money, Congress needs to make the cuts. The president just signs what Congress sends him. The GOP doesn't want to stick out their necks by proposing cuts themselves, they want to blame Obama so they can whine to their base, 'You lost your job because of Obama, not us.'

There is no deal or automatic cuts in spending that will save the US economy now.. This is like dropping HBO from your cable TV bill because you are unemployed and 3 months behind on your $1500 a month mortgage payments.. Has nobody figured out we are totally screwed and there is no hope?? We spend way more then our economy can generate in revenue and even if the government stopped spending completely it would take 30+ years to cut the debt in half.. Arguing about tax increases and cuts that will not even make up the difference in the yearly deficit is just a dog and pony show.. The only way that the debt can ever be paid off would be for the government to nationalize all businesses and confiscate all the US citizens wealth.. And even if they did and we all were slaves for the Fed. it would still take 25 years..

Mr Boehner, I think a good place to begin the cuts is with your paycheck. You say cuts are needed and should be balanced with new monies. So lets begin the cuts with you and yours and leave the little guy alone for a while.

America is broken, who will fix it; our politicians surely will not.

Government is not a household budget.

Right, your mortgage (DEBT) has you UNDER by 200% (or more) of your household GDP--much WORSE than our government @ around 100% Debt to GDP.

Johntho Comment collapsed by the community

Ron Obama has offered Boner a 4 trillion package that contains both spending cuts and revenue increases. Yes, that is tax increases on those that can afford it most. People that wouldn't even miss it. WTF do you right wonders want from him?

President Obama hand picked a commission to look into our debt issue and come up with a solution. His own debt commission recommended 3 to 1 spending cuts to tax increases. I don't know what the right wants from the President but I think the American people should want him to follow the advice that he asked for! As it is, he won't even offer up 1 to 1 spending cuts to revenue increases.

And as for your "people who can afford it" BS, you seem to be under the mistaken impression that these taxes will only affect rich fat-cat Wall Street types. Pull your head out and take a look around, the President wants increases on anyone making over 250k, and that is a lot of small business types. The FACT of the matter is that you can take every single penny from every millionaire and billionaire and you wouldn't even have enough money to cover half of the deficit let alone even touch the debt. Anyone with half a brain who is willing to use it can see that we have a massive spending problem that no amount of taxing will even make a dent in.

Okay Mr Speaker let's kick some ace and take names.

lib50

What macroeconomics is that? The government convincing the public that the only thing that can save the people is government and that we would be nothing without them. People who blindly believe that our government is actually working "for" the people are fools.

SmBusOwnerinNY

Sorry, but that is a moronic example. When the government gets on a schedule to actually pay down the debt like my mortgage, then I will say you have a point.

Sure, it's the economies fault.

No, it is not the economy's fault. And it sure isn't Obama's fault. Whose fault is it?

Why, the hypocrites in charge of the Republican party right now: Speaker John Boehner, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.

Lest we forget just exactly where these hypocrites stand:

June 2002: Congress approves a $450 billion increase, raising the debt limit to $6.4 trillion. McConnell, Boehner, and Cantor vote “yea”

May 2003: Congress approves a $900 billion increase, raising the debt limit to $7.384 trillion. All three approve.

November 2004: Congress approves an $800 billion increase, raising the debt limit to $8.1 trillion. All three approve.

March 2006: Congress approves a $781 billion increase, raising the debt limit to $8.965 trillion. All three approve.

September 2007: Congress approves an $850 billion increase, raising the debt limit to $9.815 trillion. All three approve.

Database searches revealed no demands from these legislators that debt increases come accompanied by drastic spending cuts, as there are now. In fact, the May 2003 debt limit increase passed the Senate the same day as the $350 billion Bush tax cuts.

And now Boehner has the unmitigated gall to say Obama doesn't have the "guts" to cut spending? You gutless hypocritical bastard!

SmBusOwnerinNY

Right, your mortgage (DEBT) has you UNDER by 200% (or more) of your household GDP--much WORSE than our government @ around 100% Debt to GDP.

LOL! With a mortgage you can see the light at the end of the tunnel. You know that in X number of years that mortgage will be paid off and you'll own your home free and clear. Only a @!$%#ing fool would constantly refinance his home borrowing more money every year and going further and further into debt knowing that the home will NEVER be paid off. Well, that's not entirely true because no one in their right mind would continue to lend money to such a fool.

Did you have any other apples that you want to pretend are oranges????

Roadrunner,

Quit being a baby.

America will do just fine. Our debt is ~100% of GDP. Totally manageable, especially at existing interest rates, and projected to be about the same for the next 10 years. $20Trillion on 2016, so what? It's the SAME as the current debt RELATIVE to the size of the economy.

Same thing as your first car loan for $5000....it was the same level of affordability as your $25,000 car loan is now. You make more money and the money you make is worth less than it was 20 years ago, so it works out to be the SAME.

We're not going to hell in handbasket, RELAX.

"Boehner accuses Obama of not having 'the guts'..."

Boehner must have been drunk when he said that crap.

John,

It's not moronic at all. It's like a home equity line. It rises and falls as you need money and can pay money back. You never have to pay that off. When you need a new roof (economy crashes) you pay for it with increased debt; when you get a bonus from work (low unemployment and good tax revenues) you pay it down.

No economist says the Government should pay off the debt, there's no purpose in it, it just needs to stay manageable relative to the size of the economy.

Backcountry,

The difference is that the country will live forever, so there is no reason to pay down the debt to zero. A person has a reason to do that--lower retirement income. The country's income will continue forever (and continue to increase forever). That's the difference.

EEngineer

Lest we forget just exactly where they h6ypocrites stand:

Ummm, if you're going to call other people hypocrites you should avoid making one of yourself at the same time. Because it's not just the republicans who've had a change of heart in regard to debt increases-

“The fact that we are here today to debate raising America’s debt limit is a sign of leadership failure. It is a sign that the U.S. government can’t pay its own bills. ... I therefore intend to oppose the effort to increase America’s debt limit.”- Then Senator Barak Obama

What Obama doesn't have the guts to do is what is best for the country. Force the red states to pay back all their debt to the federal governmant and then force them to secede like they want to. Then we don't have to support the red welfare states anymore!!!!

SmBusOwnerinNY

Our unfunded liabilities because they spent the SS and Medicare trust funds is over 140 trillion. That is ten times GDP. So spend away!

Oh, and by the way, when times are good they spend more and never pay it down. Not in the last 60 years anyway.

Sorry honey I vote for the best person for the job man,woman,gay or straight now what?

Obama name one thing he has really done?

TO: rgsdca1965 who wrote:

"... Obama name one thing he has really done?"

He stopped Republicans from casting our entire econony into the 2nd Great Depression by investing in the American People, and as much as Republicans hate, and refuse, to admit it, President Obama got the job done.

Let's review: The last Republican President inherited from his Democratic predecessor a balanced budget and a situation where we were actually paying down the national debt. His Vice-President famously said "deficits don't matter" and they passed on to their Democratic successor the most serious recession since the Great Recession of the 1930's and the biggest budget deficit in history up until that time. While our current President was promising to promote bipartisanship in his acceptance speech, Republican leaders were meeting behind closed doors and plotting to oppose everything the new President attempted to ensure that he would be a one term President. Now apparently, budget deficits do matter to the Republicans, and they have the gaul to accuse the President of not cooperating with the opposition, nor having the "guts" to deal with the deficits that they themselves created.

What has become of the Republican party? Is Boehner and McConnell truly the best they have to offer? The current poisonous atmosphere in the party has caused some of its best to retire, and I'm sure, discouraged many intelligent and moderate potential candidates from even running. Although my sympathies are more closed aligned with the Democrats, I believe that two viable alternatives are necessary to prevent any one party from becoming too entrenched, too comfortable in office, too corrupt and feeling too entitled. The Republicans seem determined to make themselves irrelevant.

Repubs with the same failed plan over and over for years......Take from the middle class and poor and give to the rich 1%. Take the middle class and poor jobs overseas so they can put their profits in offshore accounts to avoid paying their fair share. Then the 1% uses all the infrastructure to make profits...transportation, courts, electrical power, water, communications, military, the justice system......etc. All these perks at the cost of the middle class and poor while they pile profits in bank accounts offshore......Then they call the president names as a last resort because they refuse to compromise to give back what they owe the country.....Crashing the economy was so good for them, they want to finish it off to get the profits they didn't get the first time...like privatizing the Post Office for the rich......

Chris: Only a complete MORON would spell "a lot" as "allot" TWICE!!!

hey Joe, the same dlcklick mocked a misspelling of mine and in the same paragraph said dose (instead of does) three times.. What a retard

SmBusOwnerinNY

when you get a bonus from work (low unemployment and good tax revenues) you pay it down.

So you actually do think that apples are oranges??? Or could you please point out exactly when you think anyone is planning on "paying down" the debt. Even the rosy predictions of the CBO make it perfectly clear that Obama's plan will never even balance the budget let alone pay down the debt.

You analogies wouldn't seem so ridiculous if they were even loosely based on reality.

I believe that Johnny's Bone just went limp again. Can we please get him a larger violin to whine upon.

Serious what has he done as Head of the House but perpetrate the agenda of saying NO!

He has done nothing in over 4 years to date but whine or say No. Why don't you grow some balls MR Johnny B. as the ones you have are pretty limp. Bringing old issues such as abortion illustrates your lack of progression for this country.

Why not do something positive for this country over that of maintaining your tan as you whine upon your own constructed violin!

Curious Johnny do have any education for you vocabulary is highly limited to saying, uttering promoting the overuse of the word NO!

“The fact that we are here today to debate raising America’s debt limit is a sign of leadership failure. It is a sign that the U.S. government can’t pay its own bills. ... I therefore intend to oppose the effort to increase America’s debt limit.”- Then Senator Barak Obama

Back when the economy was doing well and the Republicans frittered away the surplus. Yes, frittering away the surplus is absolutely a sign of leadership failure.

As far as Obama's statement is concerned:- it is only an idiot who doesn't change his actions based on how circumstances change. Did you actually have a point?

TY@ Tea Party Downgrade, for being a reasonable voice in this discussion, without being (overtly) partisan. It seems to me, that so many times these discussions turn into partisan name calling contests. Neither party seems to have the answer, and it's devolved into a "he said, she said" debate with no one (seemingly) having an original thought beyond their political beliefs and spoon fed "talking points", it's so sad to see.

John,

Spending rather than reducing debt when times are good is a Republican standard operating procedure. See Reagan, Bush, Bush II. Clinton reduced debt during his boom time, didn't just spend it away like Bush did.

http://zfacts.com/p/318.html

TO: Joe in Albany who wrote:

"... America is screwed."

Nope, I think so. We are much better off under President Obama than we were under the last Republican Adminsitration that lied to the American People about everything.

Some of you seem to have forgotten that Obama recently signed legislation that gave every president elected since the late 1990s permanent Secret Service protecion for life. While it is a drop in the proverbial government budget bucket, when round off pennies you eventually get dollars. In short, even small cuts in spending will benefit the budget deficit. That's something that Obama apparently doesn't want to acknowledge. He wants to tax , tax, tax, spend, spend, spend. At some point over 50% of the population will be on government aid as a result and the people with the money on both sides of the Congressional aisle will be the ones controlling our lives and our futures.

Not sure Obama lacks the guts as much as he lacks any leadership skills or grasp of economics. Pretty good at speeches, campaigning, leg tingling and fluff TV, pretty dismal failure in all other ways. For tonight's speech, some key Obama terms you need to understand:

"Invest" - Use taxpayer dollars to fund pet projects that benefit cronies

"Pay fair share" - soak the rich

"Protect the middle class" - soak the rich

"Close loopholes" - soak the rich

"Support education" - pay back teachers unions for their votes

"Alternative fuels, clean energy" - more Solyndras at taxpayer expense

"Control health care costs" - Reduce payments to the providers and hope some still see patients

"Deficit reduction" - reduce the rate of growth not the actual amount

Back,

The analogy is that your personal bonus is equivalent to the nation's good economy (personal income vs tax revenue).

When you get a bonus or a raise, you are able to reduce your home equity line. When the economy does well, you can reduce your debt (or deficit in this case).

In 2001, we had a projected debt reduction in the works. Gore talked about a "lock box" to isolate the SS trust fund and all was possible. Somebody else "won" the election, remember?

It is funny. Obama wants the Republicans to concede a little to him yet he will not concede a thing to them.

Mr President Pot Kettle. Or maybe you prefer the other one Oh yeah HYPOCRITE

SmBusOwnerinNY

I don't think you understand my position. I DON'T GIVE A FLYING @!$%# WHO IS SPENDING MY CHILDRENS FUTURE, IT NEEDS TO STOP!

Hey Boehner, people voted against cuts to social programs. Its why your party lost moron. The GOP ran the last election on cuts to social programs, look what it got them.

People want cuts from other areas. Like the military, and other BIG government money pigs.

The little people have had enough of always shouldering the burden, and suffering the spending cuts.

Entitlements are called entitlements, because people are entitled to them.

Doesn't have the guts? lol that's severe? and he had to tone it down? Why doesn't Boner have the balls to use the correct phrase, he should have said "Obama doesn't have the BALLs to cut spending". The guts thing sounds childish and weak.

TO: Richard-1971294 who wrote:

"... I miss the Bush years..."

Why do think most folks call Republicans "idiots"?

Boehner accuses Obama of not having 'the guts' to cut spending

Someone call the Weeper a Whaaambulance.

254,000 metric tons of gold at current prices to pay the face value of the debt.. 2,540,000 metric tons to pay off the total leveraged amount.. Unless there is a gold storage vault under Fort Knox that is the size of the super dome I think the piggy bank is a bit short.. The fall of our economy is really going to hurt.. Smart people are prepping for a pioneer type subsistence lifestyle where there is no Walmart and no factory job and no high tech doctor and no Social Security and no government pension and no welfare and no food stamps.. Growing your own food and bartering for things is just ahead.. When all those countries that we owe money to get the news that their money is gone they will come looking for payback.. That means China and all the rest will be fighting over the scraps like starving dogs..

Johntho

Ron, 1.11

Ron.

"I want a president that can work with others and close the deal"

and I want a congress whose sole purpose isn't to make the president a one term president and whose only bargain is my way or the highway. Obama has reached out to congress on many occasions but your stinking tea bags has always slapped it away. America knows this and you paid for it this last election and will pay for it more as more people come to understand. The economy that Obama inherited was not his fault, and the obstruction of the republican party (tea bags) has hampered this countries recovery from the worst recession since the great depression. YOU show you ignorance with every post. YOU are the problem not the cure. If you had held George W. Bush to the same standard that you hold Obama too, we would not be in this situation today.

Johntho,

I sincerely hope we can have a debate without becoming personal. I know we have very different viewpoints on a number of economic issues and I respect your opinions...I hope you can also respect mine. (and I'm guessing, if we were talking about social issues we would find a lot of agreement)

As to your post...I'm not a Republican - I'm an independent. As an example, I voted for Obama in 2008, and Kerry in 2004. I know someone that met Obama in a non-political setting (after he was elected president), and based on that event I think Obama genuinely cares about others. I also agree with Obama on a number of issues such as gay rights and stem cell research. However, I strongly disagree with his decisions on the economy and his managerial style. I still think he's a good person - but I disagree with him on those items.

As to the state of things when Obama took office - I completely agree he inherited a mess that was not of his making. I think the financial meltdown had been building for decades and both parties contributed. However, I think many of the economic decisions Obama made, coupled with his managerial approach, have significantly reduced the recovery speed. Again, it's nothing personal - I just disagreed with those decisions...I still think he's a good person.

Boehner:

What

is your State

going

to cut

cut, cut, cut

out

from the Federal Government?

YOU FIRST

Some people may call it a lack of "GUTS", but in reality it's a lack of "LEADERSHIP". Real leaders will step forward and be willing to tell people that which they may not want to hear, but need to hear. Kinda like having the ability to tell your kids NO once in awhile. This president has no leadership qualities because He's a career politician which doesn't create leaders.

All these speculations about the Presidents address tonight -- listen to his address -- then make your comments about what is, or is not, according to your beliefs.

We all have a problem of sifting through reports of who said what and the truth therein -- way to much rhetoric to wade through without basic knowledge. The base would be to contact your representative for more information of what is and your subsequent protest or endorsement of. The difference between posting here/expressing your views, and calling your representative is that you may not do so anonymously.

It sounds like something Boehner would say - 'Stay out of the way, ...but play a constructive role.'

The problem with Boehner is that he doesn't have any control over 'his' House. How can the President negotiate a deal on anything without a negotiating partner who has the power to negotiate a deal? The Republican rhetoric is as hostile toward progress as ever, ...it's the only thing they agree on.

rgsdca1965 - if you voted for either McCain or Romney you DIDN'T vote for the best person running. Niether had any concept of what is going on in this country or how to fix it.

As with past recessions, there is no quick fix - unlike what idiots like you believe. Now since you've accused the President of being gay and other stupidity, why don't you go away. Lowlife's like you who make up lies to put a good man down have no place in civilized society.

midwesterner - you voted for Bush twice- you clearly have no clue about leadership. Plus you voted for "there is no problem with our economy" McCain (Palin, really? And, you talk about LEADERSHIP???); and Romney - who couldn't hold a position on ANYTHING for more than an hour. You really want to talk about leadership? Then you can't talk about Republicans since they have NONE!

Looks like all the looney libbies have their panties in a wad! This failed president will say nothing new and do nothing new. More of the same....NOTHING!!!!

failed, hmm... Reminds me of the poem:

The Petty and the Small
Are overcome with gall
When Genius, having faltered, fails to fall.

John,

What I'm saying is that a THRIVING ECONOMY is more important to the state of the nation's debt, AND your children's future, than our current deficits. Cutting spending now is more of a threat to the economy than the deficit. As an example, see the -0.1% GDP growth in the 4th quarter of 2012, DUE TO massive reductions in Defense Spending. Economists say that alone cut more than 1% off of the quarterly GDP. No need to YELL at me. I'm not your enemy.

Some people may call it a lack of "GUTS", but in reality it's a lack of "LEADERSHIP". Real leaders will step forward and be willing to tell people that which they may not want to hear, but need to hear. Kinda like having the ability to tell your kids NO once in awhile. This president has no leadership qualities because He's a career politician which doesn't create leaders.

Seems like Obama has had no problem telling the immature ones "NO." He made the mistake of treating Republicans like adults in the first term. Like any other smart person, he's learned from his mistakes.

He stopped Republicans from casting our entire econony into the 2nd Great Depression by investing in the American People, and as much as Republicans hate, and refuse, to admit it, President Obama got the job done

Sorry honey GWB did that and the only thing Obama did with the rest of that money was bail the auto unions for there votes.

Random

That's exactly what I thought..what next the 'triple-dog dare'?

It's not that obama doesn't have the gut cut spending, it just goes against everything obama believes in. obama came to Washington to "fundamentally change America" and he is doing that, by increasing the roll and power government has in our lives. And to do that he needs to get as many people dependant on government as possible. Big government's only make things worse. This has been proven time and time again.

In the last 75 years, how have ANY of the govenment programs helped the poor? There are more people on government assistance now, than EVER before and the problem is only getting worse.

As to the state of things when Obama took office - I completely agree he inherited a mess that was not of his making. I think the financial meltdown had been building for decades and both parties contributed. However, I think many of the economic decisions Obama made, coupled with his managerial approach, have significantly reduced the recovery speed.

You are absolutely right. He tried to work with the Republicans, thinking that they would put the country first. Rather, they wanted the country to suffer so that we would vote Obama out in office in 2012. This was a big mistake. He should just have rammed through the correct policies.

Roadrunner,

Smart people are prepping for a pioneer type subsistence lifestyle where there is no Walmart and no factory job and no high tech doctor and no Social Security and no government pension and no welfare and no food stamps

Smart people will continue to work to make our government function so you don't need to be "a-preppin" for a government-free apocalypse. Working against it's function is the problem, guy.

IAnd always hear the tree thuggers talking @!$%# saying that you had to save GM 99% drive foreign cars

I used to not no more I buy American ford and chevy

Let's start cutting spending on your salary....

It's not that obama doesn't have the gut cut spending, it just goes against everything obama believes in. obama came to Washington to "fundamentally change America" and he is doing that, by increasing the roll and power government has in our lives.

That must explain why he has, in fact, reduced government. Government is now smaller than it was than when he took office.

You people are so out of touch with reality, it's amazing.

Byron Raum

it is only an idiot who doesn't change his actions based on how circumstances change. Did you actually have a point?

That was my @!$%#ing point- duh. As soon as Obama has the checkbook (or as you would say, his "circumstance changed") suddenly his opinion of the debt ceiling changed also. I thought flip-flopping was a bad thing?? I guess liberals only believe that to be true when it is someone they don't like doing it.

Worm meat,

he is doing that, by increasing the roll and power government has in our lives.

How's that exactly? Extending unemployment? Better to just, I dunno: starve, default on even more mortgages, send your kids to work? Or are you talking about the vaginal probes Republicans are proposing? Who is trying to "get into" your life exactly?

In the last 75 years, how have ANY of the govenment programs helped the poor?

Read a history book. Do you have any idea what poverty really WAS in 1933?

rgsdca1965 - OMG you're a blithering idiot! You can't stay on any topic but keep running around the room screaming at the top of your stupid lungs.

Many of us drive US Made cars - Lincoln. Now go away - mommy wants the computer back and she's tired of you playing on it!

I neither like nor dislike Boehner, he's just another politcian. However i agree with him on one point .....The massive deficit and debt are the biggest threat to our society by far.

For example, did you know the interest rate we pay on our MASSIVE debt now is less than half of normal average rates over the long haul? Know why? The printing the FED is doing is holding them artificially low at around 2%. When they stop printing, eventually will have to, rates will rise rather quickly. Take the soon to be 20 Trillion debt BO will get us to unless stopped, then add in a rate we could reasonably expect, say 5%, and that gets you an annual interest payment of ONE TRILLION DOLLARS. Just interest. Think that is far fetched.... we are only 3.5 Trillon away and 6Trillion was added in just the last 4 years. See any meaningful cuts happening to keep us from getting there? Uh, not even a little.

Now add in Medicare, Medicaid and SS when we reach that point and that takes up almost every cent the govt takes in. Now go explain what mommy and daddy are about to do to your kids and grandkids. You can call Boehner all the names you want, but think back about what he was trying to do spending wise in a few years when we are paying a trillion a year in interest and our economy blows up.

SmBusOwnerinNY

You are defending those that take our money believing that they know best on how to spend it. All of them should be in jail for mismanagement of public funds. People seem to believe that government is some omnipotent being sitting out there and their job is to give and give and give. It all has to come from somewhere. And that somewhere is my kids being forced into servitude for their entire lives to pay a debt caused by idiots who don't have the balls to tell the people they can't do everything. So, in a sense in your defending their actions you are.

rgsdca1965

Sorry honey GWB did that and the only thing Obama did with the rest of that money was bail the auto unions for there votes.

Bailing out banks and financial institutions - good. We couldn't have the economy collapse with these companies possibly being forced to go to bankruptcy to make responsible choices.

Bailing out automakers - bad. They should have been forced into bankruptcy so they can learn to make responsible choices. Additionally, we should have let them falter so that the economic areas that it mostly would have impacted which already had terrible conditions and high unemployment got worse.

Gotcha. I'll make sure I have these items on the list of "Bush and Obama both did it, and why it's not okay when it's not our guy doing it".

You all can just ignore 99% of the rants from Chicago. There are so many on the "Social Programs" there that the city is way deep in debt but chicken to do anything about it just like Obama. Democrats have bought votes for so long, having to give more and more and more freebies until they have run out of ways to pay for these freebie vote pay backs. Now they are trapped on thier own pitard! Ha, now watcha gonna do when them come for you? Oh, yeah that's right Janet Nipolitano is getting ready for "mass civil war."

"I think he'd like to deal with it [fiscal problems], but to do the kind of heavy lifting that needs to be done, I don't think he's got the guts to do it,"

This drunk sure likes to make waves. Hey drunk, if you believe this is going to help your cause, you should have left that bottle along last night, you woke up this morning with false feelings that you're a big man, and it's going to cave in on your "stupid party," ass!!!

LOL!!

Why is it that when posters like BIG ATC, zero in on the problem of the debt they (like Obama) go after Social Security and Medicare instead of the multitude and many overlapping gimmie so called "Social Programs" that no one ever paid a dime for. Welfare, free phones, free homes, free utilities, park districts forced to give them of almost nothing what working people pay for, the cops time taken up by constant crime and shootings in neighborhoods. GET this straight, I don't care if the corrupt government called Social Security and Medicare payment we were forced to make a "tax". The fact remains we paid for something the government promiseds and instead they want to continue to give to those who pay nothing and take what we paid for. ENOUGH of this phoney crap. All the "social programs" cost MUCH more annualy than Social Security and Medicare combined even though they have sneaked in many gimmies into these programs. If they start screwing with these they need to take those back out first.

1965,

Every new car I've ever bought has been American. Every part my company buys is American except for a very small handful of things that aren't made here. I buy from a company that makes its own power from the wind (see photo there) and I have a solar system on my own house. I top out my SS every year and I paid 19% in Fed income tax last year (I made a pretty decent income, and 19% is not bad at all in my view).

I walk the walk. I don't shop at China-WalMart. Do you walk the walk? Any of you anti-Obamabots?

This Just In:

Speaker Boehner challenges the President to a "wicked bad" throw down at the Capitol flag pole

after the State of the Union. Also Speaker Boehner says his dad could beat up the President's dad

and that Ohio is better than Illinois and Hawaii put together. So there, says the Speaker, I quintuple

dog dare you plus infinity. The Speaker than left the media podium, calling out for his Makers Mark

and Pepto Bismol cocktail, otherwise known as The Pink Elephant.

In addition to the yearly Trillion dollar deficit spending, also add in the current administration printing policy that is adding another trillion a year. That is 2 trillion a year we are spending now that we don't have. How do you think that is going to end artificially adding 2 Trillion a year, a keynsian dream by the way? Go explain this also to your kids and grandkids. If you have any in high school ask them how they think this will end and if they are OK with this amount of debt for them later.

Unfortunately.....the same type of crap you see on this blog, is probably the same type dialogue our politicians are engaging in. You should all be ashamed of yourselves. It's sickening.

Every part my company buys is American except for a very small handful of things that aren't made here.

This is how you spot a hypocrite. You cannot use "every, and except," in the same sentence trying to prove 100% of something.

Go explain this also to your kids and grandkids. If you have any in high school ask them how they think this will end and if they are OK with this amount of debt for them later.

Personally, I think you should handle the grown-up part of taking care of your children, and leave them concentrate on school instead of your dumb attempt to scare them half to death. People like you are partly the reason why American children are falling so far behind in education, you burden them with YOUR problems by trying your best to push them off onto them.

John,

Everybody's got to pay taxes. Congress decided what safety-net systems and social insurance our government was going to provide.

The Economy is the only thing that's out of whack. Repair the economy and the rest is fixed--deficits to SS trust fund projections.

Do you remember the surprise everyone experienced during the late 1990s when the economy suddenly surged? "High" Clinton tax rates combined with a smoking economy put us in surplus for crying out loud.

Fix the economy and the rest is fixed. Who wants (keeps) throwing sand in the gears to make Obama look bad? Traitorous bastards, I'd say.

The ONLY REAL FIX is to Raise Revenue, by Bringing Back Jobs to US Citizens who Pay Income Tax.

Massive cutting just puts more people on unemployment, which just depresses the economy even further.

Returning private sector jobs to American Citizens will provide income tax revenue to OUR Government versus our government having to pay unemployment benefits to those who would be jobless instead. We need our elected officials to Start Protecting American Jobs and do whatever it takes to bring back the jobs they let go. We need leaders who will actually stand up for the American people.

The bottom line is that “Our Government” has to protect domestic industry and the jobs that those industries provide. If they do that, the rest will take care of itself.

We may have to pay a bit more for products made here in the USA by US citizens, but at least we'll still have jobs and a future for our children.

Obama already proved he is a gutless wonder

I'm pledging to cut the deficit by half by the end of my first term in office.

I will be held accountable

If I don't have this done in three years, then there's going to be a one-term proposition.

Barack Obama

all this is crap. Obobba is just another black that wants free welfare in the form of a blank check. even if there is no money left in the bank, he has a blank check. this borrow and spend attitude has the U.S belonging to the Chinese. I agree Obama does not have the guts to reduce the deficit, and Bohener does not have the guts to stay it to his face. Crooks one and All.

They seem more interested in grabbing our guns than solving debt problems, and letting imigrants orerun the country is a travesty.

Wouldn't it be More Productive if Our Elected Leaders Started Working Together as AMERICANS for AMERICANS and AMERICA, instead of just bickering, stalling and posturing for the next election as democrats and republicans! The American People have had it with this unproductive BS! The way that both parties having been operating for years just stinks! Neither party has really been looking out for the best interests of the US Citizens who elect them and who they're supposed to represent.

Both parties have sold out the bulk of the American citizens, who they're supposed to represent, by allowing the "out-sourcing" floodgates to open wider and wider without taking any sensible measures to stem the tide.

It shouldn't be all about Democrats or Republicans! It should be about Americans, especially our elected officials, doing the right thing for our country and its citizens. All the single-minded, left versus right, ideological one dimensional bull has got to go!

Both parties need to start working together and actually start doing something to fix the real problems in our country like "out-sourcing", illegal immigration, the out of control costs of health care insurance and our reliance on foreign fuel. If they don't start working together and actually start making progress by the next election, then American citizens should run a nation-wide campaign to vote out all incumbents regardless of party to send the message.

Wouldn't it be better if both parties worked together as AMERICANS to draft bills that could be put up for a vote together, rather than each party trying to draft their own bills an just trying to pass them as Republicans or Democrats.

Bills drafted and proposed by members of both parties as AMERICANS, rather than as a Democrat's bill or Republican's bill, would be much more likely to pass and be much more likely to actually do some good. Or does that make too much sense?

Byron, How and were is obama cutting government? the military?

The fact that we will now have to go to the government for health care is a HUGE increase in the roll of government in our lives.

There are more people on food stamps not than ever before. Thats not a good thing. I am not saying that people that are down on their luck are SOL, everybody needs help once in a while. I think that it is up to those in a community to help each other not the government. If you let government take care of you and absolve you of any responsibility for your actions or situation, you as a person will never get better. Government can only hold the masses down, not lift them up.

I stand by it, Mr Logic, mushulu. EVERTHING except what ISN'T MADE HERE.

Where's the Hypocrisy?

I buy American whenever I can, I buy from a company the produces its own power, I produce my own power.

WTF do YOU do?

SmBusiness, there was another aspect to the economy of the late 90's you didn't mention. The lowest SPENDING/GDP in the last 40 years. We were spending around 19% of GDP. Historical average since about 1950 of REVENUE/GDP is around 18%. You spend more than that and you will have deficits no matter what. BO has been spending in the 24 - 25% range. Not possible from the last 60+ years of revenue history to come close to covering that.

And the surplus was in public debt only then (like bonds, etc). There is another aspect to debt that is intra-governmental debt. There was more there than the small public surplus and we had a net deficit, not surplus.

Worm,

The fact that we will now have to go to the government for health care is a HUGE increase in the roll of government in our lives.

'cept there is no public option, remember? You have to go to a PRIVATE insurer. That's no different from the past. Their just MAKING you do it, you know--keeping you from being a deadbeat taker on the rest of society. Getting rid of takers, aren't you FOR that?

A truthful statement sends you libs into orbit.

He has no courage to do what needs to be done or the intellect to even know what that is.

He is a failed President and if not the worst in History he is second behind Jimmy C. Another failed Liberal.

Truth. Why don't you try it sometime lefties.

Big ATC,

Right, the economy was growing at 5-6% in the late 1990's. That's the difference and that's my point.

We need to get the economy growing at a good clip and the Govt spending/GDP ratio and the debt/GDP ratios will come back to normal.

SmBusOwnerinNY

I stand by it, Mr Logic, mushulu. EVERTHING except what ISN'T MADE HERE.

Where's the Hypocrisy?

I buy American whenever I can, I buy from a company the produces its own power, I produce my own power.

I'm sorry, but "every" is being part of a group without exception. .

WTF do YOU do?

Do you have to get so ignorant? I'm retired, two wonderful careers, US Army Infantry, and Firefighting. I loved protecting my country and community for 45 years. Thanks, but now I just tend my 33 acres with love and kindness.

And it's Moshuluu, Mr. SmBusOwnerinNY, not mushulu.

SmBusOwnerinNY

'cept there is no public option, remember? You have to go to a PRIVATE insurer. That's no different from the past. Their just MAKING you do it, you know--keeping you from being a deadbeat taker on the rest of society. Getting rid of takers, aren't you FOR that

Oh be fair. They quit being for that as soon as Democrats thought it was a good idea.

When a republican speaks there is a little bit of truth among the lies and when a democrat speaks there is also a little bit of truth among their lies. When the rhetoric is sifted through the partisan followers the minute amount of truth is sifted out. Things are the way they are because our elected leaders want it this way, if they get any push back they blame it on their mortal partisan enemies but that is a ruse that only their most ignorant followers believe.

Boehner--you are sooooooo wrong. Obama does not have "the brain" to cut spending.

Why is it that the Republican and Tea Party people, scream about making cuts, but NONE OF THEM will say what they want cut? They say Democrats don't have the guts, but Democrats have already cut 1.2 Trillion dollars!!! If they want cuts, why don't they have the guts to say EXACTLY what they want cut? The weeper of the house has NO clue and ZERO credibility! The Republican party is lost and will lose in every election, where gerrymandering isn't the new norm! What a worthless group!

Ru kidding,

Whether it's a truthful statement misses the point. He doesn't WANT to cut spending drastically, or right away.

Look what happened to GDP last quarter: -0.1% GDP growth. Why? Huge defense spending reduction. That' was more than a 1% drag right there.

You want more of that? If so, then you can no longer blame Obama for an anemic economy. You can't blame him for something you want.

Moshuluu,

You sort of insulted me for something I'm proud of. You called me a hypocrite for nit-picky English discrepancy. Every, followed by except.

I do my part to keep Americans working, and you insulted me. What do you expect me to do besides become indignant (not ignorant, btw).

SmBuss, the sequestration event you refer to, remember who's idea it was to put that in? Obamas. Thats his football. Dems put that amount of defense spending cuts in there, R's would never have drawn that up. I think behind close doors they want that defense spending cut. They always promote it.

I agree you can't tax or cut one's way totally out of the huge mess we have gotten ourselves into and it has to come through business growth. I don't exactly see this administration as a beacon of light for small business growth. Even if we jumped it up to 4 or 5% we would still have deficits at this spending level.

Repo,

It WAS a good idea to have a public OPTION. But on point, I was just refuting the guy who said we were being forced to go to the government for healthcare--which we aren't.

....and we wouldn't have been FORCED to do that even if there was a public option.

Why should the government manage it and pay for it??

The cost of health care skyrocketed with the advent of medicare medicaid. Doctors were already taking care of most of the elderly already before medicare, and they were doing at a reduced rate or pro bono. Once the government got involved, the doctors realized that they can not only get paid, but paid a premium and gouge the government (tax payers) for their services.
For a good example of managed medical medical services that is affordable, take a look at cosmetic surgery.

Insurance doesn't cover most if not all cosmetic work, so the doctors need to make it affordable to keep the business coming in the door.

Repo,

It WAS a good idea to have a public OPTION. But on point, I was just refuting the guy who said we were being forced to go to the government for healthcare--which we aren't.

....and we wouldn't have been FORCED to do that even if there was a public option.

TO: midwesterner-742861 who wrote:

"Some people may call it a lack of "GUTS", but in reality it's a lack of "LEADERSHIP". Real leaders will step forward and be willing to tell people that which they may not want to hear, but need to hear. Kinda like having the ability to tell your kids NO once in awhile..."

President Obama did say "No" a lot of times, and he will again.

It's just that, he said "No" to Republicans who wanted to keep running their same failed policies over and over again and claimed they were hoping for a different result.

How many times do Republican followers want to allow the GOP to destroy the entire United States Economy before they stop falling for GOP lies?

I just read this morning how BofA, GE, and I can't remember the rest of the companies moved billions to Cayman Islands since the election to escape paying taxes on the money, so all congress has to do is do away with that exemption and make all those companies pay taxes, plus penalties. Another cut, I have suggested to both my US Congressman, and senators is cutting or canceling all aid to countries like Pakistan, France, Israel, and any other country who has exhibited a negative view of US. Yes, I agree congress also needs to get away from this my defense contractor is needed but this system is a waste.

TO: Ed Orr who wrote:

'I just read this morning how BofA, GE, and I can't remember the rest of the companies moved billions to Cayman Islands since the election to escape paying taxes on the money, so all congress has to do is do away with that exemption and make all those companies pay taxes, plus penalties..."

Republicans would rather stick a needle in their eye, starve the poor, or destroy the planet rather than to penalize offshore accounts.

Big,

I don't think I brought up the sequester. In any event, it being "Obamas idea" is moot. It was the only thing that was going to pass at the time to avoid default. It wasn't preferred by anybody.

Regarding business growth: Cutting spending hard and fast now isn't going to help growth, that's for sure. In the long run we'll get over it, just like we'll get over all of this. How much are we currently affected by the recession of 1982? My thought is with interest rates so low NOW, NOW is is the time to goose the economy, not undercut it.

To show you where I am on this, I was for letting all of the Bush tax cuts expire, but have them phase out over 5 or 10 years so that the increases were slow and not nearly as painful. THAT, along with phased-in spending cuts of the same order-of-magnitude, would have righted the ship for 30 years. The point being that you don't do ANYthing drastic to mess up the system--like the sequester.

Boy the "Progressive" hacks are out today. It's 4 to 1 and the place reeks of left wing bias. Borrow, tax and spend is still the only theme for the left. How do they even get "progressive" and "forward" thinking to fit into their old political mantra?

We are being FORCED into a GOVT managed system of healthcare.

Don't buy it and you will be fined/taxed. Don't pay fine and it will be taken out of your check. You have to prove it on your tax return, hence the reason for the extra 16,000 IRS agents in Obamacare.

Estimate from the IRS last week, the lowest (of 4 plans i think) plan would cost a family of 5 $20,000.

A healthy single person of 27, non smoker, if Obamacare was in full effect today would be an increase of a whopping 190%. i.e. you pay$2,000 today under Obamacare you pay $5,800.

This is what happens when the govt sticks its nose into business. Just like the post office and the Rail. How many new govt employees will it take to implement this? We know 16,000 just in the IRS. 30,000 maybe? It takes 21 jobs to pay for the average of a govt worker so we need to add 600,000+ privat sector jobs just to pay for the salaries of people that implement this.

SmBusOwnerinNY

Repo,

It WAS a good idea to have a public OPTION. But on point, I was just refuting the guy who said we were being forced to go to the government for healthcare--which we aren't.

....and we wouldn't have been FORCED to do that even if there was a public option.

I agree with that. I was for the public option. It made absolutely sense to me to have the public option to provide for the general welfare and hopefully eliminate so many bankruptcies due to medical bills.

Unfortunately in trying to compromise the public option idea was scuttled and now we have to hear about it being "rammed down our throats".

BigATC,

Socialism disguised as "forward thinking".

Repo,

Case in point, BigATC says:

We are being FORCED into a GOVT managed system of healthcare

Just not true. There is no reason for him to think that unless somebody is misleading him. ALL of the options are private. Govt is just MAKING you BUY it from a PRIVATE insurer, which eliminates the TAKERS out there that were just slacking and not paying for insurance AT ALL. The plan ELIMINATES the deadbeats, but that doesn't fit with the story line that Obama wants to create takers.

Dr821,

Where is this "socialism" you talk about?

What is the new dreaded "government-run" program you speak of?

The -.1 GDP growth for the fourth quarter, because of defense spending or lack thereof (if that's what truly caused it), is part of the sequester they have been putting off for a year and a half now. That is left over from 2 summers ago and would have been in effect the first of january. You didn't call it sequester, but thats what it was, or would have been had they not extended it by kicking the can like all politicians do.

I hope that was just from defense holding back and not something worse.

What you propose seems a logical way to procede, but i don't think there is any way to get us back to normal in our situation now that isn't going to hurt. And quite a bit, as we have gotten ourselves to the point now of debts and deficits that i don't see a clear way out that isn't drastic.

The big bomb is our debt interest. Paying probably 40% of what we would be paying if left alone by the FED printing. Around 2% as opposed to almost 5% which is the norm for the past 30 years. We paid 4.75ish under Clinton in good times. This is my fear when the FED stops printing, they will have to at some point, and we are all of a sudden paying 5%+ on our massive debt.

SmBusOwnerinNY,

I think you're really in the right place on fiscal issues. My only question is why continue to hang on to left politically. They will never accept your conservative and business minded approach to deficit reductions.

joe and caesar, sorry I use that term "technically" and work related. since I'm at work.

ya-know work, oh never mind.

and caesar good to hear from my favorite bigot.

We don’t have a spending problem. Republicans love to claim that government spending is out of control and is holding back the economy. But under President Obama, government spending has grown at its slowest pace since the Eisenhower administration. According to the latest projections from the Congressional Budget Office, the nation’s deficits have shrunk by trillions of dollars, and the debt is close to being stabilized as a percentage of the economy. In fact, spending cuts are holding back the economic recovery — what’s needed isn’t more austerity but a plan to create jobs. In fact, the deficit reduction achieved since 2011 has still overwhelmingly favored spending cuts to tax increases, meaning that any budget deal going forward should include new revenue in order to be truly balanced.

You can word your BOOLSH anyway you want but the numbers are thus....

When Bush left Office = National Debt was 10.6T / Total for term was 4.7T/8years

Obama at end of 2012 = 16.4T / total in 4 years = 5.8T

How much more is he going to add in the next 4 years.

Your more than welcome to go to the treasury website and look it up yourself.

Boehner's right...he doesn't have the guts to cut spending. Even after he already got his Tax Increases.

I only got one phrase for John Boehner: $3 in CUTS, for every DOLLAR in in REVENUE.

THREE TO ONE! YOu should've taken the deal, JOHN, but you have no power over your caucus.

Most rudderless SPEAKER in the history of CONGRESS.

SmBusOwnerinNY

Repo,

Case in point, BigATC says:

We are being FORCED into a GOVT managed system of healthcare

Just not true. There is no reason for him to think that unless somebody is misleading him. ALL of the options are private. Govt is just MAKING you BUY it from a PRIVATE insurer, which eliminates the TAKERS out there that were just slacking and not paying for insurance AT ALL. The plan ELIMINATES the deadbeats, but that doesn't fit with the story line that Obama wants to create takers.

SmBusOwnerinNY (I really need to find something acceptable to shorten that to. I'll think on that while I type this out and realize... oh never mind...)

I think a lot of it is the narrative that we've been sold for the past several years. Republicans are all about making money and Democrats want to just give it away and put everyone on the public dole. We're a nation of takers under Obama, blah blah blah.

In many cases, they're repeating the same narrative over and over even if it has no bearing in reality. It is far easier to repeat the narrative we are being given rather than do any research and see if it fits the story you are being told.

I know it seems like ages ago, but remember when the news was still being presented as unbiased and fact only as much as possible? Now we have opinion thrown in and often it's opinion followed by loud incomprehensible shouting. For many of the mindset that the news is still true, or at least their news is true, they can fall in line with it as fact and accuse other news sources of being fake.

You see it here every day. Liberal bias. Conservative bias. Whatever.

Anyways, to circle that point back around, we have the same narrative we're sold and it's being reinforced repeatedly. Not many people are sitting down to see if that narrative is even true. Just keep repeating it over and over. In the case we're going on about at this time, it's how the government is getting involved in your medical care. Maybe we'll hear that regurgitated talking point about how the government is going to come between you and your doctor again.

Respectfully, Mr. Boehner, the "biggest threat to our society" is people like you who do bring nothing of value to the process, but are content to merely toady to their power base, and prefer sound bites over substance, rhetoric over reason, and conflict over compromise.

America's future would be much brighter without your "contribution" to its planning.

SmBuss, no they are not all private. The plan i quoted above (from the IRS), family of 5 costing $20k, is the LOWEST of four govt plans they put out there.

Did anyone hear the Administration decision last week to reduce funding for over 4 million diabetic seniors in Medicare? Probably not as the main stream media doesn't cover this. They reduced the number of companies you can get the supplies from also to 15 from over a thousand.

My mom is diabetic is how i know. And BO's claim of not losing your doctor? My mom also lost her doctor of 25 years because they gutted Medicare Advantage and my mom's doctor stopped taking it. You really don't want to bring up Obamacare around my mom and my parents group of senior friends. There was mixed views years ago from my parents group of senior buddies. Bring it up now and my mom says all you get is an explitive filled tirade from all of them.

The White House has accused Boehner of walking away from "grand bargains," deals to reduce the country's deficits, in both 2011 and 2012 because he could not sell it to his base. Boehner's office vehemently disagrees with that notion, instead pointing the finger back at the president.

ROTFLMAO!!!!!!

YO!!!! HEY BARRACK HUSSEIN AND JOHN "TAMMY FAYE" BOEHNER!!!!!!!!

Why aren't these discussions public? Remember your campaign promise of everything being on C-Span?

Barrack, you said we would have the MOST transparent, responsible and accountable government ever.

YOU LIE!!!!!!!!!!!

Put all these debates and discussions on C-Span. Let the American people see and hear the debates. It is OUR MONEY you criminals are using.

WE THE PEOPLE DEMAND TO KNOW WHO IS TO BLAME!!!!!!!

Stop the childish finger pointing and let us know what you're doing with OUR money.

BOTH OF YOU REMEMBER WHO YOU WORK FOR, RIGHT?

Hmmm, if we had voted for Romney a budget would have been passed a long time ago. But no, Americans felt they needed even more battles from D.C.

Big and Dr8,

There's three of us that can get along! We just need the rest of the country to come along with us ;- )

Interest will be a problem, later, maybe. For all we know interest rates will stay low for quite a while. When they go up it will be because growth or inflation are occurring, which will both reduce the effects.

I don't think Democrats are fiscally crazy and create giveaways to buy votes. That's only the caricature--just like Republicans are all Bible-thumpin' gun nuts. We just have slightly different look at it. We think the middle and lower class spending drives growth while Repubs think "job creators" drive growth. I think real world observations are on our side, but some may disagree.

Most of this is political posturing anyway. 10 years ago it was the Democrats complaining about Bush's deficits. My problem is when political posturing becomes an ACTUAL obstruction to the economy. Normally, the economy largely keeps going despite what politicians do. Once in a long while it matters. Now it does matter. I'd prefer they all to the patriotic things to make the economy get back on better footing. Then they can keep arguing about guns and abortion and let the rest of us be. THAT's a functioning government for me.

Johntho says "Obama has offered Boner a 4 trillion package that contains both spending cuts and revenue increases."

First note that in typical liberal fashion a rebuttal begins with name calling. Second, note that we hear again about this great liberal myth of this phantom 4 trillion dollar offer made by Obama. So where is the link to this 4 trillion dollar offer, you know so everyone can read the specifics of exactly what Obama and liberals claim was put on the table? If this was such a great offer why didn't the senate take it up, pass it, and put pressure on the House to do the same? Of course we all know the answer is that what goes on behind closed doors and never appears in writing, never happened. Obama talks a great game when it comes to the debt and deficits, but there is nothing in writing and so far talk hasn't solved anything. If all it takes is talk to get liberals waving flags, then there is never any need for actual legislation.

John Boehner.....just put a bulls-eye on your history.....its going to come back to haunt you...

Bingo!

John Boehner...being led around like a puppet to Keystone XL:

http://politicalcorrection.org/blog/201201180005

we got your name, we got your history, we got your connections to Keystone XL.

Big,

Maybe I spoke too soon about getting along ;-)

A plan an an exchange doesn't make it a government plan. I'm not sure what you're talking about exactly. As for Medicare cutting diabetics, I'm dubious. Sounds like somebody telling a story with an agenda. You've never heard of that happening before, have you?

Medicare advantage is basically a ripoff of Medicare (costs more for no better benefit). As for your specific case where your mom's doctor doesn't want regular medicare, well, that's sort of the point--that they only do it if they can charge too much. Sorry, for your trouble, but I'm sure you'll figure something out.

No matter what happens, it's better than the way things were before there was Medicare at all. You're mom would be broke and she'd be living with you.

Sure, blame the Tea Party on Boehner. But just know that the tea party would never have been elected to the House had Obama not rammed Obamacare down our throats at a time when he should have been focusing on the economy.

Lets just look at the facts without the spin. The government is spending more than it takes in and has been for lots of years (under both parties). Sooner or later that is going to catch up to us. Does anyone have a good plan or do we just continue to be the generation that sucks all the future away from our children and grandchildren? Who has the balls to stand up and make us all take on our own problems instead of passing them on?

The FACT of the matter is that you can take every single penny from every millionaire and billionaire and you wouldn't even have enough money to cover half of the deficit let alone even touch the debt. Anyone with half a brain who is willing to use it can see that we have a massive spending problem that no amount of taxing will even make a dent in.

Backcountry164: When you post lies to make a point you simply discredit yourself. Not that anyone proposes taking all of any ones money, saying taking every penny from millionaire's and billionaire's wouldn't scratch the deficit isn't true. The 400 richest Americans on the Forbes 400 are worth 1.7 trillion, far more then the deficit and that's only 400. You right wingers ignore the fact Obama hasn't created any new unfunded spending programs but is simply providing benefits to the 11 million people that became jobless under the great Bush meltdown. The same 11 million that would have received benefits under a republican president in 2008. Republicans also ignore that the economy lost 11 trillion in net worth and 500 billion a year in tax revenue due to the meltdown. That's why deficits remain high not only spending.

Small we could get inflation without growth, which is a serious poison pill. Bennie said he will print until we get 6.5% unemployment, but with his printing and also many other countries doing it that could cause inflation. Then he would have to stop as it would just make it worse. Any scenario of rising rates is going to choke off the economy.

Another little interesting tidbit i found in Obamacare is the tax on Medical device manufacturing. Being a business guy you will find this interesting. They tax them 2.3%, but its not a NET tax, it is a GROSS tax. Never thought i would see that happen. They could actually gross 10 million, make a net profit of $200,000 after taxes (except obamacare) and still lose money. They would have to pay the additional tax of $230,000 giving them a net loss of $30k. Unbelievable.

Cook medical in my state, IN, canceled plans to build 5 new plants because of this tax. Wonder how many construction jobs, plant jobs, support business jobs, community store jobs that one cost?

We can have spirited debate and i can get along fine with you all day, as you aren't a name caller LOL

Hmmm, if we had voted for Romney a budget would have been passed a long time ago. But no, Americans felt they needed even more battles from D.C.

We're Americans. We don't reward obstructionists. If we did neither side would ever compromise.

Many of us drive US Made cars - Lincoln. Now go away - mommy wants the computer back and she's tired of you playing on it!

I don't think so - Ford, Chevy and most so called US made cars are made in Canada and Mexico. Honda, Subaru, Nissan and Toyota are made in the US, by Americans, who get paid American dollars - not Pesos or Pounds Sterling - and spend that money in America. And I won't lie and pretend otherwise just because Ford, Chevy, Dodge, Lincoln, etc., are considered "all American" to some people. I'll stick to my little so-called 'foreign' car, which never lets me down and runs like a champ.

I am tired of democrats always saying "bring back jobs from oversees" when they do nothing to stop them from going over there. The govt. should never revolve just around social issues. When "Hostess" went out of business, not one Democrat stepped in to save any of their jobs. They really expected the Republicans to do everything for them. Then they have the nerve later to blame Republicans for their CEO advantage?

Time to wise up, people! Democrats also make up the top 1% of this country and none of them are providing the jobs we need. We are a nation with a political aristocracy, where democrats in office, are too comfortable with their jobs, that they purposely find blame with the opposing party, rather than compromise.

Obama is one of them. Don't kid yourself. He is already too comfortable with the idea that he will be in office for another 4 years and there isn't anything you can do about.

Big,

Inflation isn't bad for a debtor, it makes all of the old debt worth less in current dollars. Not to go further with that because it's a book to write.

On the medical device thing, no business makes a decision on a 2% tax. There's more to it. What's their choice? Every state has the same tax, as well as anybody who imports devices. So it's not about competitiveness. They just decided it's not worth it? It must not have been worth it anyway (or it's somebody's fish story).

Great, barely three months since the election and already we can predict what the president’s 2nd term will be like. There is no need to strap down for a fast ride because we are not going anywhere fast.

Yes, its true, time will fix everything, but to waste another 4 years in this economic climate, is “a bit rich”, even for a country like ours.

First note that in typical liberal fashion a rebuttal begins with name calling. Second, note that we hear again about this great liberal myth of this phantom 4 trillion dollar offer made by Obama. So where is the link to this 4 trillion dollar offer, you know so everyone can read the specifics of exactly what Obama and liberals claim was put on the table? If this was such a great offer why didn't the senate take it up, pass it, and put pressure on the House to do the same? Of course we all know the answer is that what goes on behind closed doors and never appears in writing, never happened. Obama talks a great game when it comes to the debt and deficits, but there is nothing in writing and so far talk hasn't solved anything. If all it takes is talk to get liberals waving flags, then there is never any need for actual legislation.

Rick: I'll play. From Boehners own speech he blames democrats for the failure of the grand bargain for the sole reason that Obama requires revenue increases as part of the package. It's well known when Obama offered 2 trillion in cuts for 2 trillion in new revenue Boehner stated he wouldn't accept $10 in cuts to $1 in new revenue. That's not compromise.

The “grand bargain” under discussion since Wednesday would have reduced federal deficits by $4 trillion over 10 years by cutting spending, reforming Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, and raising $1 trillion by eliminating tax deductions, increasing government fees, and selling property owned by the federal government.

Boehner said a deal could not be reached because Democrats are insisting that tax increases are part of the compromise while Republicans will not agree to any tax increases.

“Despite good-faith efforts to find common ground, the White House will not pursue a bigger debt reduction agreement without tax hikes. I believe the best approach may be to focus on producing a smaller measure, based on the cuts identified in the Biden-led negotiations, that still meets our call for spending reforms and cuts greater than the amount of any debt limit increase,” Boehner said.

Read more at http://www.christianpost.com/news/boehner-pulls-out-of-grand-bargain-on-debt-ceiling-52100/#D2fMW7cdHhcrQVvw.99

The diabetic thing was in the fiscal cliff deal and starts in April this yeay. CBO estimated it to cut .6 Billion over 10 years. Thats how they put it, not sure why they didn't just say 600 million DOH.

Taxes are always based on your adjusted gross income. You can write off all kinds of things to get your AGI down and then are taxed on that. I'm sure being a business guy you are quite adept at that as most are. Thats whats crazy about it, it taxes on the GROSS, not the AGI. Which is nuts. If i grossed 10 million, had a bad year and broke even, i would still have to write the IRS a check for 230k.

Does Boehner not know that the British economy is sputtering into a tripple dip recession because of government spending cuts?

He must know and this is all political postureing. If the Republicans can force big cuts in spending, the economy will suffer, allowing them to claim it's the Democrat's fault during the next election. (It happened under their watch)

If we do get inflation we will definitely have a huge interest payment. We could easily be paying 6 or 7% interest. Well over a trillion a year. The only way i could see out of that would be to print 20 trillion worth of bonds, then take them out to the parking lot and set them on fire. Then nobody would loan us money for under 10%.

Sure, blame the Tea Party on Boehner. But just know that the tea party would never have been elected to the House had Obama not rammed Obamacare down our throats at a time when he should have been focusing on the economy.

You ignore the fact Obamacare was Obama's number one campaign pledge that he got elected on the first time. Had he not pursued it you'd call him a liar for not full filling his pledge.

In August 2012 Boner declared, "I got 98% of what I wanted"! The dumbazz didnt read the fine print, now he acts like he's got balls, LOLOLOLOLOLOL.

Obama is schooling that boy!

So you actually do think that apples are oranges??? Or could you please point out exactly when you think anyone is planning on "paying down" the debt. Even the rosy predictions of the CBO make it perfectly clear that Obama's plan will never even balance the budget let alone pay down the debt.

You analogies wouldn't seem so ridiculous if they were even loosely based on reality

You ignore the fact Bush took a surplus and turned it into a deficit his first year growing it into over 400 billion a year his second term and ending with his last budget in October 2008 for the 2009 year with a deficit of 1.2 trillion dollars. Despite the insane spending of Bush in prosperous times you now demand Obama eliminate the deficit, continue to provide benefits to the 11 million that lost their jobs in the meltdown and do it with 500 billion less tax revenue a year lost during the meltdown.

It's great you believe democrats are so much smarter then republicans but we can't work miracles. Maybe if republicans would back off the wars, the tax cuts and the pork to their rich friends Obama can eventually straighten out your mess as Clinton did. It'll be tough. You note Obama's plan won't pay off the debt but don't explain how Romney's cutting 500 billion in tax revenue, 200 billion a year more to the military and 10's of billions to a new space program would have achieved that. It isn't enough to bash Obama you have to provide a better alternative. All Obama is doing is paying the same bills Bush paid but to a lot more people. He's created no new unfunded programs unlike what Romney proposed.

Inflation--but the $16T (or $20T) would be worth a lot less too. Inflation's problem is only that it's disruptive when unpredictable, otherwise, it's basically a benefit to someone who owes money (like the US govt). typically it is more than made up with interest rates, but currently, inflation is actually higher than interest rates (for the govt). We're getting better than free money. what's the rush to pay that back, right now?

The gross receipts tax thing is like an excise tax or a sales tax. You pay it only if you sell. It's sort of a pass through, you just include it in your price. Nobody else can avoid it, so it shouldn't effect any individual company. It's just how you think about it. On the $10M in sales, you have to pay $230K. It's independent of your profit, right, just like you collect a sales tax--you add it on and pay the Man. Only to the extend it stops your sales overall does it affect you. This tax will affect overall sales about a quarter that sales tax does, so that sounds like very little to me. Maybe I'm missing something.

Talking about Obamacare and AGI.... heres another goodie........

People with high medical bills used to be able to write of medical bills that were over 7.5% of your adjusted gross income. Under Obamacare you can now only write off medical bills that are over 10% of your adjusted gross income. Of all the things to tax, these are the people hit hardest medically.

I think there are 23 new taxes in Obamacare, 19 or 20 of them are taxing medical things. Of these, 75% are paid for by ALL income levels.

Boehner doesn't have the 'Guts' to dump the "Tealiban" Movement in his party and start working for the American people !!!

chilled

Heck, in the Budget Control Act of 2011 (aka the sequester), the Weeper said he got 98% of what he wanted!

And Obama won with well over 100% voter turnout in some districts, so what's your point?

Boehner should do the right thing and stop fighting the President that the American people voted for !!!

Mr. Boehner "dump the crazy rightwing" in your party, they are doing more harm than good !!!

So the serial crybaby wants to talk guts? OK Mr Big Rick plop your massive defense cuts on the table. After all one war ia over and the other one will be next year. Or do we still have to buy 300 Abrams tanks when we have only 2400 active right now and 3000 in storage. That's right more being mothballed than active and these GOP jerks want more!!!

Cannonball,

Lie with a Capital L. >100% turnout is a myth.

What's your point? Are you talking about cheating the system by chance?

Democrats "won" the House by more than a million votes, yet no majority. That's cheating the system.

What's that Larry? Obama ran a campaign of fixing the economy by creating jobs! He hasn't done either. Had Barack Obama unvieled his plans for the Stimulus Bailout and say Cash For Clunkers prior to the '08 election economists would have ripped it to shreds! Today there would be a For Sale sign in front of his Kenwood Ave home reading "Bank Owned"!

google "cook medical cancels expansion" and maybe you can find out in the articles. It may have been a combination of that and the insurance.

Maybe its my aversion to debt, i just don't like it. You could inflate your way to a much better debt position, but the problem is all the poor and middle class have to live with that same inflation. The dollars in the debt will be worth less, but so will the dollars in everyones bank account.

It should be like a sugar high now, spending a trillion extra and the FED also printing a trillion extra. Well, it is for the stock market. I don't remember who said it ..."the only problem with debt is it has to be repaid." I just don't see how a policy of throwing an extra 2 trillion a year into our economy, that we just don't have, can end up any way other than really bad. Especially since it doesn't seem to be doing much. My guess is the targeting of it is just awful. Like the stimulus, we threw out a trillion bucks and the big majority went to state bailouts and one time write offs. If i was spending it, at least half would have went to our crumbling infrastructure, but very little did. Most of that spent we have zero to show for it now, except the extra trillion debt.

Mr. Boehner,
Do you have the guts to relinquish your lifetime Cadillac medical and dental benefits. pension, your position as house speaker, banned from any corporate career position for life. I’m sure you have millions stashed away. How about you go away and let the politicians that will work for common people do their job.

TO: King Fish who wrote:

"Okay Mr Speaker let's kick some ace and take names."

First Boehner has to get Cantor's shoe out of Boehner's butt.

Boehner tries to do the best with what he has to work with, which indeed the is the party of Stupid! Not even being wrong - over and over and over again - has caused them to reconsider their positions one iota (they finally realize that they can't act like idiots any more but still just can't help themselves but to stick with exactly the same positons as before despite their proven failures).

Once again, republicans more vehement then ever, insisting that this time they are right and they are absolutely sure of it.

What else can you call this but a warped and distorted reality? A cult really, no different than scientology. A world where the likes of Hannity, O'Reilly, and Limbaugh, etc. are considered highly esteemed thinkers while studied intellectuals (Economists, Scientists, Mathematicians, etc...) are considered know-nothing liberal loons.

Fortunately, this right-wing idealolic demographic is shrinking fast. But not fast enough.

It's well known when Obama offered 2 trillion in cuts for 2 trillion in new revenue Boehner stated he wouldn't accept $10 in cuts to $1 in new revenue. That's not compromise.

Larry, I’ll play.

Show me the Obama cuts, IN WRITING!

Give me a link, a pdf file is fine.

Here are the Republican Plans offered to the Democrats:

Rand Paul Plan

Republican Study Committee Plan

Paul Ryan Plan

Mack Penny Plan

Cut, Cap and Balance

Here are the Neutral budget plans:

Debt commission- National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform (Simpson-Bowles)

Senate Gang of Six

I won’t embarrass you with Barrack Husseins budget plans that have gotten 0 votes, I’m sure you can look them up.

I’ll wait for your written, verifiable cuts that Barrack Hussein offered.

You ignore the fact Bush took a surplus,,,blah,,,,blah,,,,blah

Larry, Larry, Larry, PLEASE STOP!!!!!

There was NO surplus! If there was, show me a single year where the National Debt was lower than the preceding year.

I DARE YOU!

There is none, there never was between 1996 and 2000 when all these “surpluses” were allegedly happening. The numbers often quoted are simply a result of Washington fuzzy-math of manipulating the Public Debt and Intragovernmenta both of which make up the National Debt.l Holdings. Yes, he did reduce the deficit but most of that was on the back of reducing the capital gains rate from 28% to 20%, an “irrationally exuberant” dot-com economy, incredibly low fuel prices because of George H.W. Bush stabilizing the Middle East and Ronald Reagan eliminating the Soviet threat by ending the decades long Cold War. Remember, Clinton was busy most of his presidency staining Blue Dresses.

Bush also inherited the Dot-Com Bubble recession. On February of 2000 the Nasdaq was 4,696 and by September 2002, which was one year after 9/11 the Nasdaq was 1,172, the lowest in 5 years. Despite Greenspan’s own warnings and his eloquent slogan of the market being in a state of “irrational exuberance”, nothing was done to prevent the bubble in the 90’s. Obviously 9/11 was a part of this decline but even prior to that on August 1, 2001 the Nasdaq was already at 1,805, nearly a 3,000 point drop! In that same period the DOW dropped nearly 3,600 points.

Clintons alleged budget projections of trillions of dollars being eliminated through 2010 never included events such as the above mentioned recession and market collapse, the tragedy of 9/11 and Katrina. Yes, the Iraq and Afghanistan wars contributed as did Medicare Part-D. (Medicare Part D is the most cost-effective program within the federal health insurance programs and a good deal for taxpayers. Estimates by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office indicate that Part D's price to the public will come in at 46% less than initially estimated for the first decade)

The Iraq war had a public opinion popularity of 57% for and 38% against on September 2003. The Afghanistan had an 89% favorable opinion and a 9% unfavorable opinion in October of 2001. Let’s not forget the Democrats who supported the wars including Bill Clinton, Madeline Albright, Sandy Berger, Nancy Pelosi, Al Gore, Ted Kennedy, John Kerry, Jay Rockefeller, Henry Waxman, Hillary Clinton, among others.

Larry, your arguments may work here in Liberal LaLa Land, but in the real world no one but the unwashed masses believes it.

I’ll be waiting for those links regarding the cuts and any other information you can get me.

OK?

JV, so does Reid do the best with what he has to work with? Is that why he hasn't passed a budget in 4 years? He hasn't even put forth a proposal, even though he is required by law to pass a budget. Which Republicans fault is it that Reid hasn't even put forth a proposal, much less pass a budget.

shut-up Boehner, you freaking CRYBABY!!.....what a cryin' fool baby, waaa, waaa, waaaa, mommy....john boehner, YOU ARE the worst speaker in the history of the US Congress and it shows....do your jobs you freaking congessional takers!!

I don't care much for Boehner, but he is right. President Obama has not come close to his promises, just look at the economy and unemployment.

Who wants a 7 and 9 football coach or President?

Hey crying Speaker Tan Man -- before you whine about another politician -- get your own house in order. You can't even get your fellow Republicans to go along with you. Your leadership ability is so bad I doubt you could get a group of horny sailors to follow you into a whore house.

What Boehner lacks is the guts to bring issues to a vote on the house floor regardless of teapublican opposition. I do hope Obama continues to lack the "guts" to go the austerity route which has proved disasterous for the UK and most of the Euro Zone.

What Boehner really needs is a Brain. We need stimulus, not cuts. We spent our way out of the great depression with government spending on WWII, we can do the same thing peacefully with stimulus to rebuild our infrastructure and to build new electrical grid connections.

Wait a minute, isn't this the same drunkard Boehnor who got 98% of what he wanted in the super committee negotiations with our POTUS but couldn't stand up to the teabags to get the deal done????? My god, Boehnors lips keep moving but all that comes out is HYPOCRITE!!!!!!

Pat Boston MA.

and the rest of the Looser Obama Drones in here, wow, what a bunch of Low Life sold there souls to a con-man for there votes, just amazing. Get any of the Free stuff he offered you yet? Didnt think so, Wont you be surprised when Obama goes to Jail.. The Liar and Chiefs days are numbered, and with a Congress as it is, he cant do a damn thing. Its time for the Illegitimate Poser to leave

Jim Spence - Don't hold your breath. Larry is just repeating the propaganda being spread to the ignorant masses (Liberals) from the Left.

"I think he'd like to deal with it [fiscal problems], but to do the kind of heavy lifting that needs to be done, I don't think he's got the guts to do it,” the Ohio Republican said in a meeting with a small group of reporters for nearly an hour Tuesday morning. “He understands there is a spending problem. He understands that we need changes and reforms, and we need to solve these problems."

Look who's talking!! This is from the same schmuck that screwed up both the debt ceiling and fiscal cliff negotiations by walking away (fiscal cliff negotiations ended with the infamous "Plan B" measure)!! That guy had NO guts to tell his fringe caucus members off in order to get something done. Obama had the @!$%#ing guts to put the Medicare retirement age and Social Security CPI on the block; Boehner couldn't even put tax increases!!!

JimSpence

It's well known when Obama offered 2 trillion in cuts for 2 trillion in new revenue Boehner stated he wouldn't accept $10 in cuts to $1 in new revenue. That's not compromise.

Larry, I’ll play.

Well, considering that all you do is rant, that's progression. Welcome to the lefty club, mate!

Here are the Republican Plans offered to the Democrats:

Rand Paul Plan

Republican Study Committee Plan

Paul Ryan Plan

Funny thing about that; it DID NOT SPECIFY cuts to particular programs.

Mack Penny Plan

Cut, Cap and Balance

Here are the Neutral budget plans:

Debt commission- National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform (Simpson-Bowles)

Senate Gang of Six

I’ll wait for your written, verifiable cuts that Barrack Hussein offered.

Rivlin-Domenici Plan.

Center for American Progress.

Progressive Caucus Budget.

Here are a few others:

http://crfb.org/compare/

You ignore the fact Bush took a surplus,,,blah,,,,blah,,,,blah

Larry, Larry, Larry, PLEASE STOP!!!!!

There was NO surplus! If there was, show me a single year where the National Debt was lower than the preceding year.

Debt doesn't have to decrease when there is a surplus; a government could easily issue Treasury notes to rollover expiring short-term debt when there is a surplus or to pay for large expenditures like infrastructure plans or healthcare reform.

I DARE YOU!

There is none, there never was between 1996 and 2000 when all these “surpluses” were allegedly happening. The numbers often quoted are simply a result of Washington fuzzy-math of manipulating the Public Debt and Intragovernmenta both of which make up the National Debt.l Holdings. Yes, he did reduce the deficit but most of that was on the back of reducing the capital gains rate from 28% to 20%, an “irrationally exuberant” dot-com economy, incredibly low fuel prices because of George H.W. Bush stabilizing the Middle East and Ronald Reagan eliminating the Soviet threat by ending the decades long Cold War. Remember, Clinton was busy most of his presidency staining Blue Dresses.

Oh stop it. While I agree with you about the dot-com bubble, where are your facts on the so-called "manipulation" of the Clinton surpluses?? H.W. Bush didn't stabilize the Middle East; he simply betrayed our old ally in Iraq and kept a major oil producer independent. Reagan didn't destroy the USSR; the USSR did that to itself by overextending itself in Afghanistan and through the inefficient "bureaucratic socialist" policies that it enacted instead of more orthodox Marxist policies (but that is for another time). Reagan helped the USSR on its road to decline, but did not single-handedly destroy it.

Bush also inherited the Dot-Com Bubble recession. On February of 2000 the Nasdaq was 4,696 and by September 2002, which was one year after 9/11 the Nasdaq was 1,172, the lowest in 5 years. Despite Greenspan’s own warnings and his eloquent slogan of the market being in a state of “irrational exuberance”, nothing was done to prevent the bubble in the 90’s. Obviously 9/11 was a part of this decline but even prior to that on August 1, 2001 the Nasdaq was already at 1,805, nearly a 3,000 point drop! In that same period the DOW dropped nearly 3,600 points.

Oh; so you give Bush the benefit of the doubt with the dot-com bubble, but you abstain from extending the same courtesy to Obama?? How thoughtful!!! Greenspan did nothing to help; hell, the low interest rates pursued by his Fed after the recession helped cause the housing bubble.

Clintons alleged budget projections of trillions of dollars being eliminated through 2010 never included events such as the above mentioned recession and market collapse, the tragedy of 9/11 and Katrina. Yes, the Iraq and Afghanistan wars contributed as did Medicare Part-D. (Medicare Part D is the most cost-effective program within the federal health insurance programs and a good deal for taxpayers. Estimates by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office indicate that Part D's price to the public will come in at 46% less than initially estimated for the first decade)

Even with the estimated economic tremors of the Bush era, the federal surplus still would have amounted to roughly $3 trillion through 2010. The wars, Medicare Part D (which you should oppose since it is, after all, another entitlement program), and the Bush tax cuts turned the remaining $3 trillion into a $6 trillion deficit ($2.1 trillion for the tax cuts, $3 trillion plus for the wars, and the remainder for the economic recession and the added spending)

The Iraq war had a public opinion popularity of 57% for and 38% against on September 2003. The Afghanistan had an 89% favorable opinion and a 9% unfavorable opinion in October of 2001. Let’s not forget the Democrats who supported the wars including Bill Clinton, Madeline Albright, Sandy Berger, Nancy Pelosi, Al Gore, Ted Kennedy, John Kerry, Jay Rockefeller, Henry Waxman, Hillary Clinton, among others.

And yet it steadily lost support as the war dragged on (just like Vietnam). I could care less about who supported the Iraq War; all of them were idiots, even the Democrats. Afghanistan was a bit more complicated, but could have been handled better.

Larry, your arguments may work here in Liberal LaLa Land, but in the real world no one but the unwashed masses believes it.

Unfortunately for you, the only La La Land that exists in the real world is the one created by your fascist colleagues.

OK?

Okay.

Hendy329

Jim Spence - Don't hold your breath. Larry is just repeating the propaganda being spread to the ignorant masses (Liberals) from the Left.

LMAO!!!!

I know.

It's just amusing to read all the pathetic drivel these Libbies will believe. Of course none of them ever research anything they just accept what Barrack Hussein, the DNC or Debbie Whatsername Slutz tells them.

What's even more sad is how the unwashed massed keep following Barrack Hussein when he tells them to his face that the best he will allow them to be is middle-class. It's a sad commentary that the Libbies allow themselves to be manipulated so much by politicians who will tell them exactly what they want to hear and then ignore all of it once they are reelected.

I guess when Liberals have such low self-esteem and their pride has been stripped from them so completely by their complicit parents, peers and teachers, being held down is normal for them. To bad they will never truly enjoy the pleasure of American exceptionalism like we real Americans can.

Their loss.

Larry, I’ll play.

Show me the Obama cuts, IN WRITING

Yet you aren't playing. I did provide a direct quote from Boehner with a link that shows Boehner saying the 4 trillion grand bargain was doomed because Obama demanded new revenue and republicans refused any tax increases. Obviously since a final deal wasn't reached because the GOP refused to accept any tax cuts not because Obama refused expenditure cuts. You people have been trying to give that well you can't prove exactly what happened so it was Obama's fault. You haven't been able to sell it so why keep trying. Time for the GOP to explain why they demand no new taxes on the wealthy when the majority of their party believe the wealthy should pay more. But look at the link you'll note it was Boehner who pulled out of the grand bargain because he demanded tax increases. Duh.

The “grand bargain” under discussion since Wednesday would have reduced federal deficits by $4 trillion over 10 years by cutting spending, reforming Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, and raising $1 trillion by eliminating tax deductions, increasing government fees, and selling property owned by the federal government.

You notice cuts to social security, Medicare and medicaid weren't the sticking point be cause Obama was negotiaitng those cuts.

Boehner said a deal could not be reached because Democrats are insisting that tax increases are part of the compromise while Republicans will not agree to any tax increases.

Republicans will not agree to any tax increases from Boehners mouth yet you claim Obama was holding up the grand bargain. Clearly the truth doesn't fit into your world as you simply ignore it.

“Despite good-faith efforts to find common ground, the White House will not pursue a bigger debt reduction agreement without tax hikes. I believe the best approach may be to focus on producing a smaller measure, based on the cuts identified in the Biden-led negotiations, that still meets our call for spending reforms and cuts greater than the amount of any debt limit increase,” Boehner said.

Read more at http://www.christianpost.com/news/boehner-pulls-out-of-grand-bargain-on-debt-ceiling-52100/#D2fMW7cdHhcrQVvw.99

Larry, Larry, Larry, PLEASE STOP!!!!!

There was NO surplus! If there was, show me a single year where the National Debt was lower than the preceding year.

Do I really need to post a link to the debates between Bush and Gore where they argue about what to do with the surplus with Gore wanting to pay the debt down and Bush give a tax cut, or point out that Clintons final budget had a projected surplus of 400 billion which is why Bush made his pledge to return 400 billion to taxpayers despite our 5.7 trillion debt at that time. Bush spent the surplus that would have occurred with his tax cut. Just as Bush passed the 2009 budget on October 3rd with a projected deficit of 1.2 trillion Clintons final budget would have had a surplus. So the more accurate statement would be had a democrat remained as president in 2001 we would have had a surplus. Instead we got Bush, wars and massive debt.

- Don't hold your breath. Larry is just repeating the propaganda being spread to the ignorant masses (Liberals) from the Left.

Hendy: I post exact numbers, dates and facts and all you can do is make one liners. If you had anything you'd at least argue a point. Let the grown ups talk or at least people smart enough to argue a point. At least Jim Spence argues my points though funny he demands I provide proof for every statement yet he makes at least as many claims as i do and doesn't link or prove anything. Why is that?

Larry-367607

In no year did the national debt go down, nor did Clinton leave President Bush with a surplus that Bush subsequently turned into a deficit. Yes, the deficit was almost eliminated in FY2000 (ending in September 2000 with a deficit of "only" $17.9 billion), but it never reached zero--let alone a positive surplus number. And Clinton's last budget proposal for FY2001, which ended in September 2001, generated a $133.29 billion deficit. The growing deficits started in the year of the last Clinton budget, not in the first year of the Bush administration.

Keep in mind that President Bush took office in January 2001 and his first budget took effect October 1, 2001 for the year ending September 30, 2002 (FY2002). So the $133.29 billion deficit in the year ending September 2001 was Clinton's. Granted, Bush supported a tax refund where taxpayers received checks in 2001. However, the total amount refunded to taxpayers was only $38 billion . So even if we assume that $38 billion of the FY2001 deficit was due to Bush's tax refunds which were not part of Clinton's last budget, that still means that Clinton's last budget produced a deficit of 133.29 - 38 = $95.29 billion.

Understanding what happened requires understanding two concepts of what makes up the national debt. The national debt is made up of public debt and intragovernmental holdings. The public debt is debt held by the public, normally including things such as treasury bills, savings bonds, and other instruments the public can purchase from the government. An intragovernmental holding, on the other hand, is when the government borrows money from itself--mostly borrowing money from social security.

While the public debt went down in each of those four years, the intragovernmental holdings went up each year by a far greater amount--and, in turn, the total national debt (which is public debt + intragovernmental holdings) went up. Therein lies the discrepancy.

When it is claimed that Clinton paid down the national debt, that is patently false, the national debt went up every single year. What Clinton did do was pay down the public debt, notice that the claimed surplus is relatively close to the decrease in the public debt for those years. But he paid down the public debt by borrowing far more money in the form of intragovernmental holdings (mostly Social Security).

Interestingly, this most likely was not even a conscious decision by Clinton. The Social Security Administration is legally required to take all its surpluses and buy U.S. Government securities, and the U.S. Government readily sells those securities--which automatically and immediately becomes intragovernmental holdings. The economy was doing well due to the dot-com bubble and people were earning a lot of money and paying a lot into Social Security. Since Social Security had more money coming in than it had to pay in benefits to retired persons, all that extra money was immediately used to buy U.S. Government securities. The government was still running deficits, but since there was so much money coming from excess Social Security contributions there was no need to borrow more money directly from the public. As such, the public debt went down while intragovernmental holdings continued to skyrocket.

The net effect was that the national debt most definitely did not get paid down because we did not have a surplus. The government just covered its deficit by borrowing money from Social Security rather than the public.

This is a typical manipulation of funds by our governments. Unfortunately most Americans have no clue what the National Debt is. To most it's simply a talking point to try and make their party look responsible. Yet our national Debt has been rising for over 40 years with no constraints.

Here's a simple analogy.

If in a given year you earn $30,000 and a friend loans you $5,000, and you spend $32,000, is that a surplus? While you can claim “I received $35,000 and only spent $32,000, thus I have a surplus,” that’s a pretty weak argument when you know that $2,000 of the money you spent was actually borrowed and has to be paid back later. That’s pretty much what happened in 2000.

Source: http://www.treasurydirect.gov/NP/BPDLogin?application=np

Larry-367607

Not that anyone proposes taking all of any ones money, saying taking every penny from millionaire's and billionaire's wouldn't scratch the deficit isn't true.

Yeah, my bad. I just assumed people were smart enough to understand that I meant tax them at 100%. Take every penny they earn. I should have taken into consideration the intelligence level of many of those who post here and worded my post more carefully. Sorry to have confused you.

Oh, and I'm not a "right-winger" I spent most of 8 years bitching about GWB only to see him replaced by his own "evil clone". btw, the whole "his programs are funded" is a @!$%#ing joke that only sheep buy into. No estimate of a tax by the CBO has ever actually raised as much revenue as projected just like no bill or program has cost as little as the estimate, or don't you remember that original 900 million price tag on the "Affordable" Care Act??? Just more BS, voodoo math to con folks such as yourself.