Why is Boehner so worried? Afterall, he got 98% of what he wanted!

"We have met the enemy and he is us!" Pogo by Walt Kelly

There is government waste everywhere you look. Why is it so hard to make cuts?

why is it so hard to find places to make cuts?

That's exactly the question we asked of people making more than $250,000 per year.

American Girl,

"We know, starve the poor, abuse the elderly, repeal the minimum wage, let your next door neighbor die for a lack of health care, rob the schools, send under age children and senior citizens out to get jobs, steal our retirement money and dissolve medicare, destroy employee unions, confiscate all pensions, and give the rich more tax cuts and tax loopholes."

Socialism will not work as well as liberty and free-enterprise.

This country needs to get back to at least pre-1971 times. Our government is too big. It's solutions cannot rival the individual solutions provided by American people. Competition is a great thing! The power of personal choice is a great thing! Self-sufficiency teaches tremendous lessons.

If Republicans want a shot next time they need to get over resisting gay Marriage and abortion.

Focus on the economy, The Constitution and securing the borders.

American Girl,

How is reforming Social Security, Medicare, and Welfare Programs so that they won't go bankrupt before everyone under the age of 55 has a chance to use them starving the poor, abusing the elderly, and stealing retirement money? Last I checked people should take RESPONSIBILITY for their own financial future and not rely on someone else for their next meal.

Dennis... If it was up to you where would you make some cuts?

All the major players in this tragedy are from the Krusty the Clown school of management ... "Don't blame me; I didn't do it". that includes Boehner and Obama and McConnel and Reid. Not one of them deserves a free ride. While they indulge in their political gamemanship, people suffer and the economy stagnates. Those of you who blame only Obama or Reid or blame only Boehner or McConnel have some serious blind spots in your vision.

Or is it too painful to recall that your pro-business candidate

Disagree with you on one point here. Romney was not a pro-business candidate, unless you define 'business' as a collection of monopolies and duopolies who treat their customers as property. But proper business, with real competition based on efficiency and quality of product...nope. Those businesses tend to be smaller and have fewer lobbyists.

Dennis,

Not this year which was due February 1st.

ProBusiness -- Those so-called bills the Republicans passed EXPIRED last year and Boehner cannot get that bill passed in the NEW CONGRESS.

You can bet your ass if the Democrats bill, an alternative to the sequester, contained TAX HIKES on the middle and poor classes those Republicans would have ended their vacation and SIGNED on. The Democrats bill takes away subsidies for business and ends lucrative gimmes to the rich from our tax code thus the Republicans will not even consider it.

Boehner needs to put an end to the VACATIONS and make the HOUSE actually do the work of governing.

Governing includes COMPROMISING. Obstruction is a LOSER"S GAME.

Let the sequester happen. I think the biggest fear of the Radical Left Wing Liberal/Progressive Wack Jobs is that nobody will notice. I bet they get some paid shills to make news for them with all of their outrage in cuts in public services. Need to investigate those that are outraged. See how much they're being paid.

Yes...all of this is a vast left-wing conspiracy. It's all designed to soak you of money. For example, there is no Iran. It doesn't exist, it's just a fictitious country that Obama invented to scare you into paying more taxes.

@ joe mota

that includes Boehner and Obama and McConnel and Reid. Not one of them deserves a free ride.

Agree - but telling most people on here is like talking to a brick wall.

That was funny as hell. Throw it in the senates face and walk off stage. Now, in the spirit of compromise instead of cockblocking, bring the house bills to the floor of the senate, just as the tax cuts were brought to the floor of the house earlier in the year. Either pass it and force the Presidents had in vetoing it, change it and send it back, or kill it entirely and come up with something better. Because the President can't never look bad vetoing something if Reid in the Senate never lets anything see his desk. 5 years, zero vetoes.

Either pass it, change it, or kill it and come up with other solutions! That is how it is supposed to work!

I used to think Boehner was a smart guy in a bad spot; now I think he's kind of stupid:

Boehner said Obama's event this afternoon will reduce the nation's military to a campaign "prop."

I'm all for supporting the DoD, but when their budget equals that of the next 13 (or up to 20 depending on how you look at it) countries combined, it's hard to take Boehner seriously on this issue. Any cut in anybody's budget in these times hurts, but I think this is really over the top to make a statement like this.

@Jesse - truth will make their heads explode, be careful! ;-D

Jerry,

He is late and notified Congress as required. So he has not failed to submit a budget.

Blutowski,

If I were at the table it sure wouldn’t be what the sequester demands, across the board cuts.

Cut the waste and fat. Eliminate duplication in function in multiple Departments. After that is complete look every program to maximize utilization and effectiveness.

The hard work need to begin now not after the midterms in 2 years or the next general election in 4 years.

John #'s-- Boehner DOES NOT have the votes to get that bill passed.

House Republicans have no plans to vote again this month on their bill to replace automatic spending cuts scheduled to be implemented in just over three weeks.

The House-passed sequester replacement measure expired with the start of the new Congress, and GOP leaders would appear to face a tougher lift in passing the measure this time around.

The House barely passed the bill — 215 to 209 — in December, with 21 Republicans opposing the measure and no Democrats supporting it.

Five of the Republicans who voted "no" are no longer in Congress, but the GOP also has a smaller majority after losing a net of eight seats to Democrats in November's election.

Read more: http://thehill.com/blogs/on-the-money/budget/281347-gops-bill-unlikely-to-get-revote#ixzz2LRytFH80
Follow us: @thehill on Twitter | TheHill on Facebook

All 3 Houses are full of $hit.

TO: Blutowski 0.0 who wrote:

Fossil fuel subsidies........... 2 and a half billion dollars

why is it so hard to find places to make cuts?

Start there.

Republicans won't, and that's what makes it "so hard".

Dont_carry_it_all

If that was directed at me, whether there are numbers to get it passed in the Senate is irrelevant. It should still see the floor. That is how the system is supposed to work.

Supposedly, the votes were not there in the tax cut bill either, but guess what? Once it hit the floor it was acted on.

"Boehner Blasts Senate Democrats for Inaction"...

If memory serves... In the movie it was Old Yeller himself that got blasted...

Obama is desperate. He doing the only thing he is good at: campaigning.

The first two years of his administration that is all he did. Obamacare should rightfully be called Pelosi/ReidCare, because they are the ones that are responsible for it, Obama only did the marketing.

Spending must be cut significantly. No way taxing the rich will solve all our budget problems. But the Democrats are terrified of doing what it right out of suffocating fear it might cost them a vote.

John #'s -- You're confused. That bill expired. Boehner doesn't have the votes of enough Republicans in the HOUSE to get it passed so it can get to the SENATE.

Frankly, it does not matter how many so called "budgets" the House passes. A budget is meaningless. There is NO provision in the U.S. Constitution requiring a budget. What the Constitution requires is appropriations, and reports of receipts and expenditures.

The budgeting process is governed by laws enacted to control the appropriations process. They are NOT Constitutionally required.

It would help to show your intelligence if you actually do research before you write. Otherwise all you show is your ignorance.

TO: hs321 who wrote:

"...Spending must be cut significantly."

Fine.

Let's start at the top where the most money is being spent. Defense spending, tax loopholes for the mega-rich, and billions of dollars in oil subsidies. Cut all those in half.

Republicans want to start at the bottom, by starving the poor and the elderly.

Democrats want to start at the top, where the real money is being spent.

John, John, John. Please get off your arse and tell Eric Cantor and Paul Ryan to produce a budget proposal that can get a MAJORITY of the Democrats to agree to, NOT just a majority of the majority of REPUBLICANS. We know that Republicans want to butcher every Department in the Government EXCEPT DEFENSE. We know they hate women and children and want to obliterate funding for them.

The sequester NEEDS to happen! If I can adjust my spending due to increased taxes, the government can adjust their spending as well! Besides, we are only talking about reduced increases in spending - not reducing what is currently being spent.

Poor Boehner, he's losing control, acting like the little boy he is, he'll be crying again soon!!

"[W]e need to start asking ourselves an uncomfortable question — are Republicans slowing down the recovery on purpose for political gain in 2012? Senator McConnell made it clear last October that his number one priority, above everything else, is to defeat President Obama. And now it is becoming clear that insisting on a slash-and-burn approach may be part of this plan — it has a double-benefit for Republicans: it is ideologically tidy and it undermines the economic recovery, which they think only helps them in 2012."

--Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) at the Economic Policy Institute during the 2011 debt ceiling fight--

The Bowles-Simpson "plan" was an earnest and badly needed attempt to reconcile the GOP's hazy belief that government is enormous with reality. They did everything they could possibly do: They brought in representatives from all sides for long meetings with budget experts, going through all aspects of federal policy in detail, in the hope of reaching an agreement on the proper scope of government and how to pay for it. It failed. The Bowles-Simpson plan wound up punting on all the major questions because it simply couldn't bridge that gulf between perception and reality. That's why, in lieu of any ability to identify government functions to eliminate, the plan simply pretended the federal government could have everybody do a lot more work for less pay.

The real domestic savings in Bowles-Simpson came from building on Obamacare's steps to save money by holding down the growth of health-care costs and to cut defense spending by pretty steep levels. But these turned out to be ideas that alienated rather than satisfied Republicans. So basically it turned out to be impossible to find real spending cuts that Republicans wanted.

When the only cuts on the table would inflict real harm on people with modest incomes and save small amounts of money, that is a sign that there's just not much money to save. It's not just that Republicans disagree with this; they don't seem to understand it.

And therein lies the whole problem. The republican handlers, the military industrial complex, health-care companies and their lobbyists will not let the republicans off the hook. They expect them to fight the good fight for the amount of money those lobbyists and companies put in their pockets. Boehner and his crew of obstructionists are being paid very well to keep cuts away from those two industries., but they have no problem at all cutting entitlements that will harm those less fortunate. These people are some of the best paid hypocrites to come along in a long time!

If memory serves... In the movie it was Old Yeller himself that got blasted...

so now you're comparing the DNC to Old Yeller? I will agree the Libs have gone rabid.

Screw both the Dems and Repubs. Let American Austerity begin.

Dont_carry_it_all

So the house has to pass a bill twice in order for it to see the Senate floor? I don't remember reading that in Constitution. Maybe they should make it three times to make sure?

Give me a break, the Senate could revive it if they chose. I blame them all for their ineptness, but Reid is wrong.

GOP will work with anyone...who gives them 150% of what they want.

And there ya go. You wanted this, GOP. You got it. No-returns policy. Be proud of your idiocy.

CoRavensFan,

[we are only talking about reduced increases in spending]

If the impacts of sequester have no serious and immediate consequences then why this …

Republican Governors message for House Speaker John Boehner and other GOP leaders: It’s not
OK to just sit on the sidelines. It’s time to do something to stop the automatic cuts, and fast.

http://www.politico.com/story/2013/02/gop-govs-to-hill-get-back-to-bargaining-table-88014.html?hp=t1_3

Boehner needs to pull his head out of his a** and cancel the sequester before he damages the US economy and national security.

TO: Jamie R who wrote:

"Boehner is the leader of one house of Congress. Why doesn't he make a proposal ..."

Because Boehner is tired of getting jap-slapped by Eric Cantor and the Teabaggers.

Last time Boehner "made a proposal" to the President of the United States on behalf of the House of Representatives, it took 2 days for the swelling to go down and nearly a week before Boehner could sit.

Regardless on whether or not it's required that the Senate present a budget, it's hilarious that they don't actually have to by law, and even more hilarious that the Senate refuses to present a budget because the last thing that any of these loser-politicians want to do is actually hang their hat on something that might come back to them in a negative way.

So instead, the House, which must present a budget, is forced to cast theirs into the abyss and it is then used for talking points and fodder about how awful House majority Republicans are.

Both House and Senate are dysfunctional in their own magical ways.

Boehner doesn't really have control in the House, it's Bedlam over there with TP-GOP drooling at the thought of a government shutdown, and Reid on the other hand is tired of the BS and nonsense from the GOP playing 4-corners basketball and proving to everyone with a clue why we can't have nice things.

I don't blame Reid one bit for holding fast against the GOP, he worked with an outstretched arm at the very beginning of all of this and the GOP took the rout of trying to game the system and filibuster, blackball, secret-hold, and change course on policies that no longer than one election-cycle earlier they would have supported on their own.

Therefore, this problem is Boehner's. His House is not in an advantageous negotiating position, he's lost all of his friends on the Left and most from the Center and lacks credibility with the Right.

Here's a thought Boehner, the House needs to pass a budget that isn't just a throw-away in the Senate. Come up with something reasonable that isn't just another BS-bill with all cuts coming from social safety nets and public education to keep pork and tax cuts rolling to your donors and you might actually get something accomplished.

Boehner: We already passed two-bills that didn't get considered. Wah wah wah!

Guess what, your party is losing influence at the polls, the House has single-digit approval ratings, the President is at a high in approval and the GOP's long-term viability is looking more and more like the Whigs every month. You don't have a leg to stand on. Stop trying to push bills that are obviously just ego-stroking GOP-favoring cuts. You need to pass something with bipartisan support if it is going to stand a fighting chance on the Senate floor...but obviously if you presented a meaningful bill, you'd lose to a TP'er in the next primary and you'll lose all ability to steer the ship even with your Speaker-title.

trust2112

Screw both the Dems and Repubs. Let American Austerity begin.

And then let the double-dip recession begin, just as it did in Britain after the conservative Tory government went into austerity mode.

john-737278: there is nothing in the Constitution requiring 60 votes to pass any bill, either. The theory of the filibuster would allow the party not in power to delay legislation while they attempted to convince other Senators to their position.

Instead, the filibuster has become the standard. The result has been the Republican destruction of the United States.

This whole "sequestration" drama is pure political bull crap. $85 Billion Reduction in ADDITIONAL spending aren't even cuts. Obama has taken nearly that much out of Medicare already. So he won't be able to give the hand out programs a raise, most working Americans haven't had a raise in two or more years. This whole bunch of theater drama will only REDUCE the increase in our debt (figured to be 1 Trillion + each year) by 1 lousy trillion over the next 10 YEARS. Are all of you Obama supporters so math challenged that you can'f figure this out for yourself??

B U D G E T.. its called a budget.. the democrats wont pass one, the president wont submit one. The Republicans have SEVERAL drafts sent to the senate..

Because the Republican majority in the house will vote it down, Because the Republican majority in the house will vote it down, because they cut everything the Democrats want and deem important while the Republicans get everything they want (whether it is needed or helpful) including 300 new abrahms tanks that the military doesn'want. (No shared pain)

Democrats are waiting for marching orders from the White House, because they sign whatever Obama wants with out reading what is on it.

Obamagedon full throttle nothing is going to stop because Obama want his way or the highway. Obama prefer do campaigns and play golf instead lead this country.

Obamastration is Obamas baby, but he deny his own baby. Bob Woodward already call Obama his father.

Sit on it and spin Weeper. Kick the Party of NO out in 2014!

Why is it Boehner's responsibility to back down on his issues while Reid and Obama will not back down on their issues. Don't you see that BOTH sides are being rediculous. If either side really wanted to stop the sequester they would be in a small room both acknowledging that they will compromise. Both sides would rather the sequester go into effect than back down in any regard. Obama gets his political points (for what idk), Reid continues to fly under the radar, and Boehner gets spending cuts. THEY ALL GAIN SOMETHING FROM THE SEQUESTER.

In 2011 Boner stated that he got 98% of what he wanted.

What has changed Mr. Boner?

I think we should spend our way to prosperity, Keynes style.

Imagine the utopia we would have, each according to their need, according to their ability.

TO: Dawgfan-4710266 who wrote:

"American Girl, How is reforming Social Security, Medicare, and Welfare Programs so that they won't go bankrupt before everyone under the age of 55 has a chance to use them starving the poor, abusing the elderly, and stealing retirement money? Last I checked people should take RESPONSIBILITY for their own financial future and not rely on someone else for their next meal."

If Republicans want "real money" they're going to have to go see the people who actually have "real money".

We pre-paid for our Social Security and Medicare, and anybody who can't respect that needs to keep their hands off of our retirement money, especially thieving Republicans.

How about we confiscate all the IRAs? IRAs don't belong to people who paid into them anymore than Social Security and Medicare belongs to those of us to paid into our retirement that way.

After all, people put their money into IRAs just the same as we put our money into Social Security and Medicare. The only difference is, the IRAs probably have more money in them, so let's steal those first.

GOP/TEA is in full panic mode.

They thought for sure that they could smoke the American people into electing their Romney puppet.

And when to their utter amazement that failed they have no game plan whatsoever.

2014 is coming and none too soon and GOP/TEA is going to be like a deer in the headlights when the country's demographic shift hits them and relegates them to the rubbish bin of political history.

.

Democrats don't beleive we have an spending problem and want to spend more , creating more bourocracy.

House Democrats led by Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) have introduced legislation that would create a federal Department of Peacebuilding, which would be tasked with everything from finding ways to scale back U.S. military actions to ending bullying at schools.

Under her bill, H.R. 808, the new department would be led by a Cabinet-level Secretary of Peacebuilding, who would have a seat on the National Security Council. The department would be "dedicated to peacebuilding, peacemaking, and the study and promotion of conditions conducive to both domestic and international peace and a culture of peace."

"This culture of violence that we live in is unacceptable," Lee said earlier this month. "On our streets and across the globe, the pervasive presence of violence has infected the lives of millions, and it is far past time we address it as a nation.

Yelling, crying, cursing, ranting are not the way to get things done. Compromise is the key to managing a divided government. So, Mr. Boehner, knock off the hysterics and do what the American people want...work with the President to make our country better.

Your Party presented it's best candidates, with the Party's ideals strictly adhered to, and they lost. Clearly, the country rejects your ideals. Get to work with the elected leader of our country. You are not the leader, Cantor is not leader, the Tea Party is not the leader. GET TO WORKING with our elected leader.

dirp

I completely disagree. It is the over-governing of the government that has destroyed the United States. But to each his own.

TO: no sence who wrote:

"Why is it Boehner's responsibility to back down on his issues..."

Well because he has to have something to bargain with. So far, Boehner is not bringing anything to the table.

Usually there's some "give and take" in negotiations.

All Boehner has is "takes" but nothing to "give" in exchange for what Republicans want, other than some nasty rhetoric, hate speech, and insults.

So, American (I use that term lightly with you) Girl,

Do you think SS and Medicare should be left alone even though more money is coming out of them than going in? Even with just a rudimentary grade school education, you should be able to realize that that can't continue to happen, unless you're ok with the programs being completely shut down eventually.

I would also REALLY like to hear what exactly the libs on these forums think the Senate has actually accomplished under Reid? All you can do is put 110% of the blame on the house. So what exactly has the Senate done that excuses them from blame?

TO: john-737278 who wrote:

"... It is the over-governing of the government that has destroyed the United States..."

What you mean, like sending the Revenuers out to the farm to get you if you don't pay your taxes?

Houston!

Boehner needs to pull his head out of his a** and cancel the sequester before he damages the US economy and national security.

I'm not sure he could do that. I believe the "marching orders" given by Limbaugh to the feeble minded Boehner and his crew of obstructionists was something to the effect of, "if we have to destroy the economy to destroy Obama, have at it." Not exactly but very close to what he said.

so a 2% cut is really unacceptable?

haven't we the peons already made such cuts since things turned to crap under the current leadership?...and i use the term loosely.

American Girl-724855

I pay 40% of everything 'I" work for in taxes. Tell me, how much do you want?

You should have been on the horse meat article so it would be more appropriate for me to say bite me.

"We have moved a bill in the House twice," Boehner said at a press conference Tuesday. "We should not have to move a third bill before the Senate gets off their ass and begins to do something."

Yes, there lies the rub- no action. This administration of inaction believes that spending us into oblivion is the way out. Remember voters- you voted for this!

All you can do is put 110% of the blame on the house. So what exactly has the Senate done that excuses them from blame?

and proof positive that the MAJORITY PARTY(Democrats) is ineffective at legislating and leading.

Pretty damn good at blaming...quite the fine art

TO: Memphis Kelly who wrote:

"...If only we could get Barry to quit lying about the 'consequences' of letting his sequester play out!..."

Right. Republican followers have been lied to so much the GOP has got them walking azzbackwards.

President Obama has no reason to "lie". He's already been re-elected and he has his 4 more years.

President Obama works for the American People, which is why he is still out there, doing the very best he can for us and at least if he can't change what's about to happen, he can warn us ahead of time.

The President has submitted a budget and that is a fact. It's a little shell game being played by the Republicans concerning the budget. Here are the facts.

http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2012/05/house-and-senate-unanimously-reject-obama-budgets-or-do-they/

http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2012/apr/06/mitt-romney/romney-says-obama-failed-pass-budget/

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/16/senate-budget-jeff-sessions_n_1522643.html

Blame the Republicans, the left mantra! The House submits proposals to the Senate. and the leader of the Senate refuses to have discussion on the merits of the proposals and tables the proposed legislation. Meanwhile, the left always asks for an up/down vote on their principals.

Does anyone else find this interesting? The real party of NO is critical of the party identified as the Party of NO?

When has the Senate submitted a budget? Don't you think this has contributed to the various crisis fixes Congress has had to make during the Obama administration?

[I think we should spend our way to prosperity, Keynes style.]

I believe you got your ass handed to you on this very subject, am I right cacas pro cerebella? As I recall it, you got "what we call" OWNED!

Yeah, I'm right...

So, cacas caput...how do YOU recall it? Now be careful...think your answer through instead of spouting off like you haven't washed the sand out of your vagina.

C'mon, you can do it...can't you?

Sure you can...

I am amazed, I didn't realize that all you need to control this country is a majority in the house! It's all the republicans fault, those rascals.

Every Lib here says the same thing... Take money from those who have it but dont take our entitlements, and I am not talking about SS or Medicare... We have to cut every where but not SS or Medicare but rework them so they will survive...

You libs are a joke, we as a Government can not keep spending more than we take in.....................

You libs always blame Rep. and call them names but you libs will not stand on your own two feet..

Are you libs that damn stupid, Dems have not even worked on a budget for several years and you blame Reps.. What a joke

Obama is crying WOLF again as he always does when Reps. try to cut the spending..

I think it is pass time for people to look in the mirror and see the truth..

interesting date you chose mr jefferson -- height (?) of the nixon administration and post LBJ

The Democrats have been touting Obama's economic recovery the last 2 years. If it is fragile that a cut of 1.5% of spending (only 44 Billion in reality this year) will destroy the economy, then there was never a recovery. It is less than 0.003% of the GDP.

The US GDP is approximately 15 trillion dollars. $44 billion is 0.003 parts of the GDP, or 0.3%. That is considerably more than 0.003%. You are off by a factor of a hundred.

Beyond that, yes, it is fragile. The reason it is fragile is because people like you have exerted as much force as possible in order to keep the Federal government from doing its share in helping the recovery.

If you have a glass house, you have a fragile house. You don't have no house at all. You should keep from throwing stones at it, which is what the Democrats are trying to get the Republicans to stop doing.

@ Shaking my head-2479300

And how much is that from interest on the money Bush borrowed for the wars he wanted? You guys want to blame Obama for an inflated deficit but forgetting that Bush more than doubled the deficit while he was in office while you sat on your posterior allowing it to happen in the name of patriotism. That borrowed money has to be paid back so the Republicans want to cut services for lower income people while protecting those that profited from the wars by refusing to make them pay taxes. Talk about mathematically challenged.

And this goes for richard-3069835 too. The tax system was set up to have the wealthy pay for government services they benefit from through taxes. It was not set up to soak the poor for all the money they have so the wealthy could stick it in a foreign bank or off shore investment.

Facts are facts. The senate is required, by law. to pass a budget every year. Under Harry Reid, they have not passed a budget now in over three years. The house HAS passed two separate bills to cut the agreed upon amounts from the budget. The senate has shelved them. Obama consistently says he wants to cut spending, but when the time actually comes, what he REALLY wants is a tiny bit of cuts with yet more taxes.

In any case, the president SHOULD BE sitting down with key lawmakers to hammer out a deal. Instead, he prefers to log miles in Air Force One, telling adoring crowds how terrible the republicans are. This is NOT leadership, and is the reason we are in the mess we are in.

TO: john-737278 who wrote:

"...I pay 40% of everything 'I" work for in taxes. Tell me, how much do you want?"

SO DO I, and what I want is for the retirement money I paid into all my working life and the Medicare I paid into to be there when I retire, that's what I want, and since I paid for it I think it's the least I ought to get it!

And I think trying to balance a $13 for $14 TRILLION dollar debt on the backs of the elderly, the poor, and on the backs of chidren ought to be illegal.

Every Lib here says the same thing... Take money from those who have it but dont take our entitlements, and I am not talking about SS or Medicare...

Actually, every lib here says pretty much the same thing: don't disrupt the economy at the time of a fragile recovery. It just so happens that liberal policies are the ones that provide a stimulus and eventual stability to the economy.

You libs are a joke, we as a Government can not keep spending more than we take in.....................

You libs always blame Rep. and call them names but you libs will not stand on your own two feet..

Are you libs that damn stupid, Dems have not even worked on a budget for several years and you blame Reps.. What a joke

Obama is crying WOLF again as he always does when Reps. try to cut the spending..

I think it is pass time for people to look in the mirror and see the truth..

You guys are sounding more and more desperate. There was actually once a time when it was possible for the average Republican to make a point without hurling abuse.

Do you seriously think that being insulting means that people are going to take you seriously? Or do you suppose that it is more likely that they will dismiss you as an idiot?

Facts are facts. The senate is required, by law. to pass a budget every year. Under Harry Reid, they have not passed a budget now in over three years.

From #1.4 above :-

2011 - The Senate, which has not passed a budget resolution in two years, will be “deemed” to have passed a budget resolution for this year and next year. In other words, for the purpose of budget points of order on the Senate floor, it will be as if the Senate had done a budget resolution. This will apply to both FY12 and FY13.

Why don't you guys read?

Boehner and the TP/GOP need to stop only putting things up to a vote when they know it will only get Republican votes. If it doesn't get Democratic votes in the House, it's a dead issue in the Senate.

They only pass Republican wet dreams and at the same time say they aren't going to compromise on taxes. Boehner claims that the little bit that was given up last time means that taxes are now off the table. He's off his rocker.

American Girl-724855

Are you really that naive? 90% of this countries wealth is held by those over 55. So it is completely moronic to say go after the rich without including the retired rich. And paying for welfare is what is making the SS fund insolvent, so you choose which is more important.

And I agree that placing this on the backs of children is wrong, but that means a balanced budget, not more spending. Do math much?

"Byron Raum: "That's exactly the question we asked of people making more than $250,000 per year".

Why do you get to ask someone who earned $250,000 last year to make some cuts? It's not your money. It's theirs, they earned it. We can ask Washington to make cuts because that's OUR money. And let me tell you something. If you think a small business owner making $250,000 a year is super rich and should pay more taxes than you, then you don't understand small business. Let me explain: You own a small production operation. Every single Purchase Request above $20,000 is a Capital Request because it's outside the mills normal operating budget. Do you know what that means? That means you're asking the guy who owns the business to take the money out of his own pocket but if you gotta have it, you gotta have it. Any idea what a forklift cost? Around $50 grand. $250,000/year doesn't sound like so much now does it after even one Capital Request? I know small business owners that "make" $250,000/year on paper that live in a smaller houses and drive crappier cars than probably a lot of folks on here. And it's because of Obama and the Democrats every last small business owner I know is talking about either closing down, or selling off to some chain or big box store. And they're ALL laying off workers. So who's really benefitting the super rich and killing the middle class? The Democrats are. You guys see someone with a larger paycheck than yours, regardless of how hard they worked for it, and immediately want some of what they have, regardless of how little you worked for it. There's a word for the mental disease that you guys have that causes that kind of entitlement thinking: Socialism.

Byrom that is for years 2012 & 2013. What about the first 4 years? Why did they NOT do there JOB then?

Sure now they are trying to do there JOB. They should ALWAYS do there JOB. The house passed on each of those years and will for these 2 years also.

Chuck, you don't seem to understand how it works. One Party (or in this case, one Part of Congress, the House of Rep.) passes legislation (or a budget) which they feel is needed. The other Party (or in this case, one Part of Congress, the Senate). Takes the bill (or budget) and works on it to their liking and sends it off to a Conference Committee of both the House and Senate to hammer out the differences. Until there is action in the Senate, why should the House continue to send over anything. The Senate needs to consider the House's plan and make changes. It's call the Democratic process.

The Senate, by not passing anything, they won't have to have any difficult decisions placed on them. Not a very courageous way to govern.

ok libs, show me 1 country just 1 where the idea's of taking from those that produce and giving it to those that take for generations on end has ever worked! That is a recipe for economic disaster. Look at greece, thats what doomed their economy.

I don't understand why we have become a nation that has forgotten its true roots! We want a this president so badly (some do) that we allow him to blame congress for everything. We are a nation which was created and proudly ran by our Constitution! We are not servants of our government! They are servants to the people! We have a President and a First Lady who think that by using different groups and people as back drops that that should break our hearts. Let see, Hitler did this also and look what happened there. Instead of using groups as backgrounds, get back to the White House and deal with the problem instead of scaring the people to death so that you can continue your out of control spending and giving funds to buddies and backers.

Congress and Senate, you need to pass bills that make it illegal to add pork to any bill! The folks in the Sandy destruction only received 20% of what was voted on to help them out. 80% went to special interests and cronyism. This is where spending can be cut tremendously!

Mr. President, get off the campaign trail and SERIOUSLY GET TO WORK! Enough with your expensive vacations that are costing the American taxpayer so much money! It would be nice to have all those vacations, but ask the out of work Americans how many vacations they are taking? NONE! At what point did being president make you better than the rest of the American people?

While we are at it, what is wrong with America? Why is it suddenly so bad to be wealthy? Sure I wish I was too, but I don't blame them for it! They are the ones who have the money to create jobs! If you don't like the way corporate America works, move to another country (prefferably a third world country) and see how good you've got it! Being rich doesn't mean you have to support our country so government spending can even be more rampant! Good grief! What happened to the American dream? The very ones that blast the wealthy (alot of this comes from Hollwood), let's ask them if they are paying their fair share! Bet most of theirs is in offshore accounts where the U.S. Government can't tax it!

Happy Socialism, because they way most Americans are looking at this President, the Democratic policies and any crackpot actor who wants to move our country to Socialism, that's where we are heading!

TO: rotorhead1 who wrote:

"Blame the Republicans, the left mantra!..."

Why would Republicans care when the GOP never takes "responsibility" for anything anyway?

Republicans want to "run the show" but it's always somebody else's fault when Republicans f-up.

Just another example of more govt. waste. by our President which is ignored by MSNBC.

Senate Democrats Protect Corporate Jet Loophole

http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2013/02/senate-democrats-protect-corporate-jet-loophole/

Do they really need to keep their corporate jets? Here's a little excerpt from the story:

Listening to the White House, you might think that the "balanced" Democratic plan to avert the spending cuts would close that loophole for private jets.

But you would be wrong.

The Senate Democratic plan – which has been endorsed by the White House and is, in fact, the only Democratic plan actively under consideration right now – doesn't touch corporate jets.

I think Boehner is getting upset..........

If you think a small business owner making $250,000 a year is super rich and should pay more taxes than you, then you don't understand small business.

Hey Sherlock, that $250,000 is AFTER each and every business expense is deducted, including the salary s/he get to pay themselves. Also, EVERYONE benefits up to the $250k........so cry me a river.

Why would Republicans care when the GOP never takes "responsibility" for anything anyway?

Do I really need to point out the irony of that statement coming from a lib during this administration?

MI voter I almost forgot to get informed first are you one of those sucking off the government tit?

HOW much more should we take from people? Do not forget that you are one that will get shorted also. You do realizew that there have been MANY bipartisan bills passed by the house with support on both sides, yet your STUPID FU CKING HARRY DUMBASS Reid refuses to bring them up for a VOTE. Till your side gets there heads out of there A$$ES we will keep having these OBLAMER made crisis. Oblamer is the one that required the sequestor when ar you STUPID FU CKS going to get educated. I know IGNORANCE IN MI is running HIGH.

The Republicans prepare "bill" and the president doesn't respond . . . Obama prefers to travel with his wifey on tax dollars to spreed the same rhetorical bull @!$%#. . .

steve-1962

Mickey in NY. I see you have sand in your vagina still. Will you please grow up and clean yourself up. Your IGNORANCE is astounding. When will IDIOTS like you quit putting inept FAILURES in charge of this country. I know the Repubs put up a good choice but the FUC KHEADS at MSNDC would never put the truth about OBLAMER on there site and spread numerous LIES about Romney that the LOW INFORMATION VOTER of the LEFT sucked up like the rest of the KOOLAID that you IDIOTS drink.

When will you stupid fu cking morons get your head out of your ass. You think the government has no CORUPTION in it. That is why you idiots keep putting these FAILURES in charge.

Hey Monkey NY i got your back..heres that sack you talk about, for your ASS... put some ice on it for the swelling.

If you hurry sport and catch fisty at the DDI before the binge drinking starts you might be able round up your Ass whoopin posse to come retaliate. Of course when you come to a battle of wits, you seem to come unarmed.

PS, that was funny, you got OWNED

Well you think if someone takes the risk of financial ruin to create a company that supports the lives of sometimes thousands of other people that he is then not entitled to the fruit of that you are sick. Somehow he them becomes liable to provide for leeches that live off the goverment tit for their lives. You people are the reason this country is where it is and why we will never recover.

TO: AlexM-3929653 who wrote:

[Why would Republicans care when the GOP never takes "responsibility" for anything anyway?]

Do I really need to point out the irony of that statement coming from a lib during this administration?

Why don't "point out" situations where George "Curveball" Bush actually took responsibility for any of his
f-ups?

You can't, because Republicans are still too busy trying to blame the Democrats for all Bush's lies.

Somehow he them becomes liable to provide for leeches that live off the goverment tit for their lives. You people are the reason this country is where it is and why we will never recover.

Is that you, Mitt???

This continues to be hilarious.

The law was agreed to by both sides and Obama threatened a veto if anything was changed. That is FACT

Now the liberal spin doctors are blaming the GOP?

Folks this is less that 3% of the 2013 Fed spend. And with this cut the Fed will still increase spedning by 1.8%. These figures are peanuts yet the Dems lead by Obama yell "sky is falling the sky is falling!"

Get a grip folks and start thinking for yourselves.

If you think a small business owner making $250,000 a year is super rich and should pay more taxes than you, then you don't understand small business.

Hey Sherlock, that $250,000 is AFTER each and every business expense is deducted, including the salary s/he get to pay themselves. Also, EVERYONE benefits up to the $250k........so cry me a river.

i forgot to add....after they pay themselves, their freeloading kids, the wife, the father, the mother, the mother-inlaw, the father-in-law, etc., etc.

TO: American Girl-724855

"TO: no sence who wrote:

"Why is it Boehner's responsibility to back down on his issues..."

Well because he has to have something to bargain with. So far, Boehner is not bringing anything to the table.

Usually there's some "give and take" in negotiations.

All Boehner has is "takes" but nothing to "give" in exchange for what Republicans want, other than some nasty rhetoric, hate speech, and insults."

WOW WOW WOW way to take that statement WAY out of context. If you read the whole post you would see I said BOTH SIDES are doing the SAME THING. Boehner, Reid, and Obama ARE DOING THE SAME THING. No side is correct in this situation. So stop getting on only one of their cases. If you are going to speak ill of one, you must speak ill of them all. And btw, as others have pointed out, the HOR has presented multiple budgets and plans to avert this crisis. But Reid and Obama say no. BOTH SIDES ARE NOT LOOKING OUT FOR AMERICA BUT RATHER THEMSELVES.

AHHHWWWHHH,

Boehner's boner finally wiggled. After over 4 years of Saying NO now he has the audacity to place blame!

Man this guy is an ass in all defintions of the word. I think the time has come for him to but a dictionary and look up the world TRANSFERENCE---a Psychological Defnse mechanism.

Hey Boehner your tan is fading---oh my now what will do to obstruct the sun some more!

Remember when the President supported the sequester?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=kj1y3q92sog

Our President really knows how to flip flop doesn't he? It's too bad, that so many democrats are entranced by him that they can't remember back to November.

American Girl you are a pseudo-intellectual who would probably fit in perfectly in DC.

Hi kiddos! Just a friendly reminder that feisty, beverley, david walker and pigotry are all the same poster using the same IP address.

Yes, it is sad! LOL!

Obama apologists are as bad as the religious right.

Boehner's boner finally wiggled. After over 4 years of Saying NO now he has the audacity to place blame!

precisely, who does he think he is, Obama?

Hi kiddos! Just a friendly reminder that feisty, beverley, david walker and pigotry are all the same poster using the same IP address.

I doubt that..they may share the same IQ and brain (if you will) but i doubt the same poster. not like it would change anything if they were outted as the same person. It would be status quo

President Obama has a plan, we are going to Tax everybody to pay for those how don't have and won't work for it. We are going to tax the 1% more than they are taxed now. This will not work without cuts, but he won't make cuts as he PROMISSED TO DO. We do not have MONEY and the tax on the 1% is a JOKE! You need to do both.

TO: richard-3069835 who wrote:

"Every Lib here says the same thing... Take money from those who have it but dont take our entitlements, and I am not talking about SS or Medicare..."

You're NOT talking about SS or Medicare?

What else are Republicans calling "entitlements", our paychecks?

same IP address

If this is indeed true they are working from the same location. No way could one person come up with this much BS in a day.

AlexM-3929653 you know Alex means "defender of man".....Your name should be used lightly as well....It appears to me that we have several issues to address with you and your short sighted and status quo (nothing ever changes) attitude.......Now Where do we begin......

SS - LOL....Status quo?...So life expectancy won't become longer by 2024.......The public will find this more palatable to change the SS age in ten years with a better economy (you know money in circulation currently is important).....and how would that change the solvent lifespan of SS......Should we cut benefits right now? When it is currently unnecessary? Or should we change the retirement age for SS as life expectancy gets longer in a few years ...when we aren't in a stagnate economy....Cut spending and less money in the economy when it is solvent for another decade ..if not more......I can see now that you are an economic genius......

Medicaid - I see you left our medicare......careful rightly......LOLZ.....Look at the CBO projections for Obama care...It decreases our percentage of GDP, spent on health care, over 10 years.....Soooo....If there 10 year decrease in US GDP spent on health care...I don't really understand what the concern is.....Unless you believe the POTUS can make the CBO do what he wants.....Which would be conspiracy nonsense....

So explain why house republicans deserve 110% of the blame.....First I would like to explain to you the charters of both parties.........Republican = Conservative = spending cuts.....Democrat = Liberal/Progressive = Spending and Taxes........So......What is compromise? Cut spending and increased taxes....Like the proposal for 600 bil increased revenue with 1.2 trillion in spending cuts....The presidents plan...on his website.......2 to 1 to your favor isn't a compromise? This is why the sequester is your idiot parties fault...I'm sorry your brainwashed by some idiot into believing non practicality or your research is quite for lacking...There is only one right answer tried and true......Look at the 1893 panic as a reference of how to solve the problem instead of your ridiculous method that has never worked throughout the history of mankind.....Please stop making the world a dumber place......

PS One other thing for all you crazy conservatives....Sequester will happen unemployment will go up...Good job at being all about the jobs....Smoke and mirrors with you idiots...no reason

The campaign is over. The election is over. Time for the president to step up to the plate like a man. Like a leader. This "lead from behind" stuff is REALLY getting old.

There sure was a lot of screaming on the right when it leaked out what action the President intended to do if Congress failed to act on immigration reform. If he proposes action, the right screams. If he leaves it up to Congress, the right screams. How about the right get its act together and work for the good of the country instead of seeking political advantage by reflexively blocking everything the President tries to do. This tactic did not earn them public favor before the election, and it is not working now. It reminds me of one definition of insanity, i.e. doing the same thing over and over while expecting a diferent result.

Bobster - you're still posting your same nonsense I see. What is your problem? Is it the fact that you can't counter anything Feisty, Beverly, David Walker post? Clearly they are ALL smarter than you so you post lie after lie after lie. You've been exposed and you continue to post your nonsense.

Boehner need to man-up, stand up to the Limbaughs of the far right and do his job. It would be SUCH a change of pace for him but he has shown over and over he doesn't have the backbone for leadership. When did the Republican party lose all semblence of integrity and intelligence? They have become the bottom feeders of the country and they don't even care.

Just to inform everyone there is no budget cut, there will still be an increase in government spending compared to the previous year across the board. There will just be a smaller increase and not the total amount of automatic spending increases that were suppose to occur. Please stop believing everything that comes out of Washington and Obamas mouth. All he has done is lie how's that not tax increase on the middle class treating everyone? Last I checked everyone just got hit with a 2% one or when he said that Obamacare wouldn't be a tax but yet it is? Point is he lies like every other person in Washington and has done nothing to fix the economy the sequestration was his idea in the first place since he's failed to bring a budget to the table.

Speaker Boner, instead of telling the opposition to your do nothing party to get off their asses, kindly ask YOUR party to remove their heads from THEIR asses and stop the lies and obstructionism.

It has been over 3 years since Harry "the obstructionist" and the do-nothing democrats in the senate have passed a budget, why would Speaker Boehner think Harry would get off his ass to do anything for the American people.

It is the Congress's job to pass a budget and send it to the Senate NOT the other way around!! The weeper of the house cannot do his job because his own party is willing to hold the country hostage!! They want to hurt the poor as much as possible. They want to hurt Obama even more. BUT, it won't work! The entire country knows who is at fault for this. Every poll shows that the blame lies solely on the right wing Republican party! A party that cannot deal with the fact that the President won the election on raising taxes and investing in THIS country!! The Republican party is a disgrace. They are willing to set us back 20 years and destroy our standing around the world to cut food stamps to hungry families and medical services to sick people. Oh, how proud you must be!

kstanley22 - just because all Republican "leaders" lie doesn't mean our President does. You should stop expecting the same thing from him we've all come to realize is the Republican way. Luckily, our President is heads above what passes for Republican leadership!

EVERYBODY STOP FOR 1 MINUTE.

American Girl told the truth for the first time ever on any of these messages boards.

"Because billionaires and multi-billion-dollar corporations are the biggest beneficiaries of federal money"

Yet in every other post she has ever had she calls for a bigger Government that spends more money.

She is a self -proclaimed Liberal Dem, and I ask which party is the Party of making fat cats rich?

If you libs actually read what the other side mostly says, you would realize we aren't against the poor and middle class we are against Government's out of control spending actually want to help the poor and middle class by doing something about the entitlement programs that are F'N broke.

But not the libs they want to make a few powerful people rich and promise the poor they will help, when in all reality there enough money to cover their promises. Which American Girl means you HATE the poor and love the powerful not the other way around.

I agree with TJefferson-6672202 in post #1.29 when he said:

This country needs to get back to at least pre-1971 times.

Especially, the pre-1971 tax rates:
http://www.stanford.edu/class/polisci120a/immigration/Federal%20Tax%20Brackets.pdf

TJeff, I'm right with ya there, pally!

Is it the fact that you can't counter anything Feisty, Beverly, David Walker post?

oh yeah, real intellects there...poor David ran yesterday after his/her incessant whining about me defining socialism..i did and as anticipated bailed.

Theresa you must be one of those well informed people of the media. The Congress consist of the House and Senate please educated yourself before defending Obama. I imagine polls would show that as the media doesn't give the truth anymore. I find it interesting that NBC has been busted twice in less than a year altering tapes to get their point of view out. First the edit Zimmerman answering a dispatch person and then they edit a meeting of one of the dads from Sandy Hook to make it look like people are yelling at him. I'm sure you were already aware of this as you seem to be so well informed. Oh, how proud you must be!

TO: no sence who wrote:

"...If you are going to speak ill of one, you must speak ill of them all..."

No I "musent".

I am an American which means I have my constitutional right to freedom of speech.

It would be a gross lie for me to speak "ill" of someone or something that I don't really feel any "ill will" towards.

It's my feeling that the President and the Democrats represent the best interests of the United States and the American People.

It's my feeling that Republicans don't give a damn about either one.

Seeking Sanity - This will get you cower away as always.

"lie doesn't mean our President does.

The president claimed that "we have doubled the distance our cars will go on a gallon of gas" — which isn't remotely close to being true right now."

This is MSN pointing out lies.

http://news.msn.com/politics/fact-checking-obamas-state-of-the-union

2007:

Government Spending: $2.73 Trillion

Tax Revenue: $2.57 Trillion

2012:

Government Spending: $3.80 Trillion

Tax Revenue: $2.47 Trillion

Tax Revenue in 2012 down only 3.9% from the HIGHEST Tax Revenue in history (2007) but yet Government Spending increased 39.1% between 2007 and 2012? And liberals in this forum believe they make sense when saying there is nowhere to cut spending? Spending increased almost 40% in 5 years and there is nowhere to cut spending? Are you serious?

The uninformed left. Don't forget the exit poll and followup showing that Oblama voters' IQ averaged 28 points less than the Romney voters. Hands out with palms up. Hard to do much work that way.

Smart bunch of folks.

All I see here are the same old blowhards doing the same thing they always do. Passing the buck but no real discussion on how to solve the problem.

The GOP say the Dems spend too much..excuse us for being so extravagent wanting to fix our countries infrastructure... Sorry for wanting to cross a bridge and not being afraid of it falling in on us. I know the wealthy fly everywhere so they dont need any roads or bridges right? The dems. didnt start 2 wars and not pay for them now did they? And the dems didnt give no bid contracts to their pals and take kickbacks. (I would love to audit Cheneys real books)

On the other side of the aisle the dems say the GOP wont offer any real purposals and wont work with them...well thats true. What I want to no is why doesnt anyone in the gop talk about spending when they are in office? It never seems to be a problem then? "defecits dont matter" quote Cheney.

For the record I dont exactly see the republicans cutting any corners in their spending habits either. They got enough cash to have conferences all the time and complain about the DEMS. but dont have time to stay in DC long enough to unpack. They seem to have a habit of vacationing all the time. I no we can suggest Perhaps if the GOP females cut back on the makeup and hairspray they may put a dent in the budget. They all look like stepford wives.

You can not blast the other side and accuse them of doing what you yourself are guilty of. We are not blind..you have tried repeatedly to accuse the Dems of doing what you are guilty of. No matter how many ways you try to spin it the end is the same. How many times do I have to say it..we are not stupid.

I dont care how hard Boehner or his tbag minions try to make it look like its the other guys fault he has to stop this repetition everytime. Reality will prevail. The GOP is a pack of lazy, do nothing idealists who have no interest in doing anything but collect their checks and go to lunch. The dems. cant do anything because they got nothing to work with. The other side wont write anything new with any substance. Same stuff over and over again...like arranging the words differently is gonna change the end result.

The idea behind a 2 party system is to work together...if you cant work with the other party then you need to QUIT and go to work at burger king..but then you may question the customers choices of condiments so that may not work for you either.

Facts are facts: you got nothing so time to stop the same old game. You have done nothing that is exceptible but write fictional purposals you no we would all lynch you for if you tried to force it on us. Stop pretending. Do your job. YOU cant keep blaming the other side and say they arent working with you when you are the one saying NO all the time. Even when they agree with you you say no. What kinda crap is that John boy??

You wont even sit down with them but you accuse them of obstruction. Your game is Old and we are sick of it. Get to work!

kstanley22 you wrote:

"The Congress consist of the House and Senate please educated yourself before defending Obama."

Please educated myself? Shouldn't you know how to use a sentence before you put down someone else for their intelligence? Everything I posted is fact, not opinion. You can look it up, but I suppose, as a dedicated right winger, that would be too much trouble. Don't let facts get in the way. That seems to be your parties mantra!

SeekingSanity

kstanley22 - just because all Republican "leaders" lie doesn't mean our President does. You should stop expecting the same thing from him we've all come to realize is the Republican way. Luckily, our President is heads above what passes for Republican leadership!

Yep that what I said you seemed to be well informed as well. I could put a list of lies up here specifically from the Presidents mouth.

— President Obama, news conference, Jan. 14, 2013

“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.”

Now you must raise the limit and it's a great thing. Like I said no new taxes on the middle class 2% the first of this year, Obamacare isn't a tax it's a penalty then he says it's a tax..........

He refuses to work with anyone because he believes his ideas are all powerful and always correct, explain why his own party wouldn't pass his budget. I wouldn't want to work with someone who shoves everything upon others either. I'm not saying there is no fault on the Republican party but for these idiots blaming just them they should learn something. Fault falls upon both parties but you're too blind to see that.

There was an election last November and here's how it went:

Obama won the presidency because he won the majority of the state electorates

The Republicans won the House because they won a majority of the congressional districts

The Radical Left Wing Liberal/Progressive Wack Jobs would have you believe that since Obama won the presidency he gets to make all the decisions. Not so. I would tend to think that the House is a much better representation of the voting public than the Presidency. So what we have here is a dearth of leadership. That's right the president needs to start leading. Leading doesn't mean dictating and playing politics with the economic health of the country either. It means compromising and getting things done. He got his tax increases now where are the spending cuts he promised? Do your job Obama!

The government will spend more money this year than last year... There are no cuts in spending it's all just smoke and mirrors for zero baseline budgeting...

This is all political

Mr. President quit lying and going out and campaigning your doom and gloom to the American public.. You are spending more this year than last. Most dysfunctional government ever. It will be 16 years of incompetence when it's over.

Dickcranium It's called gerrymandering! The only reason the Republicans retained the house majority is because they redrew all of the districts to make it so! Everywhere there was a FAIR election, Democrats won!! They won a million more votes than the Republicans and still lost!! That should tell you something! It tells me, your party cannot win without cheating! And you, are falling for it, hook, line and sinker!

Re: Post 1.8

B U D G E T.. its called a budget.. the democrats wont pass one, the president wont submit one. The Republicans have SEVERAL drafts sent to the senate..

Questions:

Did the Bush administration/conservatives propose/submit/pass a budget for each of his eight years?

If no, why are the conservatives being hypocritical and complaining now?

If yes, did the conservative president Bush budget(s) produce an overall better economy, higher employment, more jobs, no deficit spending, reduce the debt, contain out of control health care and prescription drug costs, increase the national standard of living, create a more peaceful world, lower the cost of oil, or prevent the socializing of our capitalist system?

If yes, awesome!

If no, what's the point, and why waste time making it look like you're being fiscally responsible when everyone can see that conservatives spend like drunks and grow government just the same as liberals?

Theresa, says the other side has no facts, and then spews this paragraph. (Which I don't see one fact)

"It is the Congress's job to pass a budget and send it to the Senate NOT the other way around!! The weeper of the house cannot do his job because his own party is willing to hold the country hostage!! They want to hurt the poor as much as possible. They want to hurt Obama even more. BUT, it won't work! The entire country knows who is at fault for this. Every poll shows that the blame lies solely on the right wing Republican party! A party that cannot deal with the fact that the President won the election on raising taxes and investing in THIS country!! The Republican party is a disgrace. They are willing to set us back 20 years and destroy our standing around the world to cut food stamps to hungry families and medical services to sick people. Oh, how proud you must be!"

American Girl,

I am an American which means I have my constitutional right to freedom of speech.

and the freedom to be stupid as our august Secretary of State John Kerry said today;

“In America, you have a right to be stupid, if you want to be.”

A senior Kerry staffer, on the condition of anonymity, suggested that Democrat politicians are counting on it.

Tom - Plymouth - I've never backed away from your stupidity and I won't ever. You always post nonsense and then you whine when you get called on it.

kstanley22 - things change from minute to minute and yes, some things the President expects to happen, don't. I still will put him next to the lying filth the Republicans put up and he'll come out ahead of them every day. If a Republican isn't lying, he's asleep - or dead!

TO: GuyFromSanDIego who wrote:

"Yelling, crying, cursing, ranting are not the way to get things done. Compromise is the key to managing a divided government. So, Mr. Boehner, knock off the hysterics and do what the American people want...work with the President to make our country better.

Your Party presented it's best candidates, with the Party's ideals strictly adhered to, and they lost. Clearly, the country rejects your ideals. Get to work with the elected leader of our country. You are not the leader, Cantor is not leader, the Tea Party is not the leader. GET TO WORKING with our elected leader."

Bravo! Well said!

THERESA-532036

"The Congress consist of the House and Senate please educated yourself before defending Obama."

Please educated myself? Shouldn't you know how to use a sentence before you put down someone else for their intelligence? Everything I posted is fact, not opinion. You can look it up, but I suppose, as a dedicated right winger, that would be too much trouble. Don't let facts get in the way. That seems to be your parties mantra!

Excuse myself for the typo and educate yourself a little still as the Congress BOTH House and Senate review the proposed budget the President submits and decide if they should pass it. Why don't you take the time to look something up or read.

tjohn - "If no, what's the point, and why waste time making it look like you're being fiscally responsible when everyone can see that conservatives spend like drunks and grow government just the same as liberals?"

Very few people if they are being objective would call Bush a conservative, (Yes he did do some conservative things) but in general he basically did almost everything PBO is doing and yet somehow the Libs hate him.

It became obvious in Bush's second term that he was losing the more Libertarian members of the Repubs, and the Repubs have continued to lose those.

If you have any math skills take a look at a website for our national debt in real time.

After reviewing, maybe you can see the reality of the Obama administrations fiscal initiatives.

Tom Plymouth Name one thing I said that ISN'T true? The polls show what they show. The Republicans want to cut every social program that helps the poor or most vulnerable. The President DID win on raising taxes, helping the middle class and infrastructure. The Republican party HAS done everything in their power to destroy President Obama EVEN if it means destroying our credit rating around the world!

So, tell me, what of this is NOT factual? Do you need numbers? I can give you those too but you would never let a fact stand in your way! It's easy to look up, but like Boehner, you want someone else to do the work for you. How about, your party say EXACTLY what they want cut? How about THEY make the tough decisions and put something out that doesn't just benefit the already rich? Typical.

THERESA,

Shrill much? Even your name screams.

Dickcranium It's called gerrymandering! The only reason the Republicans retained the house majority is because they redrew all of the districts to make it so!

LOL!!!! Hahahahaha! How the hell did that happen? If what you say is true then the Democrat hold on the House should never have been relinquished back in 1994. Try again sucker.

The last time the legislative branch actually passed a budget, not the extensions, was 1997. http://prospect.org/article/does-congress-even-need-pass-budget For the 2014 budget, it had been delayed due to the fiscal cliff details that were not passed until January 2. Paul Ryan had been notified on January the 11th. This inaction in Congress is not new, the Republicans tried this tactic with Clinton and it lead to the shutdown of the government. The same will probably happen again. For all of you civics whizes ( and yes, I am being sarcastic) a two party government can work when both sides compromise. When you have one side passing legislation that they know the other side will reject, is not doing any functional work. This is an attempt to filibuster the government.

Seeking, you said the President doesn't lie, MSN points out his lies. And then you attack me for being stupid?

So it is OK for you side to Lie but not the other?

and by nonsense you are talking about History, Math and Honesty I assume which is three things you usually are lacking.

Cnorton, What kind of business owners are you talking to. They must be idiots that cut themselves a $250,000 pay role checks and dump the their pay role check back into to their company. A smart person would keep the business separate and give them selves a living wage or moderate wage base on company profit. All the monies used to upkeep and buy equipment as a yearly profit margin is deductible at the end of year. Your pay role check should be and is taxed differently. Even if you use your personal money on your business that is all deductible and should be keep that way.

Another point is a 2% increase on that volume is alot of money but in comparison to what is left over for the recipient, its nothing. If you are living pay check to pay check making $250,000 a year something is really wrong with your budget. Within the currant tax code and loop holes we are no where near the same percentage paid as 15yrs ago. Funny that we were just fine then.

DickCranium Your name fits. The Democrats lost because of dirty money and even dirtier politics by your right wing friends. They lost because the people were lied to and more money can spread more lies. They didn't redraw their districts to give them the advantage. They won on merit or lost on merit. THAT is the way it's supposed to be. You are a fool at best and a sheep at worst.

Tom - Plymouth-3672298

Insanity....Let me back up and explain the last 5-6 years since you seem to be living in an altered reality ..apparently isolated on a rock in New England....

07' Financial crisis...Devalued middle class equity by 1.7 trillion dollars (greatest loss of wealth in the HISTORY of mankind)....Do you know what this means? Do you understand that deregulation allowed the our financial banking system to steal 1.7 trillion dollars from the middle class? Hasn't happened since the libs (as your ignorant self put it) have been in charge....So who made who richer? We could go back to the billions made for halliburton and such through our government taking the Hawk approach to other nations (unjustified in some cases)..... So the libs increased taxes and now want to cut spending by 1.2 trillion and raise revenue by 600 billion...Sounds like their the devil to me..We already increased the taxes on the Rich.....Libs must be making the fat cats richer.....?!?!. Personally I think you are a moron. Middle class families cannot repair equity issues in 4 years...The revolving cash flow of the middle class does not allow for it....and Here in lies the problem....Without equity you do not have lending...with out lending you do not have small businesses being created....This was generational theft of middle class equity...It will take inflation and time (10 years) for the middle class to rectify their debt to income ratio so they can borrow money again. This will lead to more disposable income and equity gains in housing and retirement accounts. You should understand that the middle class is the largest consumer of commodity products in our country........As a large business owner.....I understand history (you should take a look at it) which shows us that if the middle class doesn't have any money then they can't buy the things we are selling....Look at the countries tax history on the wealthy...Look at something more than being an idiot parrot of the right wing...Open a book.....watch c-span....get your facts from the CBO and treasury department....and refer to the labor department statistics......Stop being ignorant

Theresa, First I vary rarely vote Repub, so my party isn't really represented in Washington.

"The Republicans want to cut every social program that helps the poor or most vulnerable."

as opposed to doing nothing and having it run out of money in one case very shortly and in the others in the very near future.

I question that those programs are actually working, how many of those programs have caused generational poverty. How is making promised to self few with no possible way of paying for them being an advocate for the poor?

And finally, why must it be the Government that solves all of our problems? How is it good that millions/billions of dollars get wasted and a select few get wealthy off these programs and yet most of these programs aren't showing any return to those that pay into it?

Deebo,

Cnorton, What kind of business owners are you talking to. They must be idiots that cut themselves a $250,000 pay role checks and dump the their pay role check back into to their company. A smart person would keep the business separate and give them selves a living wage or moderate wage base on company profit.

You're not the sharpest tool in the shed. Sole proprietorships, S-Corps, and partnerships all are designed for pass-through taxation. They are set up this way to take advantage of existing tax laws. As the saying goes "open your mouth and remove all doubt".

The "sequester" cuts 2.2% of USA federal government spending. That is the same level as... FY2011. However, the USA spending will still increase by 6-8% from FY2012. What a joke!

Those who claim the idea of the Sequester belongs to the President are either in error, or, just a pack of gwaddamn liars. "Daily Beast" has an email copy of a power point presentation developed by the "House republican policy committee, and sent to Boehner and republican co-horts on Capitol Hill, July 31,2011. Titled: Two step approach to hold President Obama accountable. Sequester etc., just as it reads today.

Presented by Columnist John Avlon, Daily Beast- Newsweek

THERESA,

DickCranium Your name fits. The Democrats lost because of dirty money and even dirtier politics by your right wing friends. They lost because the people were lied to and more money can spread more lies. They didn't redraw their districts to give them the advantage. They won on merit or lost on merit. THAT is the way it's supposed to be. You are a fool at best and a sheep at worst.

All I can say is Wow! I don't think I've ever witnessed someone as brainwashed or dishonest as you. Either way you're a really sad person.

Peter Dean, History?

Take a looks at who gets rich off the Government. Take a look at the Student loan industry, take a look at ethanol industry, take a look at Freddie and Fannie big wigs, how about the higher ups at solyndra, how about oil companies, that a look at higher education, and finally Health Care.

T-Bone Pickens, Warren Buffett, ect...

When the government gets involved a select few get super rich, how does that help the poor.

Or Mac you could read this.

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/feb/22/sequestration-was-obamas-idea-in-the-first-place/

Tom - Plymouth-3672298

Not a one of those stole 1.7 trillion from the middle class.....Are you stupid?

Really? You don't call what Freddie and Fannie did was stealing? you don't call what the Government did with Solyndra did stealing from the Middle Class.

and if somebody doesn't agree with you are they always stupid? Is that how you treat your employees?

Two questions - "Do you understand that deregulation"

1. Do you know who voted and passed the repeal of glass steagall?

2. How is the Dodd Frank working out for your large corporation? I work in the finance industry and I can tell you it is costing the middle class a fortune in the areas I work.

And guess what there are consultants specializing in implementing Dodd Frank it and guess what they are making a fortune, again off the middle class.

and why you are on the green energy kick ......Over 80% of those funds are still in sustanable companies with 30K jobs created in 10' and 11' alone.......Once again....80% survival rate from an investers standpoint is a good investment in start-ups....So now we know you know nothing...Great

So one of the thieves is defending the theft.....Even better

I know what you are going to say moron.......The deregulation of the banking system was a compromise with republicans during the Clinton administration.....Democrats are about regulation ....You don't know that yet?

AlexM (Post 1.87). First of all, if the government hadn't kept "borrowing" from both the Social Security and the Medicare funds to pay for their "pork" projects....we wouldn't be having the discussion about cutting these programs. Secondly, if I've been paying into these programs all my working life, is it fair to ask me to just willy nilly give my money back to the government (because they chose to use our money without paying it back or paying interest on what they borrowed). I'm sorry, but I'm not going to do that....I've paid, involuntarily I might add, with each and every paycheck that I've gotten since I started working at age 16 for BOTH these programs....it belongs to me, and I expect to get it when I need it. As it stands, I'm planning not to file for Social Security until I'm age 70 just to keep as much as I can in the account for others that really need it. Why can't the idiots that borrowed the monies from our accounts start paying the accounts back.....hmmmm???

Secondly, for those of you who are crying for Boehner....he needs to look in his own backyard for the problems. Even if he comes to a compromise with President Obama, which he has in the past, the TP/GOP won't support him or back him up. I don't envy him his job, but to blame our President for the problems isn't the way to do it! If he had half a set of gonads, he'd fight the TP/GOP and convince them that compromise is the way to go! The biggest problem with the TP/GOP is that they refuse to take money away from their rich buddies via closing loopholes in the tax code, but they feel it's certainly ok to take it away from those of us who can ill afford it! Why can't we cut back on oil subsidies? Those guys make humongous profits year after year....same goes for the agriculture subsidies! Why do they have to pay farmers NOT to grow a crop....God knows we need all the farm products they can grow....and what we don't need can go to help feed our allies or our homeless and needy! To NOT grow a crop and get paid for letting your fields go fallow is totally asinine!! As for cutting back on the Defense budget....I'm sure there are plenty of places that can take the cuts; however, with the sequester as it is worded, the Defense Department (or any other department) doesn't have the ability to allocate the cuts where they would do the most good with the least amount of damage.....and that's the problem!

DickCranium, Other than bad mouthing me I don't see where you contradicted me on my over response to Cnorton's statement. I believe I clearly stated that it would be smart to separate your business expence/up keep from a pay-role and it works more to your benefit. But even if you don't there is tax provisions that contradict his statement of these so called owner he talks too.

Larry-2260635 #1.103 - Tue Feb 26, 2013 11:42 AM CST

@ Shaking my head-2479300

And how much is that from interest on the money Bush borrowed for the wars he wanted?

Exactly, I remember when Bush started these wars, republicans were out front cheer leading him on, a couple even said, Mr. President here's 5 blank checks to get you started, Cheney looked at them and asked them, are you otta your @!$%#ing mind, checks? I don't want no damn blank checks, give me America's credit card, Halliburton has some serious money to make to finance my 401k!!

J/K......or am I....

If you have any math skills take a look at a website for our national debt in real time.

After reviewing, maybe you can see the reality of the Obama administrations fiscal initiatives

If you had math skills you'd realise that Bush's fiscal initiatives cost us 11 million jobs that Obama had to provide benefits for and that Obama had 500 billion less tax revenue after the meldown to pay the bills. Bush destroyed our economy and you nuts suggest gong back to those policies are the cure.

@Tom-Plymouth-lotsa no's: Why? Woodward tried to twist a lie to gain some notice. Even if He didn't, mine predates yours by close to 2 years. Plagiarism in reverse you think?

Remember when Obama told us that Obamacare would create jobs and do wonders to address our budget problems? Well that ain't happening. Instead, Obama needs to raise taxes to save his baby from being axed. But the truth is, it is and will be one of the biggest debt generators this country has ever seen. And if you don't believe me ask the GAO:

Obamacare will increase the long-term federal deficit by $6.2 trillion, according to a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report released today.

Senator Jeff Sessions (R., Ala.), who requested the report, revealed the findings this morning at a Senate Budget Committee hearing. The report, he said, “confirms everything critics and Republicans were saying about the faults of this bill,” and “dramatically proves that the promises made assuring the nation that the largest new entitlement program in history would not add one dime to the deficit were false.”

President Obama and other Democrats attempted to win support for the health-care bill by touting it as a fiscally responsible enterprise. “I will not sign a plan that adds one dime to our deficits — either now or in the future,” Obama told a joint-session of Congress in September 2009. “I will not sign it if it adds one dime to the deficit, now or in the future, period.”

The new report exposes the “lack of honesty” surrounding such claims, Sessions argued. “The big-government crowd in Washington manipulated the numbers in order to get the financial score they wanted, in order to get their bill passed and to increase power and influence,” he said. “The goal was not truth or financial responsibility, but to pass the bill. This is how a country goes broke.”

The GAO report is essentially the first attempt to isolate and calculate Obamacare’s impact on the deficit beyond the traditional ten-year budget window. GAO ran two simulations “based on broad sets of assumptions about health care spending and other components of federal spending and revenue” over a 75-year period. First, a baseline-extended simulation, which “illustrates the long-term outlook assuming federal laws (applicable at the time the simulation was run) remain unchanged,” and second, an alternative simulation, which “illustrates the long-term fiscal outlook assuming historical trends and policy preferences continue.”

The baseline scenario is far more optimistic, largely because it does not take into account the concerns — expressed by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Trustees, and Medicare’s chief actuary — about “whether certain cost-containment mechanisms included in PPACA can be sustained over the long term.”

However, the GAO report concluded that even under these “more optimistic assumptions,” Obamacare’s cost-control provisions “were not sufficient to prevent an unsustainable increase in debt held by the public.”

The alternative scenario, which incorporates the more realistic “alternative projections” suggested by CBO, the CMS trustees, and the chief Medicare actuary, is even more dire. Under this scenario, the “primary deficit” increases by 0.7 percent of GDP over the 75-year period. The GAO does not put a dollar value on that figure, but Senate Budget Committee staff has calculated, and GAO has confirmed, that it would amount to a $6.2 trillion increase in the federal deficit.

"and why you are on the green energy kick"

I used them as an example, which of course you didn't get

How is the cost of higher education working out for the middle class, some might call that stealing from the middle class.

"So one of the thieves is defending the theft.....Even better" - not even sure what that means, because I work in the finance field, or because I mentioned consultants getting rich off the tax payers?

But Hey I went from stupid to a moron, so I feel better about myself. Lets see what is next.

30K jobs created in 10' and 11' , so your company couldn't have created more jobs if the Government wouldn't have taxed you as much?

"Democrats are about regulation ....You don't know that yet?"

So they are against it unless they vote for it, kind of like the Iraq war, and very similar to the extension of the Afghan war, or No child left behind.

I guess it is impossible to lose when you are never responsible for you votes. Kind of like when Barney Frank said Freddie and Fannie were fine. How much has that cost tax payers/middle class again>

I don't expect you to answer because you have passed on the hard questions already to spew name calling.

Just an FYI - I told you when the questions become hard Sanity and American girl run as fast as they can for cover.

every other line in this article is.....trip this, trip that....ummmm

We do not have a President, we have a school yard bully going round and round....NO BETTER THAN BUSH!!!!!

never in my days would I have thought my vote in '08 would have caused so much harm to this nation.

I just want to apologize for electing a side show, thought we were really gonna get to a good place....nope.

Obama wants to be congress, thinks he does not even have to respect congress...why should anyone else????????????????????? now, does that make it clear what the hell is wrong with this country?

STOP THE FRIGGIN CAMPAIGNING, ERR BULLYING ALREADY!!!!!!!!!!!! GROW UP OBAMA GROW THE .....UP, you too Boehner! This country has had it with the both of your ugly narcissistic faces..........you make me want to puke

I cant add anything educational because the base of this argument is far from educated, far from the needs of the many, but really only to serve these two wimps pissing contest. I AM PISSED OFF

This is so funny, after Republicans stood by and let GWB destroy our economy now they want to Cut spending in Washington !!!

We wouldn't be in this mess if we had automatic spending cuts when Jr. was in office, but it was OK in the GOP good old days, this is hilarious !!!

seaskip, so are you asking PBO to be Bush?

"Yelling, crying, cursing, ranting are not the way to get things done. Compromise is the key to managing a divided government. So, Mr. Boehner, knock off the hysterics and do what the American people want...work with the President to make our country better.

Your Party presented it's best candidates, with the Party's ideals strictly adhered to, and they lost. Clearly, the country rejects your ideals. Get to work with the elected leader of our country. You are not the leader, Cantor is not leader, the Tea Party is not the leader. GET TO WORKING with our elected leader."

YOU ARE 100% ABSOLUTELY WRONG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Just because he is the elected leader of our country means nothing as far as compromise. There is still a fundamental disagreement between ideals of the Left and the Right.

Liberals just do not seem to grasp that concept.....Just because your guy won doesn't mean we are going to jump on your ship and sing "Koombaya"!

TO: DickCranium who wrote:

"...There was an election last November and here's how it went:

Obama won the presidency because he won the majority of the state electorates

The Republicans won the House because they won a majority of the congressional districts

The Radical Left Wing Liberal/Progressive Wack Jobs would have you believe that since Obama won the presidency he gets to make all the decisions. Not so. I would tend to think that the House is a much better representation of the voting public than the Presidency..."

I would agree that majority rules in this country, the rest of your post is B.S.

Sequester was Obama's idea......eat it ya donkey...........

Can't bully conservatives. King George of England tried to. Where did that get him. LOL

I blame YOU LIBERALS for voting in idiots, but then again, it takes one to know one. :-P

You get what you voted for. You can't keep spending, spending, spending.........

American Girl, you do realize that majority doesn't rule in this country.

If they did only the majority race would rule, or religion, or sexual preference, or up until just a few short years ago abortion. So please educate yourself, PLEASE!

We have a system were the Majority can't stomp on the Minority.

Want to save this country money? Simple. Food stamps, GONE. Welfare, GONE . Free medical for those that haven't paid into it, GONE. When people are forced to get a job and support themselves, if not then they fall to the side and are run over by those that actually try to make a difference. It's called survival of the fitest. You can think that sounds wrong to "run over the poor", but i'm tired of paying 35% of what I make to support those that want to sit on thier asses and spend all day posting on MSNBC "news". Then and only then will we stop hemmoraging money.

@HowStupidAreYou

THANK YOU!!! My kid's school deserves my tax money. Not a lazy fool who knows how to use the system.....

Hey liberals, you pay the taxes, not me and mine.

The Republicans blame the Democrats for everything that's wrong with the world. The Democrats blame the Republicans for everything that's wrong with the world. It's a perpetual stalemate with emphasis on the stale. I don't even need to read tha article, I'm sure it's more of the same 'ol BS.

Nah Tom, AG is too busy spouting the party line to make any real sense.

She's JALD (just another liberal drone) buuzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz ...

ICE officials have said they plan to release a total of nearly 10,000 illegal immigrants

KingK,

Senator Sessions asked the office to estimate what would happen if the cost containment provisions and reductions in Medicare payments to providers — are “phased out over time” while the coverage provisions remain.

A Congressional source said that including Affordable Care Act’s cost containment provisions in the analysis could generate more than $13 trillion in deficit reduction over that same 75-year period.

FAIL !!

If Bonerhead was smart he would cut all the waste in the budget starting with the Tea Movement and we will have more than enough to run the Government, but we have a problem with that - Bonerhead is not smart, hes Dumber than a box of rocks and this is why the house is all screwed up !!!

"rapid cuts without new revenues will still inflict "pain" on the national economy."

When has there been enough tax increases for BO, I guess never!!

2013 Tax Changes INCREASES Individual’s income more than $400,000. The marginal tax
rate rose from 35% to 39.6%. Married couples income more than $450,000. The marginal
tax rate rose from 35% to 39.6%.

The tax rate on capital gains and dividends moved from
15% to 20%.

Limits on itemized deductions were reinstated for households and individuals with income over $300,000 and $250,000, respectively.

The payroll tax withholding for Social Security by 2 percentage points on income up to $113,700 rose from $110,000, so all workers paying that tax face some loss of disposable income.

Other 2013 tax changes have been implemented as a result of the Bo-Dumbo-Care Act. They include:

The Medicare hospital tax increased by 0.9% on wages over $250,000 (for a
household) or $200,000 (for an individual).

A new 3.8% tax on investment income (including interest, dividends, royalties, rents and capital gains) also impacts households and individuals with incomes over $250,000 and $200,000, respectively.

The medical expense tax-deduction threshold changed from 7.5% to 10%, meaning those who spend 10% or more of their gross income on medical expenses can claim the amount as a tax deduction. Those turning 65 within the next four years can use the 7.5% threshold through 2017.

Hey!! Bo-Dumbo when is enough enough??

It's called survival of the fitest. You can think that sounds wrong to "run over the poor", but i'm tired of paying 35% of what I make to support those that want to sit on thier asses and spend all day posting on MSNBC "news".

So, apparently, you are one of those who is "sitting on his ass spending all day posting on MSNBC! And if it's "survival of the fitest (sic)", you apparently see life as an episode of Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom. AFAIC survival of the fittest applies mainly to animals...as in antelope being food for lions, etc. Applied to people it's a form of genocide. I'm disabled, on Social Security and Medicare, but I paid into it for many years. So now that I'm using it, I should just die...survival of the fittest, right? Because I'm not in very good health...I'm not "fit". In your mind I probably should simply die, because it would make your life easier...right? That's a likely belief of yours, because SS and Medicare are "entitlements", even though I've paid into them...right?

The GOP just doesn't get it. They are doing nothing except trying to place the blame on the Democrats, whether it be in the Senate or on the President. They can't get it through their granite skulls that those they represent, the American people, do not agree with them!

http://www.politico.com/story/2013/02/sequestration-poll-republicans-to-be-blamed-most-87914.html

The poll says, 31% of the public would blame Obama (and by association the Democrats), 49% would blame the Congressional GOP, with 11% blaming both.. So who is the GOP listening to? It's certainly not their constituents, unless they believe that the unaccounted for 9% are entirely on their side and are just not talking (yeah, that'll be the day).

Someone needs to ask the GOP: who are you representing???

@ Dennis, Columbus, Ohio and all the other Odumbo supporters:

You're guy wanted this, it was his doing, so suck it up!! Let the minuscule cuts begin!!!

Dennis

Apparently you FAILED to read the entire post, so here is the part you glossed over.

However, the GAO report concluded that even under these “more optimistic assumptions,” Obamacare’s cost-control provisions “were not sufficient to prevent an unsustainable increase in debt held by the public.”

Larry,

There is no suggestion of going back. We can't go back. I do suggest the possibility of Conservatives and Liberals with extraordinary amounts of spendable income loosening their purse strings a little more. I also suggest that Liberals who aren't as "well off" retool on their rhetoric when demanding the entire pie. In my opinion, when you take risks to earn the money and are successful with the endeavour your earn the right to keep as much as you can. Many of you that demand more have never taken the risk to create more. You ride the coattails of someone else's dreams and accomplishments. That's the difference between being an owner and being an employee. Take the risk of failure with the stress that goes along with risk taking and you may sing a different rant. Your President has never taken that type of risk in his career. However, he has cut deals with the opposition and has reneged on those deals he personally cut. No one likes to be made a fool or be lied to when a deal has been cut and that is why there are sour grapes with Republicans and Obama. The question is not $85 billion/year. The question is really about the integrity of a President when he goes back on his word and why anyone should do business with him again. The President is the catalyst in this process and has significantly contributed to the distrust.

Why do I even wastes my time on this I don't know.

The problem is that the government is way out of control. It spends way more than it takes in. There is way too much of giving money to foreign governments. There is way too many people that want to just take from the government and never give back. There is too much blame saying it is not my fault (it is those dang rich people). EVERYONE (rich or poor) needs to look inside themselves and ask if we can give more if you are giving or take less if you are taking. After all if we cannot balance the budget eventually we are all stealing from future generations. What brave people we are that we cannot live within our means.

I am now on Boners side. Too many Dems controlling Calif, Not giving the country over to their rule

Dennis

and this too

the baseline scenario is far more optimistic, largely because it does not take into account the concerns — expressed by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Trustees, and Medicare’s chief actuary — about “whether certain cost-containment mechanisms included in PPACA can be sustained over the long term.”

Just to inform everyone there is no budget cut, there will still be an increase in government spending compared to the previous year across the board.

Well, then since tax rates are going back to the same as those in 1996, can we say there really wasn't a tax increase?

KingK,

The report conclusions were only based on what Sessions asked them to consider. That is how the CBO does its analysis. They do not include anything out side the guidlines.

Clearly you cannot understand what Sen. Sessions requested the conditions be for their analysis.

“I'll show you politics in America. Here it is, right here. 'I think the puppet on the right shares my beliefs.' 'I think the puppet on the left is more to my liking.' 'Hey, wait a minute, there's one guy holding out both puppets!'”

- Bill Hicks

Over 90% of the posters here appear to me to be sheep. For them it's all about RepubliBlood vs DemoCrip...one type of statist gang vs the other. One likes torture, war, and using laws (opinions with guns) to enforce some faux morality their parents brainwashed them with (instead of one they used reason and logic to come to on their own - God forbid they think for themselves and question authority). The other likes extortion (tax) rackets used against their more successful neighors to pay for everything out of jealousy. The right hates social freedom, the left hates economic freedom. Inconsistent fools, the lot of them.

Both groups are so busy blaming each other they don't take a step back and notice all the fault is on themselves for supporting a system of false choices and a false paradigm (left vs right, neocon vs lib/prog, Demo vs Repub).

You act like 2 children who broke a window playing baseball. One pitched, the other hit the ball. Instead of blaming yourselves and working out how to fix the window, you scream at each other, blaming each other; one suggesting we ban pitching so prevent the problem from coming up ever again, the other suggesting we tax batters one strike before they ever come to the plate to make it less likely to occur. Meanwhile the answer is self blame and not playing baseball near windows anymore.

All a bunch of fools. Freedom is ALWAYS the answer when no one is being directly harmed or defrauded.

Cut the drug war, cut the foreign occupations and interference in foreign elections, cut foreign "aid" (bribery), cut massively abused systems of dependence like disability and welfare (I know more than a half dozen people who get full disability for being "crazy", yet they aren't crazy at all and are allowed to walk around everyday in my area, and more people than that who are drug ADDICTS and are using welfare to avoid work), cut salaries of government employees who underperform but are overpaid when compared to their private sector counterparts (Chicago teachers, for a start), cut the war on prostitution, cut, cut, cut...

....because every dime of spending is funded via extortion (tax).

You brainwashed nationalists (NOT the same as "patriots") have convinced yourselves extortion is wrong, EXCEPT when the state does it. Here's a clue: anyone who extorts you is a mafia. Market demanded services do not cease to exist when the state no longer coercively monopolizes them. If you don't understand that, look up how many people starved to death in the USSR when the state coercively monopolized food production and distribution...and then see how many DIDN'T starve when the state allowed the markets to handle that service.

Coercive monopolies lead to three predictable outcomes: higher costs, lower quality services, and low or no accountability for the coercive monopolizer. You cannot cry about waste and inefficiency in a coercive monopoly unless you intend to end that monopoly!

The side that decries "unfairness" thinks more extortion is "fair". The side that decries "evil socialism" loves socialized roads, fire and police services, and defense services. Here's a fact: YOU'RE ALL IN FAVOR OF UNFAIRNESS AND SOCIALISM.

It's just a matter of degree.

Stop -

If you spend 2K a month, but this year were thinking of raising it to 2100.

But you have now been forced to cut 8% of that $100, so instead of spending 2100, you only get to spend $2,092.

Is that a cut or a reduction to the growth of your spending?

To answer your question, did Income taxes go up? then it is a increase.

Now if you are talking about the SS tax holiday expiring, I think you are correct, those were not tax increases because the Holiday expired and were scheduled to return to the former rate. If they would have passed a law to increase the tax, well then hopefully you get the picture.

Sequester another great Obama idea.wow what a leader our president is?

TO: ProBusiness who wrote:

"... Tax Revenue in 2012 down only 3.9% from the HIGHEST Tax Revenue in history (2007) but yet Government Spending increased 39.1% between 2007 and 2012?"

And you have absolutely NO idea why that is, and you can't come to terms with it.

Hint hint...

(George "Curveball" Bush's "Lie called the War in Iraq", Afghanistan, and the Republican Collapse of the entire United States Economy and Republicans bankrupting the American People)

Remember? Oh right, you have no recollection of any of these events. [Scheesh!]

Since nobody on this site will reach down and grab a pair and say it I will. Obama is a punk! No leadership at all, blame and rhetoric, what a coward, lead the country that is why you were elected! If I keep listening to him I may as well kiss my loved ones goodbye because we are all doomed if the Sequester takes place. Is that what passes for leadership in America where we innovate,create,have big ideas and huge accomplishments? This clown needs to go, the rest of us who live in reality where solutions trump sloth and inaction will perservere without his kind.

TO: mj899 who wrote:

'I am now on Boners side. Too many Dems controlling Calif, Not giving the country over to their rule."

Boners? lol

There is no one else but Dems to control California because everytime we put a Republican in office we'd catch their hand in the cookie jar, and if you're waiting for California to "give the courtry over" to Republicans, you may as well buy a jacket and wait for hell to freeze over.

American Girl, good to see the dems didn't have anything to do with War in Iraq, Afghanistan, and the Collapse of the entire United States Economy and bankrupting the American People.

Thank you I feel so much better now. I would think when the Dems finally take complete control of the House and Senate and the day we finally get a Dem President elected things start turning around.

Oh wait 06 and 08 already happened, forget it you won't understand anyway, you still think America is run by majority rule.

Now if you are talking about the SS tax holiday expiring, I think you are correct, those were not tax increases because the Holiday expired and were scheduled to return to the former rate. If they would have passed a law to increase the tax, well then hopefully you get the picture.

Well, that's exactly what the Bush tax cuts were.....set to expire. So stop calling the ending of the Bush tax cuts as tax increases.....

BTW, the reason they were set to expire? Because they blew up the budget in later years....so much for tax cuts paying for themselves.

Funny..... Barry never "campaigned" when he was in the back room brewing up ObamaCare......

He got all of his hatchet men together & they forced a bill through the Congress....

TO: Tom - Plymouth-3672298 who wrote:

"American Girl, good to see the dems didn't have anything to do with War in Iraq, Afghanistan, and the Collapse of the entire United States Economy and bankrupting the American People...you won't understand anyway, you still think America is run by majority rule."

So who do you think runs the country, "the hidden hand"? Illuminatti? Cosa Nostra?

And BTW, lying to Congress and the American People doesn't qualify as "getting their support".

That's probably why George "Curveball" Bush ended up being the most hated president in recent history, because he lied to everybody in order to get what he wanted for himself and his family, including a bit of revenge for his father (not against Saddam, revenge against Bill Clinton for beating Bush, Sr. in 92).

To all of the Die Hard Obama backers....YOU ARE BEGGING FOR MORE TAXES...PLEASE STOP!!! I make less than $30,000 a year and am taxed to much already. Some people here say that the quote "cuts" will hurt the economy. THERE ARE NO CUTS!!! There are only cutting projected increases. That means they are still spending AT LEAST as much as they are already. That by definition is not a CUT. It boggles my mind how some people can think that TAKING AWAY MONEY FROM THE PEOPLE IN THE FORM OF TAXES is going to help the economy. NEWS FLASH: THE PEOPLE ARE THE ECONOMY! MORE TAXES HURT YOU! You got what you wanted with healthcare. I still don't have it and now I get more TAXES added to my plate. You got what you wanted with the debt ceiling. I got more taxes added to my plate. Please for the love of the flying spaghetti monster, PLEASE STOP BEGGING OBAMA FOR MORE TAXES.

Sincerely,

A Libertarian Republican who is tired of paying too much @!$%#ING TAX!

@ DG_W

Apparently you only read the part of what I said that you wanted to pick apart. IF you had read the entire thing, I said nothing about SS. As far as the healthcare, I was referring to that, waste of tax payers dollars, thing called Obamacare. I have ZERO problem with those on SS and medicare that ACTUALLY paid into it. Next time, pick the whole thing apart, and not just a part of the sum.

@TK

To all of the Die Hard Obama backers....YOU ARE BEGGING FOR MORE TAXES...PLEASE STOP!!!

The Die Hard supporters arent' worried about more taxes since they don't work or pay taxes now, why should they care if we have to pay more.

Stop, but the Bush tax cuts weren't allowed to expire, remember?

There was a new law passed were one group had no increase to their federal income tax, and another group that had an increase to their federal income tax.

Yes it may be semantics, but my federal income tax didn't increase this year, while my uncles did.

If they all would have been allowed to expire I would agree they weren't tax increases because they were allowed to expire. Again I know it is semantics, and really won't argue with you on this because I see your point, just explaining how I see it.

TO: Steve-446003 who wrote:

"Funny..... Barry never "campaigned" when he was in the back room brewing up ObamaCare...

He got all of his hatchet men together & they forced a bill through the Congress..."

Ok, which was it, either you didn't live here on this planet at the time; or you don't "remember"?

As for President Obama "forcing a bill through Congress", that's the way, ah ha ah ha, we like it, ah ha ah ha.

The President is continuing on his nauseating ride. I am starting to wonder, does he know anything about running the economy? We are into the fifth year of his presidential journey and still have no answer to our economic wows. One thing’s for sure though, he is a professional spender, that he has confirmed time after time.

Revenue raising while continuing on his “spend” drive will take us nowhere. Scaring people about the consequences of cutting expenditure is also ill founded. So is the sequester line about the country being “less safe”, "We’ll do the best that we can to minimize the harm that actually occurs as result of the sequestration, but the reality is there is going to be harm. There is going to be pain," Etc etc.

Just imagine the “pain” we will suffer continuing on our current path, Eric Holder!! We are already in deep, you know what, without spending a penny more!!

Balancing the budget and bringing it into black would be a good start to the healing process.

We have had enough of BS, it’s time for action!!

Using my best Beavis voice from Beavis and Butthead........

"Hey Butthead Obama said budget again.....huhhuhhuhhuh"

Obama: 'You Can't Do Things By Yourself'
2:36 PM, FEB 26, 2013 • BY DANIEL HALPER

"You know, the one thing about being president is, after four years, you get pretty humble. You'd think maybe you wouldn't but actually you become more humble--you realize what you don't know," Obama said.

"You realize all the mistakes you made. But you also realize you can't do things by yourself. That's not how our system works. You've got to have the help and the goodwill of Congress, and what that means is you've got to make sure that constituents of members of Congress are putting some pressure on them, making sure they're doing the right thing."

Funny guy that Obama. He admits he is making mistakes, but is still insisting on trying to get people to support him in compounding his mistakes. Perhaps, Mr. Obama, it is time for you to stop insisting on your way or the highway, under the guise of compromise, and start engaging in real compromise. You got your tax increases now live up to the fact that the compromise includes making spending cuts (and not just slight decreases in the rate of increase in deficit spending. Mr. Obama, you don't have to keep trying to go it alone anymore. Compromise with Congress and live up to those campaign promises you have failed to keep.

Yes, some people also have ideas that work, try listening to them and you might come to find out that you know even less than you thought you knew.Your just one man. Others have been elected to office to help govern the country too.

American Girl

"And BTW, lying to Congress and the American People doesn't qualify as "getting their support"."

You mean like PBO lied about Obamacare? Remember any of those lies? probably not huh?

What was the cos when it was passed? What was the latest CBO numbers?

What was that about keeping your plan and doctor?

Sorry, totally forgot you don't hold people to the same standard. Based on reading your comments, if your husband is a Liberal Dem it would be OK for him to sleep around on you, but if your friends husband isn't a Liberal Dem it wouldn't be OK.

Funny how many want to continue spending more than we take in, thinking that there is NO spending issue in the Federal Gvt. Why, becasue we do not want end entitlement???? We want to take more fromthe rich?

I like thee idea of closing tax loopholes, but why not end all deductions and lower the tax rates for all?? The answer to this question is GREED. Too many "want their cake" and want you to "keep your hand off their stash" while they point to everyone else to get money from. The other reason is that both party want to have money from lobbiest to line their pockets (Obama stated he want to change this, the joke has been on the American people- the only change is that different industry are getting tax breaks, green vs. oil, GE vs. Chevron).

All this discussion over a small % cuts is crazy!!!!!!!!!!! Also the propaganda on what will happen is lies at its best, thank POTUS.

So, comment and enjoy the sideshow and all the blah, blah, blah on MSNBC and FOX.

Have a good week ;o)

Simply put...The night President Obama took office the first time ...republicons pledged to vote and obstruct every bill that would make President Obama look good for the next election....pledged to VOTE AGAINST America.....

Republicons have not revoked that pledge.......so republicons are still obstructing and voting against America.....because they simply pledged their allegiance to the rich1%.....Norquist.... instead of America.

The obama legacy - 8 years of pain for America...

You got your revenue increase, &^%$#@) Now it's time to cut spending!

I guess I happen to agree with the Republican who is being a traitor to his party, ala Chris Christie. I support closing these so-called tax loopholes, if someone can show me what they are. But, I am firmly against raising taxes during a recession, like Obama has already done even though he promised to the contrary.

@ DG_W

Apparently you only read the part of what I said that you wanted to pick apart. IF you had read the entire thing, I said nothing about SS. As far as the healthcare, I was referring to that, waste of tax payers dollars, thing called Obamacare

So, Medicare is not part of "healthcare"? I've needed some pretty extensive surgeries in my day, when I had been on Medicare for about two years; my entire (dissected) aorta needed to be reinforced with Dacron tubing, two surgeries totalling 20 hours at who knows what cost. There's no way I paid that much into Medicare...should they have just stopped the surgery when I reached my dollar limit of what I'd paid in?

As to what the cost of "Obamacare" will be, it kind of depends on who you believe. Obviously, you're on the GOP leaning side, while a significant number of people are on the other side. Back to the subject of the sequester...more people side with the Democrats than the Republicans...just like in the election:

http://www.politico.com/story/2013/02/sequestration-poll-republicans-to-be-blamed-most-87914.html

Unless you subscribe to Mitt Romney's pollsters...

DW, according to the CBO the initial cost has tripled.

Do you think the current medicare system is sustainable?

Mr. President we just gave you two huge tax increases, one through your seriously flawed Health Care Act, and the tax increases on most Americans in the last budget go round. So now we demand you show us the ability to manage what you have first by trimming the national budget before we give you a penny more.

Signed concerned citizens of America.

Next

Whats your Point Dirtbag? Obama started each and everone of them, as he tries to grab more power, and will Fail..

If a trillion is a thousand billions then 85 billion is less than .0005% of the yearly budget which exceeds 2.7 trillion. Lets get serious here people and Mr. President. Given the actual amount of the proposed spending this is an insult along with all the other lies being circulated.

Time to show us a balanced budget Mr. President not one that keeps spending at ever increasing levels.

Did anybody else read John Kerry's quote today? In America "you have a right to be stupid if you want to be."

So our Gov't is actually endorsing stupidity in America. Of course that's what the Dems would preach, as that's what got them elected in the first place... and that's what grows dependence on big gov't.

However, what the libtards fail to recognize is that if somebody CHOOSES to be stupid in America, they SHOULDN'T have the right to expect to be taken care of by everybody else's taxes.

Notsosure10 - Word! In two years Obamacare will be tagging me for a cool $1000 a year in taxes...and I still can't afford insurance.

American Girl

We pre-paid for our Social Security and Medicare, and anybody who can't respect that needs to keep their hands off of our retirement money, especially thieving Republicans.

No wonder this country is so deeply in trouble. If this is what you believe you need to go back to school. SS is a pay as you go system. The current workers pay for those on SS. That is the way the ponzi scheme has worked since day one. To keep the system running as it has in the past we need to either triple or quadruple the the tax on SS or bring in a mire 800 million or more workers.

If you are still working you don't have an account with money with the SS having your name on it. It is just an IOU saying that we will pay you if we have the money.

Really now by the time the Baby Boomers get done with SS there will not be anything left.

Dream on baby.

So freaking true, seaskip. The Republican's COUNT on the ignorance of their own followers. I call them followers because they seem more like religious zealots than they do regular Americans.

If there are ANY thinking Republicans still out there.....I behest you. Toss out the koolaid packs. You have had enough already!

"On the Road Again." Now there's a great headline and it says it all.

Obama's Chief of Staff, Jack Lew, proposed the sequester. Then after the GOP House and Democrat Senate passed it, Obama signed it into law.

Now, per Obama, the sky is falling over sequestration. And instead of proposing alternative cuts to the 1.2 trillion meat axe, Obama is proposing to raise revenue. Since he knows that this bait and switch, reneging on CUTS, is a non-starter, the only reasonable conclusion is that he is perfectly OK with the sequestration and just wants another issue.

It's a damned shame he isn't 10% as good a manager as he is a campaigner. So, right, it's on the road again for this one trick pony, riding from one cliff to another like a rodeo clown.

What is wrong with you people?!? Obama comes from the most corrupt City, County and State in the union. This state is $86 billion behind on pension payments alone! Why on God's green earth do you think he and his staff have the first clue how to deal with a budget problem? Obama has never held a private job or run a business where he had to meet payroll, rent or anything else to keep the doors open. He has only sucked off of the public tit, gets money only from the force of the United States Government. Cutting the rate of increase not into the actual amount they spend will not hurt this country one bit. The best thing that can happen to us, the tax paying citizen's of the US, is the sequester to go through on Friday!

Get a clue people!! Do not blindly support these morons, any of them! The more budget cuts and tax cuts there are, the better for all of us and our children and grand children!

Best thing that this divided USA country is doing for me is making me more rich. The more people fight agmonst each other in this country and less policies that improve it economically makes investors that buy low and sell high winners.

Perfect example, most stocks are held by individuals, 401K, pensions, etc (75-80%) so when the insecurity hits the selling begins and stocks can go down by 25-30% best investing money can buy. The rich actually only own 25% of the stocks in the market.

So as a foreign investor, please please please USA don't solve anything, because I can make more money off your market. And guess what all my profits are tax free as the US gov't must refund my country of origin for all taxes paid in the USA if claimed in my country at a lower tax rate.

I'm very happy that people don't see the downfall of your social values and standard of living, but hey mine will be just fine.

TO: commonsense53 who wrote:

"American Girl

[We pre-paid for our Social Security and Medicare, and anybody who can't respect that needs to keep their hands off of our retirement money, especially thieving Republicans.]

"No wonder this country is so deeply in trouble. If this is what you believe you need to go back to school..."

I have the paystubs to prove it, AND I get an annual Report from the Social Security Administration that shows how much money I made, how much of my money was paid into my Social Security, how much money I'm due to receive upon my retirement, and how much money I would get if I were to become permanently disabled and/or unable to work.

It also has my name on the account, my social security number, my address, etc.

So you can go blow that smoke up someone else's a$$.

TO: hockeydad43 who wrote:

"What is wrong with you people?!? Obama comes from the most corrupt City, County and State in the union..."

Hawaii?

TO: Cincinnati Rick who wrote:

"...after the GOP House and Democrat Senate passed it [sequestration], Obama signed it into law. [] Now ... Obama ... [should] propos[e] alternative cuts to the 1.2 trillion meat axe..."

Have you forgotten about the Teabaggers, or do you just choose not to think of them?

Republicans sent Teabaggers to the House for the specific purpose of creating "gridlock" and so far that's about all the Teabaggers have done, besides collecting their paychecks and enjoying their "cadillac" health plans paid for by the very people the Teabaggers are working so hard to prevent from enjoying the same things we provide for them.

Was it not Mr Obama whosaid he would veto any attempt to avoid sequestration?

Harry Reid will not bring the House bills up for a vote ( I would call that obstruction ). The democrats not going to vote on anything they don't 100% agree with, but claim the republicans will not compromise. Mr Obama goes out and repeats his claim that the house is going to cause horrifying damage to services and the economic recovery.

Less than one cent of every dollar spent is to be cut. We are a tough and resourceful people, we will do fine. If you A) believe everything that Mr Obama says is irrefutable truth, and/or B) that without the government you will die, then the politicians have you right where they want you.

Be aware that the next crisis is just weeks away with the continuing resolution and pending government shutdown.

TO: Derek-3698296 who wrote:

"I guess I happen to agree with the Republican who is being a traitor to his party, ala Chris Christie. I support closing these so-called tax loopholes, if someone can show me what they are. But, I am firmly against raising taxes during a recession, like Obama has already done even though he promised to the contrary."

I was almost with you all the way there for a minute, until it came to part where President Obama raised taxes on annual incomes over $450,000.

Derek, to some folks in certain income brackets, there is no "recession" because they have plenty enough money. Plenty.

American Girl-724855 & commonsense53

I think you are both right and wrong. The SS system was created by the FDR admin during the depression to raise the elderly above the poverty level. Because they were not working it would have been impossible to tax their income to pay them SS. So they taxed current workers to pay for the elderly. But I think at one point the debt incurred by those paying outpaced costs and it could be viewed that you were actually paying for your own retirement. AG the statement you receive is simply a reference of contribution and that contribution determines payments, but those payments will have to be paid by those working in the future because the trust fund was misappropriated. AG also, most people who are retiring this year making eighty thousand have contributed around $114,000 to Medicare and will over their lifetime will use over $300,000 because of the rising cost of health care, so unless you have put in extra, you can't have paid for every thing you will use.

SS is not an IRA when politicians can play with it.

Why is the government answer always more revenue and more spending? Am I really supposed to believe a bunch of people who have never earned a dime in their entire lives? How about we pass a law that all Presidents, Congressmen, and Supreme Court Judges have to spend at least 5 years in the public sector before they can be eligible to hold office, and they have to do something besides working at a law firm or an honorary position on a company board where they don't really do anything, they need to work with their hands and struggle to get by then they might know why raising taxes isn't always the answer.

The House has passed a budget. The Senate has NOT passed a budget. There can't be a budget until the Senate passes one so that both budgets can go into reconciliation.

I would suggest that all you stup!d liberals look up how the budget process actually works for the United States. The GOP and the House of Representatives HAVE done their job....they are not holding anything up. Nothing. The entire country is waiting on the Senate to pass a budget...that would be HARRY REID who is f'ck'g up the show, not Boehner. Both the House and the Senate MUST pass their respective budget proposals so that they can be combined into a single budget proposal to present to the President to sign.

The Senate Democrats won't approve Obama's own budget proposals nor will they approve any of their own budget proposals....so Boehner is absolutely correct in saying that the Senate Democrats need to get off the asss and do something.

Feisty -- how quickly you forget that the Democrats controlled BOTH Houses of Congress for O'Bama's 1st disasterous 4 years. Voters kicked the Democrats out of the House and gave the majority to the Republicans and a larger number of Republicans were voted in at the Senate. The reason that happened is because O'Bama for the 1st term was a total failure as President and he continues to be a total failure as President. The Democrats haven't completed a Budget for 6 years, but they have more that doubled the Entitlement Programs for the Welfare deadbeats and overall spending. O'Bama, with the support of this Welfare and general deadbeats, got elected for another 4 disastrous years. He basically paid for his election by making the U.S. a Welfare country. People voted for O'Bama because people were afraid of loosing the Federal Welfare checks. O'Bama and his Socialist Dictatorial Administration is destroying the U.S. for Legal U.S. Citizens. He uses fear and scare tactics to tell people the Republicans won't compromise and guve him what he wants, O'Bama lies and can't be trusted. He will be removed from office before he completes the next 4 years. He has started a Revolution, and that Revolution is coming for O'Bama.

Shysters" after reading all these I can't tell if we're still cleaning up after Bush or starting an Obama clean up..Either way I hate them both they're non American in my book

O'Bama created the Sequester Cuts, and it was passed with the FULL SUPPORT of Democrats and Republicans. As usual, O'Bama has never taken responsibility for his failures, he blames everyone else for his total failure as President. His constant mantra of "the Republicans refuse to compromise and give me what I want. O'Bama is using Scare and Fear tactics attack the most vulnerable (Kids & Aging citizens) to get his way. Like a bully on the playground, give what I want and I will leave you alone. The cuts in Sequester are less then 2.5% of the Federal Budget, yet O'Bama like to tell people that Defense will loose $850 billion dollars in the 1st year that is a bold face lie!! All Federal Agencies combined will loose $850 billion in the 1st year. Most Federal Agencies have already taken measures to absorb their cuts, but the Defense Dept is still crying. The DOD can no longer buy $500 hammers, and they may have to cut 1 plane and 1 tank to meet their goal. O'Bama is telling people that thousands of teachers, fire fighters and policement will loose their jobs. That's just another O'Bama lie. Wo is paying the salary of those teachers that are not in the classroom but as a backdrop for O'Bama - who is paying the Policemen that should be on the street fighting crime and protecting citizens instead of being a backdrop for O'Bama -- who is the firefighters who should be fighting fires and protecting citizens when they are being used as a backdrop for O'Bama. True some Federal Employees will have to take furlough days, so what. Employees in every State, both Public and Private, have had to take furlough days. Federal Employees are among the highest paid and Gold Plated Retirement Benefits, they should reduce the Federal workforce. Story, I did an Estate that involved cashing a number of Savings Bonds. I got an extra bonus of $100 for Direct Deposit because the explanation that it cost more than $100 to issue a paper check. Why does it cost MORE than $100 for highly paid Federal Employees to have a computer print a Paper Check? The Federal Workforce needs reduced and now it the time to cut the waste.

OK, ALL YOU LIBERALS AND PROGRESSIVES, THIS IS FOR YOU!!!!!!!!

In FY 2011, the federal government reported $115 billion in improper payments. This is only an estimate; the total amount of improper payments is unknown. Our own government doesn't know how much it actually overspends. I bet you know when you overspend, don't you?

http://oversight.house.gov/hearing/solutions-needed-improper-payments-total-115-billion-in-federal-misspending/

The Congressional Budget Office published a “Budget Options” series identifying more than $140 billion in potential spending cuts.

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) regularly issues a compendium of budget options to help inform federal lawmakers about the implications of possible policy choices. This volume—one of several reports that CBO produces regularly for the House and Senate Committees on the Budget—presents more than 100 options for altering federal spending and revenues. Nearly all of the options would reduce federal budget deficits.

Federal budget deficits will total $7 trillion over the next decade if current laws remain unchanged, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projects.

http://www.cbo.gov/sites/default/files/cbofiles/ftpdocs/120xx/doc12085/03-10-reducingthedeficit.pdf

Washington spends $25 billion annually maintaining unused or vacant federal properties.

http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2009/10/50-examples-of-government-waste#_edn3

Examples from multiple Government Accountability Office (GAO) reports of wasteful duplication include 342 economic development programs; 130 programs serving the disabled; 130 programs serving at-risk youth; 90 early childhood development programs; 75 programs funding international education, cultural, and training exchange activities; and 72 safe water programs. This report identifies more than $100 billion to $200 billion in annual government spending on 1,500 different programs that are wasteful, duplicative, or inefficient.

http://www.gao.gov/assets/590/588818.pdf

A recent study by the Institute of Medicine shows health care fraud is estimated to cost taxpayers more than $750 billion annually. The committee calculated that about 30 percent of health spending was wasted on unnecessary services, excessive administrative costs, fraud, and other problems.

http://www8.nationalacademies.org/onpinews/newsitem.aspx?RecordID=13444

Now this is my favorite!

I’m sure most of you BIG GOVERNMENT loving Libbies will go apoplectic when you read this.

Read it slowly a few times so you truly understand what is being told to you.

Government auditors spent five years examining all federal programs and found that 22 percent of them–costing taxpayers a total of $123 billion annually–fail to show any positive impact on the populations they serve. (emphasis mine)

http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/omb/expectmore/index.html

Now, read it again.

If any of you were so adventurous to go to this link you will see this program was created in 2003 and ended in 2008. Barrack Hussein did not continue this obvious exposure of our governments incompetence.

I wonder why?

Could it be that evidence of this type supports the massive ineffectiveness in our government? Could it be that Barrack Hussein doesn't want you to be exposed to this criminal waste of our hard earned tax dollars?

Of course it is. Even you Libbies should be able to comprehend this much.

Do you understand what it means? Probably not because it ELIMINATES any argument you may have about our criminal government being out of control.

Nearly 25% of your own sacrosanct and worshipped upon social programs DON’T DO ANYTHING FOR THE POPULATIONS THEY ARE INTENDED TO SERVE!!!!!!

Anyone with any common sense can see that we can easily cut these programs and save $123 BILLION ANNUALLY AND NO ONE WILL BE AFFECTED!!!!

Please notice I even provided links so you Libbies don’t think I made these numbers up. I also understand most of you are incapable of researching ANYTHING on your own, you just parrot whatever propaganda Barrack Hussein, Debbie Whatsername Slutz or Gay Carney tell you to.

Also notice that all of these come from reputable sources, YOUR OWN GOVERNEMNT!

Your own government is telling you, and the criminals in our government, where, how much and how to fix much of our massive WASTE, FRAUD, ABUSE AND CORRUPTION!

Yet you, Barrack Hussein, the complicit Liberal lamestream media are catatonic about cutting a mere $85 BILLION dollars from our bloated ineffective and unsustainable government in the sequester.

According to Barrack Hussein Armageddon will descend upon us on Friday.

Poor children, disabled children, ALL THE CHILDREN WILL DIE!!!!!

Schools will shut down! Teachers will be living in the streets! Schools will crumble from lack of maintenance! Police, firefighters and first responders will be powerless! Our borders will be invaded by more illegal’s! Ships won’t ever be built again! Our armed forces will be defenseless! Seniors will be forced to live under bridges and eat dog food! Social Security payments will be stopped. MILLIONS OF AMERICAN’S will lose their jobs! Women will lose their free contraceptives! Gays won’t be allowed to marry! Barrack Hussein and Moochelle may not be able to vacation, golf or be on the Oscars ever again!!!!!!!!

All because of $85 BILLION!!!

OHHHHHHH THE HUMANITY!!!!!!!!!!

The total for the above examples of waste, fraud, abuse and corruption adds up to $1.303 TRILLION ANNUALLY!!!!!

Assuming that half of these may be due to overlap ( a liberal assumption in our overgrown government), this still amounts to $651.5 BILLION ANNUALLY!!!!!

Even if you take HALF of this amount it still amounts to over $325.75 BILLION!!!!

This is $3.2575 TRILLION over 10 years!

But of course no one on the Democratic side can find a paltry $85 Billion, a mere 2.3% of our total unsustainable budget, to cut because YOU DON’T WANT TO!!!! You believe the incessant and irrational fear-mongering that he keeps campaigning on.

When will you demand that Barrack Hussein STOPS campaigning to keep you in squalor and start governing for the good of our great Republic.

You all have your heads so far up Barrack Husseins a$$ that you can see out his mouth. You believe anything this statist tells you because none of you contribute to our nations prosperity. You just want to leach off the successful and ambitious among us who still have some pride, self-esteem and honor.

You have all been so indoctrinated by your dysfunctional parents, peers and educators you no longer have any common sense. Everything you advocate is based on emotions rather than policy. You refuse to accept the fact that government is the problem because that makes YOU THE PROBLEM!!!!

Doesn’t it bother you that Barrack Hussein never tells you that you can be successful? Doesn’t it bother you that the best he promises you is to be middle class? Doesn’t it bother you that the leader of the most prosperous nation in history demands you be satisfied with mediocrity?

Doesn’t it bother you that he makes you insignificant?

It’s so sad for us real Americans to see so many of you submit so easily to his “Bread and Circuses”. His denigration of your ability to be what you want to be rather than what he wants you to be must be so difficult.

Barrack Hussein doesn’t want you to achieve the American Dream, he wants you to feel worthless so he can keep promising you the Shangri-La that no one person can guarantee anyone. This has been going on for decades. Liberals/Progressives keep pouring good money after bad with promises of hope and change, yet you never get there.

Tens of TRILLIONS OF DOLLARS have been spent on our “social wars” against crime, drugs, poverty and illiteracy yet we have more than ever today. That’s because it’s nothing more than an illusion. It’s propaganda to keep you chained to the Liberal/Progressive plantation that is only interested in your vote, not your welfare.

The worst thing is, none of these, or any other facts, will change your mind because you have been so brainwashed into believing that someone else can make you something only you can become by taking more money from those that have succeeded.

Class warfare, envy, self-pity and mediocrity has been so ingrained in you that you feel only some bureaucrat--who never met you, and you never met them—can help you. As he and all his cronies become wealthy, you just cling to the false notion of hope and change.

We real Americans will pray for you, but only you can become what you really are capable of becoming.

God Bless and help America, you may be our only real hope for change.

RevengeofPodus

your party .. your self created problems

And we will watch as, in the next 3 years your self-immolating party finishes it's self off. It's strange indeed to watch the Neoconservatives and Tea Party fighting over the partially exposed, lifeless bones of what was once a prominent political party in this country. Once they have reduced the party to a footnote in history, I wonder if they will go after control of the Libertarian Party? It's a little like a contagious form of cancer. The Libertarians probably shouldn't stand so close to them.

TO: Cincinnati Rick who wrote:

"...after the GOP House and Democrat Senate passed it [sequestration], Obama signed it into law. [] Now ... Obama ... [should] propos[e] alternative cuts to the 1.2 trillion meat axe..."

Have you forgotten about the Teabaggers, or do you just choose not to think of them?

Republicans sent Teabaggers to the House for the specific purpose of creating "gridlock" and so far that's about all the Teabaggers have done, besides collecting their paychecks and enjoying their "cadillac" health plans paid for by the very people the Teabaggers are working so hard to prevent from enjoying the same things we provide for them.

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

Pathetic: You can't deal with the facts so you want to change the subject. FYI, the tea party was there in 2011 and was a party to the sequestration deal, just like the Democrats in the Senate and Obama too. And ALL of them are enjoying the "Cadillac" health plans that you are whining about and ALL of them are equally responsible for the gridlock. If you can complain about the GOP not compromising, where is your complaint about Reid or Obama? Their only version of compromise is "my way or the highway."

The fact is that sequestration was itself a compromise. You can say it was a bad deal but it was a deal. Now Obama is reneging on it with some bait and switch scheme to avoid cuts and replace them with more taxes. If he was sincere he would at least propose CUTS that would do less damage than the meat axe that is about to fall.

Exerp from a Rollcall story dated Feb 26, 2013, 4:13 pm

"Inhofe, the top Republican on the Armed Services Committee, and Toomey, chairman of the conservative Republican Senate Steering Committee, said they are trying to work out a compromise their colleagues can embrace. Toomey said the measure would allow the administration to shift the burden of the cuts among non-defense programs, but would not permit shifting between defense and non-defense accounts. He brushed aside criticism that the result would be more power for President Barack Obama at the expense of the legislative branch.

"We should give the authority to Obama. He doesn't want it," said one senior GOP senator.

But some Republicans question any idea of handing more power to the White House at the expense of congressional appropriators and authorizing committees. Richard C. Shelby of Alabama, the top-ranking Republican on the Senate Appropriations Committee, said he prefers "regular order." And Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire, a member of Budget Committee, said she has doubts about letting Obama tailor cuts as he see fit."

I appears the Republican Party is currently in complete disarray. Of course they can't reach a compromise with the President or Democratic Members of Congress...they can't agree with each other and appear on the brink of blaming each other for failing to reach compromise on Sequestration.

If sequestration isn't killed in the 11th hour the Dems get to cut funding from high profile areas that will hurt the little people the most. It's a great move politically since they can say "We're sorry but it's all the (R)'s fault. They score political points, AND don't have to do any real work, win win unless your a taxpayer or someone on assistance.

American Girl,

When you finally wake up from your Utopian sleep you may find the world has changed. You want things that you "paid for in the past" and you want them to be valued at yesterdays rates. That's unrealistic. When you finally get to cash-in and receive your entitlement benefits, you will find changes. Our perceived value is currently and will be, much greater than the actual trade-in value. It will be the same for all of us. Your medicare benefits will still be there but you won't get nearly as much care. Your SS benefits will still be there but your benefit payments received will be much lower. That's what happens when we print so much faux money and maintain a $17 trillion deficit. You want more bang for your buck? Have the President and Congress cut spending so we pay down the debt and operate with "positive cash flow". Have him stop the feds from printing more money. Be prepared to tighten your belt for the next 15 - 20 years. Many of us won't live to see the end of this but we can contribute to the rebuilding. You can't rebuild when you have no money to rebuild with. We've already spent it foolishly.

Socializing the government won't solve the problem. Russia, China and much of Europe tried that for 60+ years and found out it wasn't a good working model for running a government.

The deficit hawks on this board want to cut spending. This policy is called "austerity". The EU has been forcing governments in Europe to do this for the last 5-6 years.

Here's the result. And don't think they won't do it here if they can. They already have to a degree but, so far, it's much more extreme in Europe. Here's what's happened in Greece.

When Greece became a member of the EU they gave up their currency, the Drachma, which meant they gave up control of their economy to a large degree. That made them like a state in the U.S. as regards their economy/debt, etc.

FEBRUARY 26, 2013

Staring into the Abyss

The Greek Economy is Kaput

by MIKE WHITNEY

“The Greek economy is finished. The Greek economy is in a great, great depression… There is no power, no force within the Greek economy, within Greek society that can avert it….Imagine if we were in Ohio in 1931 and we were to ask: What can Ohio politicians do to get Ohio out of the Great Depression? The answer is nothing.”

- Yanis Varoufakis, Greek economist

After 5 years of negative growth, record-high unemployment and savage cuts to essential safety-net programs, Greek society is beginning to buckle. Diabetics cannot afford their insulin, suicides and anti-depressant usage is off-the-chart, tuberculosis and HIV rates are soaring, and desperate pensioners in Athens have been reduced to dumpster diving outside grocery stores for a few scraps of food to feed themselves and their families. The shocking devolution of a modern nation into a failed state did not happen overnight or without the help of EU bureaucrats and financial potentates who dictate economic policy from Brussels, Frankfort and Berlin. These so-called “managers” have steered the 17-member eurozone into the biggest slump since the Great Depression, imposing belt tightening measures that have choked off growth, sent unemployment skyrocketing, and incited protest and street violence across the continent. Greece has been particularly hard hit. Poverty and destitution are now widespread. The country is a basket case. Here’s more from an article in the Guardian:

“Greece is currently in the centre of a humanitarian crisis…. A large proportion of Greek households currently live in conditions of “material deprivation”. A little more than 11% actually live in “extreme material deprivation”, which means without enough heating, electricity, and use of either a car or a telephone…There has been explosive growth in soup kitchens and general food distribution. … the Church of Greece distributes approximately 250,000 daily rations… By recent government order, municipal rations will be expanded further because of rising incidence of children fainting at school due to low calorie intake.

The evidence of poverty, inequality, and inability to access primary services confirms the increasingly desperate statements by people at the frontline.” (“Greece is facing a humanitarian crisis”, Guardian)

The Guardian concedes that there are political reasons why the crisis has not been adequately covered in the media. “By acknowledging the severity of the situation, the Greek government and the EU would also have admitted that the current state of affairs has been brought about by the so-called economic “rescue” of Greece. So the authorities have chosen to keep quiet.” (Guardian)

Greece has not been rescued nor was that ever the plan. From the beginning, austerity was meant to punish and humiliate, to shrink the state and expropriate anything of value. Still the charade goes on, and the EU stewards continue to claim that their discredited theory is achieving its objectives. Case in point, here’s vice president of the European Commission, Olli Rehn, cheerleading austerity as the antidote to Europe’s debt woes.

“The decisive policy action undertaken recently is paving the way for a return to recovery. We must stay the course of reform and avoid any loss of momentum, which could undermine the turnaround in confidence that is under way, delaying the needed upswing in growth and job creation.”

There is no recovery. The EZ is in the throes of a Depression. Economic fundamentals have been jettisoned to advance the interests of the wealthy overlords who benefit from from the imiseration of working people. Austerity is a sham that has laid much of the south to waste. An increasing number of families are now abandoning their children because they’re no longer able to provide for them. According to Press TV:

“There has been an increase in the number of newborn babies dumped outside clinics and offloaded on charities ….”Families are breaking up, instances are mounting of mothers and fathers no longer being able to bring up their own kids,” General Secretary of the civil servants’ union ADEDY, Ilias Ilioupolis said.” (“Greek crisis ups abandoned kids”, Press TV)…

http://www.counterpunch.org/2013/02/26/the-greek-economy-is-kaput/

ArchStanton,

You're wrong in correlating the U.S. to Greece if we make cuts. The U.S. maintains a healthy 25% of the worlds GDP. We also have assets worth around $100 trillion. Greece has never been in that financial position. That doesn't mean we waste away our financial position. Our spending habits and the relinquishing of our asset position will ultimately destroy our position in the market. However, with good fiscal management we could turn redirect our downward spiraling market position. We cannot maintain our current position in world markets if we continue down the wasteful spending road we have maintained for the last thirty years.

BTW we did have a much stronger market position 30 years ago. Poor fiscal management by weak politicians got us in this mess. Continued poor fiscal management by weak politicians will not solve our problems.

dr821,

I didn't compare Greece to the U.S. I compared them to a state in the U.S.:

From my post: "When Greece became a member of the EU they gave up their currency, the Drachma, which meant they gave up control of their economy to a large degree. That made them like a state in the U.S. as regards their economy/debt, etc...."

dr821 continues: ...Our spending habits and the relinquishing of our asset position will ultimately destroy our position in the market. However, with good fiscal management we could turn redirect our downward spiraling market position. We cannot maintain our current position in world markets if we continue down the wasteful spending road we have maintained for the last thirty years.

BTW we did have a much stronger market position 30 years ago. Poor fiscal management by weak politicians got us in this mess. Continued poor fiscal management by weak politicians will not solve our problems.

dr821,

What you say is contradicted by history and current events: We didn't cut spending to get out of the Great Depression, we spent like we never had before, first on New Deal programs then even more when we entered WWII and the government completely took over the economy. That's when the depression ended.

And even today, Japan has a debt to GDP ratio of 240%, over twice ours and at the same time has an unemployment rate of 4.1%, half ours:

Economist, Dean Baker:

"... The deficit chicken hawks that dominate Washington policy debates are warning us that financial markets will panic if we don't soon get our debt under control, with investors fleeing the dollar and interest rates soaring. Japan's ratio of debt to GDP of 240 percent is more than twice that of the United States, yet the interest rate on long-term government bonds is hovering near 1.0 percent and the government's main concern is that the yen is over valued … "

I think you're wrong about just about everything you said.

ArchStanton

I would like to draw a distinction. There is a huge difference between austerity and balancing a budget.

Austerity is cutting spending to below revenue. That hasn't happened since the 1950's

American Girl,

"After all, people put their money into IRAs just the same as we put our money into Social Security and Medicare. The only difference is, the IRAs probably have more money in them, so let's steal those first."

You are the first progressive honest enough to tell the truth...you think you have a right to steal what others saved for their retirement. If that does not display your inability to comprehend and be honest i don't know what does.

I am going to refresh you memory about how we got to Iraq Okay?

"One way or the other,
we are determined to deny Iraq the capacity to develop weapons of mass
destruction and the missiles to deliver them. That is our bottom line."

--President Bill Clinton, Feb. 4, 1998

"If Saddam rejects peace and we have to use force, our purpose is clear.
We want to seriously diminish the threat posed by Iraq's weapons of mass
destruction program."

--President Bill Clinton, Feb. 17, 1998

"Iraq is a long way from [here], but what happens there matters a great
deal here. For the risks that the leaders of a rogue state will use nuclear,
chemical or biological weapons against us or our allies is the greatest
security threat we face."

--Madeline Albright, Feb 18, 1998

"He will use those weapons of mass destruction again, as he has ten times
since 1983."

--Sandy Berger, Clinton National Security Adviser, Feb, 18, 1998

"[W]e urge you, after consulting with Congress, and consistent with the
U.S. Constitution and laws, to take necessary actions (including, if
appropriate, air and missile strikes on suspect Iraqi sites) to respond
effectively to the threat posed by Iraq's refusal to end its weapons of mass destruction
programs."

Letter to President Clinton, signed by:

-- Democratic Senators Carl Levin, Tom Daschle, John Kerry, and others, Oct.
9, 1998

"Saddam Hussein has been engaged in the development of weapons of mass
destruction technology which is a threat to countries in the region and he has
made a mockery of the weapons inspection process."

-Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D, CA), Dec. 16, 1998

"Hussein has ... chosen to spend his money on building weapons of mass
destruction and palaces for his cronies."

-- Madeline Albright, Clinton Secretary of State, Nov. 10, 1999

"There is no doubt that ... Saddam Hussein has reinvigorated his weapons
programs. Reports indicate that biological, chemical and nuclear programs
continue apace and may be back to pre-Gulf War status. In addition, Saddam
continues to redefine delivery systems and is doubtless using the cover of a
licit missile program to develop longer-range missiles that will threaten the
United States and our allies."

Letter to President Bush, Signed by:

-- Sen. Bob Graham (D, FL), and others, Dec 5, 2001

"We begin with the common belief that Saddam Hussein is a tyrant and a
threat to the peace and stability of the region. He has ignored the mandate of
the United Nations and is building weapons of mass destruction and th! e means
of delivering them."

-- Sen. Carl Levin (D, MI), Sept. 19, 2002

"We know that he has stored secret supplies of biological and chemical
weapons throughout his country."

-- Al Gore, Sept. 23, 2002

"Iraq's search for weapons of mass destruction has proven impossible to
deter and we should assume that it will continue for as long as Saddam is in
power."

-- Al Gore, Sept. 23, 2002

"We have known for many years that Saddam Hussein is seeking and
developing weapons of mass destruction."

-- Sen. Ted Kennedy (D, MA), Sept. 27, 2002

"The last UN weapons inspectors left Iraq in October of 1998. We are
confident that Saddam Hussein retains some stockpiles of chemical and
biological weapons, and that he has since embarked on a crash course to build
up his chemical and biological warfare capabilities. Intelligence reports
indicate that he is seeking nuclear weapons..."

-- Sen. Robert Byrd (D, WV), Oct. 3, 2002

"I will be voting to give the President of the United States the authority
to use force -- if necessary -- to disarm Saddam Hussein because I believe that
a deadly arsenal of weapons of mass destruction in his hands is a real and
grave threat to our security."

-- Sen. John F. Kerry (D, MA), Oct. 9, 2002

"There is unmistakable evidence that Saddam Hussein is working
aggressively to develop nuclear weapons and will likely have nuclear weapons
within the next five years ... We also should remember we have always
underestimated the progress Saddam has made in development of weapons of mass
destruction."

-- Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D, WV), Oct 10, 2002

"He has systematically violated, over the course of the past 11 years,
every significant UN resolution that has demanded that he disarm and destroy
his chemical and biological weapons, and any nuclear capacity. This he has
refused to do"

-- Rep. Henry Waxman (D, CA), Oct. 10, 2002

"In the four years since the inspectors left, intelligence reports show
that Saddam Hussein has worked to rebuild his chemical and biological weapons
stock, his missile delivery capability, and his nuclear program. He has also
given aid, comfort, and sanctuary to terrorists, including al Qaeda members ...
It is clear, however, that if left unchecked, Saddam Hussein will continue to
increase his capacity to wage biological and chemical warfare, and will keep
trying to develop nuclear weapons."

-- Sen. Hillary Clinton (D, NY), Oct 10, 2002

"We are in possession of what I think to be compelling evidence that
Saddam Hussein has, and has had for a number of years, a developing capacity
for the production and storage of weapons of mass destruction."

-- Sen. Bob Graham (D, FL), Dec. 8, 2002

"Without question, we need to disarm Saddam Hussein. He is a brutal,
murderous dictator, leading an oppressive regime ... He presents a particularly
grievous threat because he is so consistently prone to miscalculation ... And
now he is miscalculating America's response to his continued deceit and his
consistent grasp for weapons of mass destruction ... So the threat of Saddam
Hussein with weapons of mass destruction is real..."

-- Sen. John F. Kerry (D, MA), Jan. 23. 2003

You have to read the public comments to realize that President Bush was not even in office when the march to Iraq was started.

Next

ArchStanton,

You're still not operating apples to apples. We did not have the financial position in the world back in the 1930s. It was not the New Deal that got us out of the Depression. It was War. Roosevelt knew that and welcomed it. It put him in a position to raise taxes significantly and spend like there was no tomorrow. That's where tax and spend came from. However, many economists now believe the spending by Roosevelt was not necessary to take us out of a depression it was only a time issue. War helped accelerate the positive changes in the U.S. fiscal position however. Women in the workforce greatly increased the U.S. production and output with a world hungry to rebuild and spend buying U.S. goods. Roosevelt saw all this and positioned us well but he created the black hole with entitlements that we can no longer maintain. 70 years ago we had 5 workers supporting 1 retired. Today we have 3 workers supporting 2 and it's soon to be 2 workers supporting 3. We continue to borrow to maintain our lifestyles because we have several generations that feel they are entitled. That is the spending problem we have. It's not the same scenario as the 1930s. It's worse, because we can't change our production outputs. Even if we could we still have no one to buy the goods in a world market. China's already feeling a saturation point.

The only real paradigm shift is in accumulated wealth. War may be the answer but you risk mankind's existence with nuclear holocaust.

It would be interesting to know the total dollars that Obama has wasted on campaign trips across the country. This is an example of just how much he is concerned about the financial problems facing our nation.

May God help us in removing this failed and ungodly leader that is determined to destroy the future of many generations to come.

dr821:

The debt we have now was not caused by "entitlements" (a loaded term). It came from the recession, which came from the crash in 2008 which was caused by the banks swindling the economy off of a cliff plus 30-40 years of "free-market" economics.

Economist Dean Baker:

While the promotion of budget hysteria is one of the largest industries in Washington, the most important and widely ignored fact about the budget situation is that we have large deficits today because the collapse of the housing bubble sank the economy. This is not a debatable point.

The budget deficit was just 1.2 percent of gross domestic product in 2007. Before the collapse of the housing bubble the deficit was projected to remain low for the next decade and the debt-to-GDP ratio was actually falling. This would have been the case even if the Bush tax cuts were allowed to continue.

When the bubble burst and the economy plummeted, tax collections fell. We also spent more on unemployment insurance and other benefits for unemployed workers...

Obama combines sequester cuts with demagogy

By Andre Damon

27 August 2014

As the deadline approaches for triggering $85 billion in across-the-board budget cuts, the indications are that the White House and congressional Republicans intend to allow the so-called “sequester” to take effect. The crisis over the program of cuts, set to begin on March 1 unless an alternative plan to slash the deficit is reached, is entirely manufactured, the result of previous deals reached by the Obama administration and the Republican leadership.

The impact of these cutbacks will be borne overwhelmingly by working and poor people, with billions slashed from education, anti-poverty programs, health care and other vital services. Once enacted, these cuts will never be fully restored. In effect, a new baseline will have been established for the ongoing onslaught on social programs upon which millions of working people depend.

Behind the stage-managed partisan bickering, there is a tacit consensus between the two parties that the cuts in domestic discretionary spending, estimated to reach $1.2 trillion over the next decade, can be used to create more favorable conditions for bullying the public into accepting immensely unpopular cuts in the basic social programs remaining from the reforms of the 1930s and 1960s—Medicare and Social Security.

The unstated agenda behind the demagogy of Obama and the Republicans is to deliberately create a crisis atmosphere and inflict painful cuts in order to claim, weeks or months down the road, that the only way out is a longer-term assault on the basic social “entitlement” programs….

...“All we’re asking,” Obama declared, “is that they close loopholes for… hedge fund managers and oil companies... so we can avoid laying off workers, or kicking kids off Head Start, or reducing financial aid for college students.” The cynicism of this claim to be fighting for higher taxes for the rich is exposed by Obama’s support for a “comprehensive tax reform” that includes a cut in corporate taxes from 35 to 28 percent...

The real substance of Obama’s agenda, behind the pseudo-populist rhetoric, was indicated by his reiteration of support for cuts in entitlement programs. In a line meant to reassure his real constituency—Wall Street and corporate America—he said, “Democrats like me… have said we’re prepared to make some tough cuts and reforms, including to programs like Medicare.”…

http://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2013/02/27/sequ-a27.html

The 'Sequester' Was A Brilliant Idea And Obama Should Be Proud Of It

Read more at http://www.businessinsider.com/the-sequester-was-a-good-idea-2013-2#ixzz2LMBSmlX0

Why don't "point out" situations where George "Curveball" Bush actually took responsibility for any of his
f-ups?

I didn't vote for bush his second term because he was a @!$%#ty president, which is the same reason I didn't vote for obama his second term. When are you going to stop using bush as an excuse for obama? I stopped using bush as an excuse the second he was out of the white house.

First of all, if the government hadn't kept "borrowing" from both the Social Security and the Medicare funds to pay for their "pork" projects....we wouldn't be having the discussion about cutting these programs. Secondly, if I've been paying into these programs all my working life, is it fair to ask me to just willy nilly give my money back to the government (because they chose to use our money without paying it back or paying interest on what they borrowed). I'm sorry, but I'm not going to do that....I've paid, involuntarily I might add, with each and every paycheck that I've gotten since I started working at age 16 for BOTH these programs....it belongs to me, and I expect to get it when I need it. As it stands, I'm planning not to file for Social Security until I'm age 70 just to keep as much as I can in the account for others that really need it. Why can't the idiots that borrowed the monies from our accounts start paying the accounts back.....hmmmm???

Thank you for making my point. The fixes to SS and medicare don't have to be cuts. The fixes can easily be keep your friggin hands off my money. But neither the repubs or demos want that as a solution, they want to keep using it at their personal piggy bank.

SS - LOL....Status quo?...So life expectancy won't become longer by 2024.......The public will find this more palatable to change the SS age in ten years with a better economy (you know money in circulation currently is important).....and how would that change the solvent lifespan of SS......Should we cut benefits right now? When it is currently unnecessary? Or should we change the retirement age for SS as life expectancy gets longer in a few years ...when we aren't in a stagnate economy....Cut spending and less money in the economy when it is solvent for another decade ..if not more......I can see now that you are an economic genius......

Actually I'm a software engineer, which means I use logic, something you obviously don't use, that and reading comprehension. Please point out to me where I said 'cut SS', because I'm missing it.

Medicaid - I see you left our medicare......careful rightly......LOLZ.....Look at the CBO projections for Obama care...It decreases our percentage of GDP, spent on health care, over 10 years.....Soooo....If there 10 year decrease in US GDP spent on health care...I don't really understand what the concern is.....Unless you believe the POTUS can make the CBO do what he wants.....Which would be conspiracy nonsense....

I didn't carefully leave it out. Also, you might want to read the latest report from the CBO where it states that the best we can do with ACA is adding 6.2 trillion to the deficit with it. Not such a great plan after all? Of course, some of us knew that up front, but you're the @!$%#ing economic genius aren't you.

So explain why house republicans deserve 110% of the blame.....First I would like to explain to you the charters of both parties.........Republican = Conservative = spending cuts.....Democrat = Liberal/Progressive = Spending and Taxes........So......What is compromise? Cut spending and increased taxes....Like the proposal for 600 bil increased revenue with 1.2 trillion in spending cuts....The presidents plan...on his website.......2 to 1 to your favor isn't a compromise? This is why the sequester is your idiot parties fault...I'm sorry your brainwashed by some idiot into believing non practicality or your research is quite for lacking...There is only one right answer tried and true......Look at the 1893 panic as a reference of how to solve the problem instead of your ridiculous method that has never worked throughout the history of mankind.....Please stop making the world a dumber place......

And point out to me one nation that has existed very long in history while taking from the rich and giving to the poor, allowing the majority of the population to live off the government, allowing multiculturalism to exist at the extent it is now, allowing immigrants to freely move into our country and take our jobs and push out anchor babies, etc? Your president has us on the road to killing our nation. Maybe YOU should read up on some history. Also, I never gave any method, as I don't claim to be knowledgeable enough about this stuff to say 'Here's what we need to do'. So instead of being a progressive and spinning everything I said to create lies so you can press blame, go play in traffic and clean the gene pool. Talk about making the world a dumber place, please please please don't reproduce.

Somehow I have a hard time believing that a 2% cut in spending will result in "the end of the World as we know it". Actually, that's only a cut in the 'baseline' INCREASE in spending - Actual spending is still going to INCREASE vs 2012, even with the sequester cuts.
Obama deserves the Best Actor' award for his role in "The Sky is Falling".

ArchStanton,

I don't want to bust your bubble because you're a rather informed Liberal with a thinking head on your shoulders but here's some info on the current budget and balance sheet for the U.S..

Currently for this year 2013 our biggest cost items on the budget are:

Healthcare $811 billion

Social Sec $775 billion

Defense $667 billion

We have tax revenue of $2.5 trillion with deficit spending above revenue of $1.2 trillion for year 2013...Clearly almost half of are budget spending is on Healthcare and Social Security. These are entitlement programs.

On a long term Balance Sheet for the U.S.:

Combined unfunded liabilities (medicare, prescrition drugs, social sec) $123 Trillion

Current Total National Assets of U.S. (valuation) $94 Trillion

Entitlements are breaking the financial back of America. It's there as plane as day for anyone to see. It was not the recession that broke us. The recession is a product of our fiscal mismanagment caused by entitlements. Go online and check out the U.S. National Debt Clock if you dont believe me. Don't hide behind the media spin. Do your own research and then get back to me. I'm all ears if you have a better scenario. I've had to do budgets and balance sheets for businesses for 35 years. The U.S. is by no means in a healthy position, primarily caused by over-spending in the entilement portion of the budget. Although we spend a large amount on national defense (and could stand some cuts in wasteful spending). The defense budget pales in comparison to the spending on personal entitlements. Please go research and make your own decision as you vote for candidates that you feel have your best interest at heart.

Of course this is not racial hatred from the right.It is just that they are jelous that their P.O.T.U.S. has a darker tan than they.

Ron Johnson and Fox, a match made in heaven. Boehner is a real piece of work. If this is the best the republicans could find for a leader of the house it's no wonder their approval is 9% and falling. I've known some really dumb people in my life, but Boehner beats all of them.

Feisty-

I totally agree with you. I think tan man also said he's tired of getting burn. Go figure! Well I need to get back to work......BTW this Democrat has a job and as the Republicans put it all Democrats are looking for a free handout.

TRR, I'll have a Dr. Pepper with that #2

I just can't believe that the people in the House stand there and plead for someone else to lead them. How can they think it is good strategy to say that they need someone else to come in and tell them what to do and get it done? How can Boehner think it enhances him to say he won't negotiate with the President?

It isn't lunchtime yet, so he hasn't had his first drink of the day. He'll mellow a bit later on...

If I were all of you I'd be upset too. With the off chances of your welfare check being reduced I can understand why you'd scream bloody murder.

And I'm still waiting for all of the naysayers to take each of Obama's 2010, 2011, 2012, & 2013 budget proposals and go line by line for each department and let us know exactly what they would cut by what percentage and their reasonings for those cuts. Of course the first line item to drastically reduce will NEVER happen...Congressional budget items. They need to cut their salaries, their benefits, and their staffs to a 2 to 1 ratio for every budget cut they propose. The 2014 budget proposal was delayed this year as the various agencies were reassessing all of the factors involved, including the sequestration, the tax rate increase, etc.

DC, you mean the corporate welfare checks? That is the problem...GOP doesn't want to reduce those welfare checks.

Fisty, why do you always have to lead with the name calling and then pretend you are reasonable? The "orange guy"? What about the "almost black guy" that can't even get his own party to agree with any of his budget propsals? I get kind of tired of Boehner, but I have to agree with him. This whole sequester mess is not only the work of the House and the Republicans. Harry, Barry, and the Dems all are just as complicit.

KC, Democrats call that negotiating. They have no clue that name calling is counter productive, and think nothing of attacking people they should be working with. Fisty is a great example of the standard modern day Democrat.......and reason nothing is getting done.

All Boehner can do is whine about not increasing taxes on his "job creators" and deprive the middle class of any support. The Dem's are not on board with his plan and he uses profanity. That is LEADERSHIP!

His job creators are all creating jobs...just not in America. Our economy has been in an "efficiency" mode for quite awhile. Wall Street wants increasing profits every quarter and companies that are in mature industries have nowhere to go to make more sales. So they have been automating, laying off and offshoring for a long time. Along comes the Great Recession and they have the opportunity (pushed hard by greedy Wall Street) to accelerate that trend.

Those jobs are gone and not coming back. Get your head out of the sand clueless "Bonehead".

Beohner tells the other guys to "get off their ass". Hysterical! This....from one of the biggest asses in the Senate.

Leadership. Funny you should bring that up Feisty. I like what this guy had to say about leadership:

"Nothing is easier than blaming others for our troubles, and absolving ourselves of responsibility for our choices and our actions. Anybody can do that. Responsibility and leadership in the 21st century demands more." - Barack Obama - First United Nations Speech - September 23, 2009

“The fact that we're here today to debate raising America's debt limit is a sign of leadership failure. Leadership means 'The buck stops here.' Instead, Washington is shifting the burden of bad choices today onto the backs of our children and grandchildren. America has a debt problem and a failure of leadership. Americans deserve better. I therefore intend to oppose the effort to increase America's debt limit.”

“And the cost of our debt is one of the fastest growing expenses in the Federal budget. This rising debt is a hidden domestic enemy, robbing our cities and States of critical investments in infrastructure like bridges, ports, and levees; robbing our families and our children of critical investments in education and health care reform; robbing our seniors of the retirement and health security they have counted on.

Every dollar we pay in interest is a dollar that is not going to investment in America’s priorities.” - Senator Barack Obama, D-Ill, Senate Floor Speech on Public Debt, March 16, 2006

Don't know who said this:

Very little ever gets done without leadership at the top. - AU And very little is getting done.

Meanwhile over in Virginia, Chicken Little tells us THE SKY IS FALLING, THE SKY IS FALLING!

The republican party has finally found something they're perfectly willing to fully compromise on... The assignment of blame for their unendingly traitorous and racially motivated deeds...

Note to anyone carrying their water now... Don't look down because it turned to sewage quite a while back!

Thank God the republicans took control of the House 2 years ago. Had they not taken control, there's no telling how much debt this country would have accoumulated.

Here is the link to the FY 2013 budget proposal submitted by this administration. I now give each of you two hours to study all of the documents, determine just where you would make the cuts, AND give your justifications for those cuts. After that, STFU because you are no better than the members of Congress in determining how to bring the federal deficit under control. I've offered my suggestions in the past, including the one made above. DOD is the first place within the departments to start making cuts. The next is the Dept. of Agriculture and the farm subsidies (I grew up on a small farm, and it is the big AgriBusinesses who are getting all of those subsidies now). All oil/gas subsidies are next on the list, along with all other waste, fraud, and corruption throughout the entire federal system (including Congress and their illegal kick-backs they are all receiving from the lobbyists.)

http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/budget/Overview

What do you know... fat Ed ( Sgt. Dumkoff ) Schultz is back. How's the head transplant working out Eddie ? I heard they gave you a horses' head to go along with you being a horses' ass !!

Johnson is a whackjob. I live on the border of Wisconsin, glad I am on the other side of the Mississippi, between Johnson and Walker Wisconsin has become a very hostile place.

anti-trust proponent

I'm still waiting for all of the naysayers to take each of Obama's 2010, 2011, 2012, & 2013 budget proposals and go line by line for each department and let us know exactly what they would cut by what percentage and their reasonings for those cuts.

Agreed!

The 2014 budget proposal was delayed this year as the various agencies were reassessing all of the factors involved, including the sequestration, the tax rate increase, etc.

Agreed!

DC, you mean the corporate welfare checks? That is the problem...GOP doesn't want to reduce those welfare checks.

Agreed Agreed Agreed!

The parties share equal responsibility for the blame game. It's what they do best. No wait----it's all they do!

Wheeper Speaker Boehner's approval rating is at 7%. By next week it will be 4 or 5% if he doesn't heard his cats into line.

Feisty is paid by MSNBC to drive ratings with her dummer than $h!t comments.

She has an inside track with those folks at the site, Mark, Mr. D et al.

anti-trust -- remember when obama promised to do exactly what you say (my bolding):

Obama said that to make the needed investments to create jobs, "we also have to shed the spending we don't need."

"In these challenging times, when we are facing both rising deficits and a sinking economy, budget reform is not an option. It is an imperative," Obama said. "We cannot sustain a system that bleeds billions of taxpayer dollars on programs that have outlived their usefulness, or exist solely because of the power of a politicians, lobbyists, or interest groups. We simply cannot afford it. This isn’t about big government or small government. It’s about building a smarter government that focuses on what works. That is why I will ask my new team to think anew and act anew to meet our new challenges.... We will go through our federal budget – page by page, line by line – eliminating those programs we don’t need, and insisting that those we do operate in a sensible cost-effective way."

do you suppose he ever had an intention to do what he promised? if he had followed through on his promise we would all be so much better off than we are now. but alas, it was just another in his long history of lying to get what he wants

[Feisty is paid by MSNBC to drive ratings with her dummer than $h!t comments.]

Brian, guess the job didn't pan out, AGAIN?

anti-trust proponent

Here is the link to the FY 2013 budget proposal submitted by this administration.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/budget/Overview

DOD is the first place within the departments to start making cuts. The next is the Dept. of Agriculture and the farm subsidies (I grew up on a small farm, and it is the big AgriBusinesses who are getting all of those subsidies now). All oil/gas subsidies are next on the list, along with all other waste, fraud, and corruption throughout the entire federal system (including Congress and their illegal kick-backs they are all receiving from the lobbyists.)

Restated for importance, this is a good exercise for people, regardless of party-affiliation to practice.

I definitely agree about the Oil and Agri-subsidies and the massive amount of fraud and waste therein along with your suggested cuts to Defense.

I'd like to also throw my piece into the ring as well:

1. Raise the guidelines that allow transfer pricing. It's time to crack down on all of the major companies that are literally off-shoring trillions of dollars pre-tax rather than reporting their actual profits. $20 Trillion according to The Economist
2. End no-bid and umbrella (read: indefinite) contracts except by rare exception, and those exceptions need to be highly visible and given serious scrutiny as to why there should be no competition. Annual cost savings at least $50+ billion according to Wired
3. Stop settling and instead start prosecuting for egregious fraud, negligence and criminal activity. KBR in 2009, KBR in 2013, KBR 2013 (a good start), Koch Industries sells to Iran, The payoff is far higher and it sets a good precedent that corporate leaders aren't immune from the law.
4. etc.

In general, there's A LOT of fraud and graft and loopholes that could be fixed before we'd ever need to get close to cutting the government functions that actually lead to long-term prosperity like infrastructure, education, R&D and social safety nets.

TO: twodogsloving who wrote:

"It isn't lunchtime yet, so he hasn't had his first drink of the day..."

Yes he has, he had it for breakfast, which is why Boehner came out cussing at the press.

Remember when Obama supported the sequester???

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=kj1y3q92sog

This guy is a fake, non president and does not care about the american people.

@ Sow your seeds, not mine!

LOL, he supported the notion, like most everyone else did, that the sequester was such a hard pill to swallow that we wouldn't have the same crisis that occurred over the debt ceiling in Obama's first term.

What you're angry about is the fact that Obama actually assumed that Congress was going to be able to come up with a proposal that could pass muster in the Senate.

Sadly, Obama made the mistake of assuming the House Majority are acting rationally and capable of formulating anything other than whargarble.

1. Did the House send two bills to the Senate floor? Yup!
2. Were those two bills ever designed in a way to appeal to the Senate majority? Nope!
3. Were those two bills sent off simply to act like the House was actually doing something rather than completely frozen in partisan-insanity? Yup?
4. Will the US economy falter because of sequestration? Nope
5. Will it suck nonetheless? Yup!