OldCurlyWolf wrote:Obama is a fool.
This.
The winner.
Anygunanywhere
Moderators: carlson1, Charles L. Cotton
OldCurlyWolf wrote:Obama is a fool.
As a counterpoint, I am equally convinced that the President and his cronies do not love this nation. It can easily be argued that, if past performance is an indicator of future performance, these folks desire nothing less than the downfall of our nation. We can debate tax and economic policy on partisan terms all day long, but until our elected representatives actually DO what we the people would ask them to, rather than SAYING what we want to hear and then doing something else, the federal government will not be solving any problems, and more taxes/government is simply creating more waste while benefitting only those who game the system because they don't want to be productive in society.Yes you are wrong, Obama has bent over backwards to get a deal done and all the GOP has done is throw a fit, whine and scream no. I'm convinced that they want to crash the economy so they can use it in '12. Tax increases need to be part of the deal, taxes are lower now than they were under Reagan but there are still no jobs so the talking point that low taxes = more jobs is bogus. I am sick of this, I have never see anything like this from a political party before, nothing is every going to get done if the GOP keeps moving the goalpost.
Thomas Sowell, a conservative economist, lays the blame at the feet of both parties, and he speaks truth to power. Congress, knowing full well that it has a debt-ceiling law upon which it can fall back if it ever finds itself in the position of not being able to pay for the bread it throws to the masses, NEVER has the sense that it can only push the American taxpayers so far. Not ever.The national debt-ceiling law should be judged by what it actually does, not by how good an idea it seems to be. The one thing that the national debt-ceiling has never done is to put a ceiling on the rising national debt. Time and time again, for years on end, the national debt-ceiling has been raised whenever the national debt gets near whatever the current ceiling might be.
Regardless of what it is supposed to do, what the national debt-ceiling actually does is enable any administration to get all the political benefits of runaway spending for the benefit of their favorite constituencies — and then invite the opposition party to share the blame, by either raising the national debt ceiling, or by voting for unpopular cutbacks in spending or increases in taxes.
Strangely, once again we are near agreement......b322da wrote:Medic,
You ask "correct me if I'm wrong...." To not appear offensive, which is not intended, I will take a shot at answering your critically important question: "Perhaps. Perhaps not."
This is a very difficult economics-mixed-with-politics question, and I suggest that the best answer to it is probably not quite as simple as some would make it appear, regardless of which side of the issue they are on. I guarandarnteeyou that I am not tempted to give you an easy "Yes" or "No," but I might offer a little food for thought.
Let me offer a couple of interesting links to a couple of national sources which maybe do not have a political axe to grind.
First: "The U. S. Will Not Default on August 2"
http://moneyland.time.com/2011/07/26/th ... ust-2/?xid" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Some new thinking here, fairly evenly critical of both sides in Washington.
And: "Smash the Ceiling"
http://www.newyorker.com/talk/financial ... surowiecki" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
This one really appeals to me. It would, I think, terminate the game played so often by the buffoons in Washington, both the Dems and the Reps, and by both the White House and the Hill, the latter regardless of the political party in control of each, or part of each, and hold all their feet to the fire, put their money where their mouths are, and hopefully make them accept personal responsibility for their actions. I think it is no secret why the alternative this article suggests has, to my knowledge, received no public attention in Washington.
Elmo
Thanks, LL. Boy, was I feeling lonely.loadedliberal wrote:Yes you are wrong, Obama has bent over backwards to get a deal done and all the GOP has done is throw a fit, whine and scream no. I'm convinced that they want to crash the economy so they can use it in '12. Tax increases need to be part of the deal, taxes are lower now than they were under Reagan but there are still no jobs so the talking point that low taxes = more jobs is bogus. I am sick of this, I have never see anything like this from a political party before, nothing is every going to get done if the GOP keeps moving the goalpost.
Funny, all I've seen Obama do is whine and scream (on TV, even), and threaten veto if he doesn't get what he wants. I've seen NO plans from him. I have seen plans from the house republicans, which the Senate claims is DOA, and Obama says he'll veto. I don't see the GOP saying no, I see the Demo's saying no.loadedliberal wrote: Obama has bent over backwards to get a deal done and all the GOP has done is throw a fit, whine and scream no.
It is not possible for you and I to have a more opposite opinion here...loadedliberal wrote:Yes you are wrong, Obama has bent over backwards to get a deal done and all the GOP has done is throw a fit, whine and scream no. I'm convinced that they want to crash the economy so they can use it in '12. Tax increases need to be part of the deal, taxes are lower now than they were under Reagan but there are still no jobs so the talking point that low taxes = more jobs is bogus. I am sick of this, I have never see anything like this from a political party before, nothing is every going to get done if the GOP keeps moving the goalpost.
Actually it isn't his job to offer a budget. That is Congress's job. On the other hand, they haven't passed a budget either....not even when dems had majorities in both houses. Shame on ALL of them.RoyGBiv wrote:Obama hasn't even OFFERED a budget for consideration in his entire tenure. Shame on him.
It is well within the President's authority to present a budget to Congress for their consideration.The Annoyed Man wrote:Actually it isn't his job to offer a budget. That is Congress's job. On the other hand, they haven't passed a budget either....not even when dems had majorities in both houses. Shame on ALL of them.RoyGBiv wrote:Obama hasn't even OFFERED a budget for consideration in his entire tenure. Shame on him.
If the Republicans allow him to raise the debt ceiling, Obama is smarter than all of them combined.OldCurlyWolf wrote:Obama is a fool.
I didn't say he wasn't smart enough to manipulate the situation. I am iterating that his stance/stated objectives as regards the future of this country are those of a fool.unhappycamper wrote:If the Republicans allow him to raise the debt ceiling, Obama is smarter than all of them combined.OldCurlyWolf wrote:Obama is a fool.
AND: Give me a list of the departments, bureaus, agencies, and a red pen and I will fix the problem. RoyGBiv already listed a few of them.The budget deficit is EASY to fix. Give me a pen and a line-item-veto.
It sounds like they have a more pressing need for an 8th grade Home Economics teacher to explain budgeting.b322da wrote:Breaking news!! "Emergency Team Of 8th-Grade Civics Teachers Dispatched To Washington." - The Onion.
Elmo