Obama: GOP ‘Betting On Amnesia’ in The November Elections

Both parties had better hope for – short and long term – voter memory loss.

Then Jesus gave the following illustration: “Can one blind person lead another? Won’t they both fall into a ditch?

But Cara, doesn’t your car also have instructions in French?

sunny, then you better get some new glasses cause the ones you got are not working!

Noz, you are too funny! Funny but right!

When you are headed for a cliff it’s actually better to put the car in “R” than to put it in “D” and go over the edge.
****
Actually if being in R brought you to the edge of the cliff, not so much. But you try it, and I’ll watch. Put it back on R and gun it.

Oh, and Noz, crank your Lady Gaga jam while you’re at it.

Cara,I think that Volvo is a good car for the snow up there-eh?

Cara,I think that Volvo is a good car for the snow up there-eh?
Posted by: Nephron | Aug 2, 2010 4:47:44 PM
Ah. Some odd game to find out where I live. You could just ask. Wisconsin. And yeah, its good in winter.

Posted by: from neocons to crazy cons! | August 02, 2010 at 04:53 PM
Oh, that was me. I was playing with a screen name change, inspired by something on another thread, and of course, Klifhoffer’s piece. But anywho…

I love it. Mr. President keep talking, we’re listening. “The Republicans care about the next election, not the next generation.” OBVIOUSLY.

Roy Barnes thank you for acting like an adult and taking the part of our country. You may be a democrat, but you stand up publicly for what you believe.It is getting easier every day to be ashamed at the crooked goings on in our country.
I thank you.

kyle writes: Most voters know which party had the supermajority, shoved unpolpular bills down their throats, and spent money so recklessly that their kids/grandkids will have to pay.
————————————-
Hey Kyle, where the heck were you when Bushie started a bogus war that cost billions of dollars? I don’t like the idea of my grandkids paying for that monumental mistake!
Where were you when Bushie past the first stimulous package? I don’t want my grandkids paying for that either!
Just where were all you concerned people when Bushie destroyed the economy and spent all of Clinton’s surplus?
Just where were you all?

Republicans are blaming Obama for the economy?
THEY have amnesia or are delusional.
(R3)=Republicans, want Repeat of Remedial Bush Administration policies.

BTW, his next move will likely be to accuse me of being you.
Posted by: Ryan C | Aug 2, 2010 4:54:01 PM
Ha! Another one for the blog (why crazy cons are crazy, need better title but I’ve been collecting quite a list for midterms, and its fun to visit comment threads and find common tactics and ways of thinking to add to the list, so keep going cons, you’re hilarious!)
Thanks for the heads up, Ryan. I figured he wanted to know if the America I lived in was real enough in one way or another. If I’m from unreal America (stage whisper: the city), then of course, I can be shot or dismissed or smeared or something like that.

So Cara is also “from neocons to crazycons”-you got so excited that you forgot to change your name! Gee tierra,I didn’t think that this would be so easy.
Posted by: Nephron | Aug 2, 2010 5:02:40 PM
I changed it briefly to add additional comment on another thread. And on that post I signed it Cara so its pretty intriguing that you think that its some sort of coup to figure it all out, when,as it turns out, I pointed out the screen name change myself. What does it mean to you that you’d get so excited about it?
The interior workings of the crazy con mind are very fascinating to me.

What exactly is the Republican party FOR? We saw their policies in the past – and the results – in fact their tax cuts are STILL in effect. Wonderful job they’ve done in keeping the economy strong and moving forward positively.
What else has the Republican party got for policies? Anything?
Posted by: Rene | Aug 2, 2010 5:19:59 PM
Today Eric Cantor conceded when pushed (after first offering a gallant attempt at to defend defending the GOP’s push to preserve Bush tax cuts, even as they fuel the huge deficits that Republicans love to rail against) that “um, if you have less revenues coming into the federal government, and more expenditures, what does that add up to? Certainly you’re gonna dig the hole deeper. ” (interview with savannah guthrie)

What happens when you promise everything and deliver nothing!
Obama is about to find out…
America didn’t ask for a Bush 3rd term, and Obama and the Congress ignored the voice of the people to protect the miltary, financial, pharmaceutical and big government industrial complex.
Now you either work for the government, or you get welfare. That is not a sign of success, only ineptitude and pathetic failure.
America deserves better… Vote independent. How could a 3rd party do ANY worse!!!

Does anyone remember what happened during the Bush Admin. when health care was being discussed thanks to Michael Moore’s movie? There was an all out campaign against the American people. They used overweight Americans as their scape goats and the media when berserk on overweight people because the Republicans made that group the target of the day.
Compassion in the rest of us, made us see through it all.
Republicans are ruthless and they can afford to be because big business that does not want any civil or environmental restrictions always support the party that allows irresponsible profit.
I’m surprised they haven’t gone after welfare recipients this time. They don’t exactly go after the elderly for their social security, although they do try to bamboozle them into privatizing SS. Yeah, we know who the real con artists are.
Dems across the board again in 2010!

So Cara,you are from Wisc.-har-har.What beer comes in a blue can? Hint-it ain’t Labatt’s.

I remember clearly the side Obama has taken as Senator and POTUS….The side of the people.
I remember clearly the side Bush and Republicans took as governor and potus; the side of the wealthy (that includes him) and big business. Bush always screwed the people in the middle and at the bottom. Oh but he gave everyone nick names….like that was so cool!

Barack baby,we won’t be forgetting a thing come November.

Please….B u s h spent most of his presidency vacationing or playing golf. Yeah. Remember when Jenna had emergency surgery? Bush went golfing instead of being at her bedside. Touching.

Hey Jake Tapper! Are you disappointed in the not being the permanent choice for THIS WEEK? For what it’s worth, I thought you did a decent job. You were pretty fair.

Speaking of budgets,where is this year’s?

It’s very clear that the majority DOSEN’T
like obama ideas.. This election is not about new ideas, it’s about opposeing his idea of a new America. Republicans and independants want to keep the American concepts of our constitution, and right to self determination.

Obama is hoping people will have amnesia when it comes to his mass epic failures and total disconnect from American citizens.
We are counting the days ’til Nov…tick, tick, tick

“One notable person not in attendance: former governor and current gubernatorial candidate, Roy Barnes.”
Hey Barry, why are so many of your pol pals distancing themselves from you? You think Roy is betting on some amnesia too?

I think Obama and the Democratic’s are praying to their TAX god for Americans to have amnesia in Nov. They have all but ruined this country and 60% of the American people believe that. They know full well they have ignored the will of the people and that it was the Republicans who stood against the handouts,bailouts and health care that the American people did not want. I hope the American People do not get Amnesia or stupid again and thorough every last liberal democrats out of office. Since 2007 when they took control this country has been in a steady decline and most American agree with that as well. In spite of what the lying liberals and Democrats tell you you can use your brain and check out the facts for yourself. Check the Debt in 2006 and the budget and the unemployment. What changed in 2007 is the Democrats took power. Since then they say it was the Republicans but it was the Demos who created all of this mess just look up the facts for yourself. Do not believe me or anyone check it out for your self and then vote these lying bums out of office.

an elementary school with kids age 6 to 11 had to go to lockdown because right wingers acting on misinformation from FoxNews issued death threats.
Posted by: Ryan C | Aug 2, 2010 7:18:03 PM
Why is there always misinformation coming from right wing news outlets, blogs, crib notes on hands?
The attack on elementary school kids was particularly disgusting, and its not the first time right wingers have chosen to go that route.

“Why is there always misinformation coming from right wing news outlets, blogs, crib notes on hands?”
Its similar to the game put out by conspiracy theorists.
See the right wing media have secret information that the mainstream media doesn’t want you to have.
Those who question such information are non believers or even heretics (see Kathleen Parker on Palin or David Frum’s latest).
You can see the exact same mentality on birther sites, 9/11 truthers, FEMA camps, even back to Kennedy.

“obama has publically announced his desire to have a private army, with the same power as the established military.”
I realize the right wing treks in tin foil versus reality but Obama was speaking of an army of volunteers.
His speech that right wingers deliberately quote out of context.
” [As] president I will expand AmeriCorps to 250,000 slots [from 75,000] and make that increased service a vehicle to meet national goals, like providing health care and education, saving our planet and restoring our standing in the world, so that citizens see their effort connected to a common purpose.
People of all ages, stations and skills will be asked to serve. Because when it comes to the challenges we face, the American people are not the problem – they are the answer. So we are going to send more college graduates to teach and mentor our young people. We’ll call on Americans to join an energy corps, to conduct renewable energy and environmental clean-up projects in their neighborhoods all across the country.
We will enlist our veterans to find jobs and support for other vets, and to be there for our military families. And we’re going to grow our Foreign Service, open consulates that have been shuttered and double the size of the Peace Corps by 2011 to renew our diplomacy. We cannot continue to rely only on our military in order to achieve the national security objectives that we’ve set.
We’ve got to have a civilian national security force that’s just as powerful, just as strong, just as well-funded. We need to use technology to connect people to service. We’ll expand USA Freedom Corps to create online networks where American can browse opportunities to volunteer. You’ll be able to search by category, time commitment and skill sets. You’ll be able to rate service opportunities, build service networks, and create your own service pages to track your hours and activities.
This will empower more Americans to craft their own service agenda and make their own change from the bottom up”
You are of course not alone in this mistaken belief.
Perhaps you will stopping reading sources that lie to you and make you look foolish in public.

“Speaking of forgetting, Obama forgets that it was the Republican led Congress under Newt Gingrich in 1995 to 2000 that brought the deficit under control while working hand in hand with Clinton”
Working hand in hand?
Next got his butt handed to him because he tried to shut down the government because he did not like his seat on Air Force 1.
Most bills were street fights even the ones that each side eventually compromised on.
Then the GOP went after Clinton for affairs.
Gingrich ended up resigning not because of his hypocrisy of cheating on his cancer stricken wife (a scumbag move later repeated by John Edwards) but because under his “leadership” the GOP suffered the first loss of seats for a President opposing majority.

“Than why does this group need destructive weapons? and be part of the National guard?”
What weapons? What part of the National Guard?
“We already have a Peace Corp. don’t we?”
Yes and Obama during that speech was proposing to double it.
I suppose offering a discussion on the merits of soft power would be way way over your head.

Ryan C
Your a beauty, and a fountian of unlimited knowledge. Your boy hits a brick wall in Nov.
Do you support the constitution, and are you ready to defend its principle
and what it stands for?

Also, chew on this: From 1951 to 1980, when America’s top marginal tax rate was between 70 and 92 percent, the nation’s average annual growth was 3.7 percent. Between 1983 and 2008, when the top rate was far lower – ranging between 35 and 39 percent – the economy grew an average of just 3 percent per year. “Supply-siders are fond of claiming that Ronald Reagan’s 1981 cuts caused the 1980s economic boom. In fact, that boom followed Reagan’s 1982 tax increase. The 1990s boom likewise was not the result of a tax cut; it came in the wake of Bill Clinton’s 1993 tax increase.”(Robert Reich)
In addition, while Wall Street’s excesses were the proximate cause of the Great Recession, its fundamental cause lay in the nation’s widening inequality.

“BTW where is the movement by Republicans to oppose building non Christian houses of worship”
Sarah Palin is no longer a Republican?
Peter King is no longer a Republican?
Rick Lazio is no longer a Republican?
Rudy Gulliani is no longer a Republican?
Heck, Newt Gingrich is even using his opposition to the mosque to fund raise for his bazillionth Presidential exploratory committee.

” [As] president I will expand AmeriCorps to 250,000 slots [from 75,000] and make that increased service a vehicle to meet national goals…”
Posted by: Ryan C |
I notice Barry doesn’t give that speech anymore.

“I notice Barry doesn’t give that speech anymore.
Posted by: Foghorn Leghorn | Aug 2, 2010 8:10:21 PM”
Could that be because the Serve America Act was passed and signed into law?
Cmon foggy surely you remember parroting the right wing talking points on this last year.

“That is why the people in America watch FOX news three to one over any other news.”
The audience of any of the network new casts is actually 2 to 3 times that of FoxNews peak audience.
FoxNews leads CNN and MSNBC in cable news.
And even then you’re talking about maybe 4 or 5 million people that rely on cable news and that is being quite generous.
Right wingers like FoxNews because they put on pretty women to read right wing talking points.
You’ll notice that Ann Coulter has not been on as much lately since her adam’s apple returned to prominence.

*****
Why does he need a private force?
*****
When all the wars end, the current military will become ex-military (a/k/a civilians). They will become the enfamous “civilian national security force”.

Hey Maxine Waters obnoxious,dumb and corrupt is no way to go through life.

More good news.Al Gore’s molesting charges against his masseuse in Oregon have been dropped.
Posted by: bobmac |
I just love happy endings.

Ryan C wrote:”Which is why Republicans oppose the building of non Christian houses of worship”
.
So why can’t you just call it what it really is… a mosque? Did you get that from the Journolist talking points that recommend you hide certain words in less precise terminology?

If this mosque is approved tomorrow Bloomberg will be my new hobby.Mikey thinks of himself as presidential material.He spends millions on his mayoral campaign in the second most liberal city in the country and almost loses.His biggest contribution to NYC is trying to get the restaurants to stop serving salt.PC idiot.

“Congrats to White House Correspondents’ Board on its hard work: AP moves to Helen’s center seat, Fox to AP’s front-row seat, NPR to 2nd row.”
Ouch.”
What’s ouch about it?
All three moved up a spot.
Fox, failing in its hard lobbying for Helen’s old seat, might be a little miffed since they care far more about the appearance of credibility versus actually building and maintaining credibility but to call it an ouch is a little extreme.

“Looks like the Texas Board of Education are not the only ones trying to rewrite history.”
Agreed the right wing is attempting to rewrite history in many ways from text books to rewriting the bible to be more Conservative friendly.

“In other words, you didn’t read them, or you just don’t understand them”
I realize its hard for you to make connections without there being dots but my point stands that the GOP went after Clinton for his affairs.
If the articles of impeachment had nothing to do with them then the revelations about Henry Hyde, Bob Livingston, etc (the list goes for a little while so I will spare you the humiliation) would not have turned American opinion on its ear.
The American people saw it for what it was…a witch hunt by the desperate and hypocritical GOP and punished the GOP at the ballot box while rewarding Clinton with high approval numbers.

Fight the socialist is enough of an idea.

Ryan C wrote: “while rewarding Clinton with high approval numbers.”
.
Typical Democrats… rewarding perjury and obstruction of justice.

Ryan C wrote:”I realize its hard for you to make connections without there being dots but my point stands that the GOP went after Clinton for his affairs.”
.
Guess thats why ol’ horndog Bill settled with Paula Jones for $850K because the GOP forced him into it.

Did Henry hyde,Bob Livingston,etc. commit perjury before a grand jury?Remember Scooter Libby?Talk about amnesia.

“Guess thats why ol’ horndog Bill settled with Paula Jones for $850K because the GOP forced him into it”
ROFLMAO!
Again, they chased him over affairs.
Perhaps he should have illegally funneled hush money to her thru his in laws like Sen Ensign because apparently that is ok with the right wing.

Perhaps he should have illegally funneled hush money to her thru his in laws like Sen Ensign because apparently that is ok with the right wing.
Posted by: Ryan C | Aug 3, 2010 12:05:41 AM
And, apparently, much of the corporate-owned media.

Clinton admitted in his book that he perjured himself before a Grand Jury.He further admitted it by not contesting temporary disbarment.He got off lucky-you seemed mighty happy with the legal consequences of perjury with Scooter Libby,but seem unable to recognize a similar episode with Bill Clinton.

In the target rich environment that is the US house, why did the Swamp Lady pick two black representatives to bring charges against?

“Guess thats why ol’ horndog Bill settled with Paula Jones for $850K because the GOP forced him into it”
Perhaps he should have illegally funneled hush money to her thru his in laws like Sen Ensign because apparently that is ok with the right wing.
Posted by: Ryan C |
You don’t think anyone was ever paid to keep quiet about Clinton?
Oh and perhaps he should have pardoned marc rich to help raise money to pay Ms. Jones.

All the bickering does not matter…
The President is busy rearranging the deck chairs on the Titantic… and directing the band as it plays “Nearer My God, to Thee”…
The truth is that there is gusher of public debt, city, state, federal washing over the nation… No one will escape the consequences, not one, not me, not you…
The cities and states will go first… it is already happening… then the Federal government will be forced to operate the printing presses at warp speed…
The dollar will collapse absolutely, accompanied by the economy…
There will be general unrest, followed by Martial Law…
Mr. Obama will be the supreme leader… backed up by military power…
Some will resist…

“You don’t think anyone was ever paid to keep quiet about Clinton?”
Was he ever investigated by the FBI for it like Ensign?

Why Amnesia??? All you have to do is to have watched the GOP over the last 19 months…
They have been against the middle class in
favor of standing with Big Banks against regulations,with the Big Insurers against health care, with Big Oil against the people of the gulf calling money given up for the people of that area, a shakedown. which is pitiful…
They claim to care so much about the deficit yet they support the extension of Bush tax cuts that have and will continue to add to the DEFICIT…
You don’t have to have Amnesia all you have to do is pay attention to the idiocy they come up as they continually and consistently do NOTHING but political posturing….
Come on November!!!

Tapper the Republicans are betting the American public and mainstream media have a 15 second attention span for the 2010 elections.
Now the Republicans will be spending 300,000,000 Corporation dollars this election year to remind everyone that they want a fresh start and for us to forget what they did under George W. Bush’s 8 years in the White House, they ran the economy into the ditch and made Main Street bail out Wall Street who act like nothing happened today by celebrating their current profits, by deregulating the Oil Industry the Republican’s contributed to the BP Oil Spill in the Gulf, the war in Afghanistan rages on because Bush and Republicans invaded Iraq and valuable resources were pulled out of Afghanistan.
The Republicans may want a fresh start to run in the 2010 and 2012 elections, but Main Street doesn’t get a fresh start until the economy is fixed, Gulf Oil Spill is cleaned up and our Troops with the help of our allies start to pull out of Afghanistan.
There are no instant solutions after Bush and the Republicans ran this country into the ground after 8 years. Democrats will hold their ground this Nov then the race for 2012 starts.

““I do want to point out, when you get in your car, when you go forward, what do you do? You put it in ‘D.’ When you want to go back, what do you do? You put it in ‘R.’ We don’t want to go into reverse back in the ditch. “”
did our Commander in chief really say this??? This is a juvenile quip that sounds like it came from high school election campaign.
Please continue with this cheap rhetoric. It will lead to historic changes at the polls this November.

Matt Damon channeled George Washington yesterday and the first President and the founding fathers are supporting Democrats, President Obama and his team this year right through 2012. Reason? …
Republican Party: You have two cows. You sell one, and force the other to produce the milk of four cows. You are surprised when the cow drops dead.
Democratic Party has a heart: Vote Democrat 2010 & 2012!

“Well, for many of, us we will never, NEVER forget what the last republican president did. We will never forget!” – jackson
Yes Jackson don’t forget, no one should.
Bush abandoned his conservative principals. True conservatives are very upset about that. So much so that they didn’t come out in numbers to vote in 2008. Democrats are upset at the results of the Demo type decisions Bush made especially the overspending. Yet they keep defending their boy Obama who does 4x worse saying he’s not as bad as Bush was. But that is just a political talking point, lefty propaganda.
Yes voters don’t forget.
Vote for true conservatives this November.
Send a message, no more Republican Lites.

“Please…tax cuts do not add to deficits”
You’re offering right-wing philosophical baloney in place of the most elementary understanding of a balance sheet.

Actually, that would be the Dems.
They are betting that the public will forget the Dems forced legislation upon them, they did not want.
They are betting that no one noticed the dictatorship.
They are betting that the lack of jobs will be overlooked.
Yes, it is the Dems, who are hoping for amnesia, among the voters.

“Democratic Party has a heart: Vote Democrat 2010 & 2012! ”
The new and improved Democrat party. klansman-free in the US Senate for 30 days now!

It doesn’t matter what liberals want. The spending WILL stop because there isn’t enough money to fund their utopia. Europe is dealing with it now via austerity measures and we will be there soon ourselves.
Posted by: Mary |
Austerity measures to the progressives is like water to the wicked witch of the west (the one from Oz not San Francisco).

Then what was the general backlash against Carter for asking us to wear sweaters and turn our thermostats down?
Posted by: Skip |
Skip, Carter melted.

Again, tax cuts do not create deficits. Over spending does.
——-//
One way to avoid overspending is not cut taxes when you have no intention of cutting spending, and/or to not continue all of the tax breaks that were intended to expire, continuing to dig a bigger hole than you can afford.
Or are you so far in denial that you can’t see that either?

“We don’t want to go into reverse back in the ditch.”
Says Mr. 41% Approval Rating.

“One way to avoid overspending is not cut taxes when you have no intention of cutting spending, and/or to not continue all of the tax breaks that were intended to expire, continuing to dig a bigger hole than you can afford. ”
Or just cut spending.

It is now clear, Obama made it verifiable: Barack HUSSEIN Obama is a TOTAL idiot! Can’t wait to “drain the swamp” of Democrats in November, then kick Obama out in 2012. Obama is a DISGRACE to America!

“It doesn’t matter what liberals want. The spending WILL stop because there isn’t enough money to fund their utopia.”
That was the right wing plan with Busnomics,
Take a surplus run up spending while cutting taxes, watching deficits and debt explode.
Then claim the mantle of financial prudence.
Right wing ideology is entirely based on lies appealing to the worst instincts of human beings (selfishness, tribalism, authroitarian)

“Did you have a point?”
A couple. Both were straightforward. Talking about austerity measures for cons is like crack. Doesn’t mean they’ll enact any in America as cons in America tend to run up deficits by voting in Republicans. It also doesn’t mean that if enacted, they’ll work (they could make matters much worse)– the buzz from talking about them for cons is enough.
Example:Remember when Cheney said deficits don’t matter?
He was expressing what Republicans believe. The only time deficits matter to Republicans is when deficits can be used to bash Democrats and liberals. Once in office at the federal level, they begin growing the federal deficit and public debt again.
For instance, now the right wing deficit peacocks are claiming the deficit matters, maybe, but not so much when it comes to extending the Bush tax breaks they chose to set an expiration date for (never mind that extending them across the board as the Republicans would like to do would dig a deeper hole, to use Cantor’s words.)
According to the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center: “The Bush tax cuts of 2001 to 2003 provided much less stimulus to the economy than other policies of equal cost would have. The underlying reason is that although the tax cuts were well-timed to provide a short-run economic stimulus, they were poorly designed for this task.”
The second point was that in most instances of successful austerity an important role was played by both depreciation of the exchange rate and strong external demand. Many economists are backing off calls for austerity measures. Others never thought they were the right call in the short term in the first place.

Funny, it seems like just last week he was saying, “There’s a time to campaign and there’s a time to lead.” I guess we all know he’s a horrible leader, so it’s back to campaign mode. He’s a disgrace to the office of the President.

So right wingers, is Sharron Angle the worst candidate for major office since Bill Simon?

“Did you have a point?”
A couple.
Posted by: conservatives or con artists? |
You are making points but not the ones you think as your post is incoherent. Perhaps you should copy/paste more of it.

“But something tells me you’d vote for him (Bush) all over again!” – jackson
No Way Jackson!
We need to vote for True Conservatives.
If we would have done that we wouldn’t be in the mess we are in right now.

Ryan C: “Right wing ideology is entirely based on lies appealing to the worst instincts of human beings (selfishness, tribalism, authroitarian)”
Projection. Left wing lies, hysterics, and ad hominem attacks won’t save the Democratic Party from massive losses in November.
If Americans truly thought left wing ideology was all that compelling, Air America wouldn’t have gone bankrupt. TWICE.

“We need to vote for True Conservatives.
If we would have done that we wouldn’t be in the mess we are in right now.”
That’s the thing about right wingers and purity tests, the field grows ever narrower.

TO conservatives or con artists?
You wrote: “What austerity measures will Republicans put in place? What will they do to create jobs? What is their agenda? Will they reduce the deficit? If so, how? Will it improve stagnation and the decline in real wages? What are they for?”
Austerity/Cost Savings/Reduce Deficit
1. Repeal Obamacare – save $1T over 10 years
2. Repeal remaining stimulus – save $400B this year.
Create Jobs
1. Keep tax rates low
2. Eliminate the new regulations and taxes on businesses brought on by financial reform bill and Obamacare.
//The threat of increased taxes and the uncertainty brought about by all of the new regulations is killing business investment.//
Agenda
1. Less government
2. Strong national defense/security leading to improved foreign policy
3. Obey the Constitution

“Betting on amnesia?”-no, I’m betting on magnesia..as in “milk of”. Just thinking of the political posturing and pandering that we will suffer through in the next months..heaven help us…I sware I’m still hung over from the last election.

1. Repeal Obamacare – save $1T over 10 years”
CBO says Obamacare REDUCES the budget deficit $124B over 10 years.
—//
And never mind what to do about medicare, the uninsured, or escalating costs. Just go back to how it was under Bush, and it’ll all be magically different somehow, some way *this* time.

…you would almost think that the upcoming contests are actually a referendum on the POTUS.. it’s like almost a ‘for or against’ vote for the administration..

Ryan.. the voters are going to the polls, not the talking heads.. there is no need for substance or hard facts.. they choose candidates as if they were picking through the value menu..

I’m so glad the left wing is out in full force, spewing the same rethoric, because they have nothing new, same old story, we’re good the others are bad, unemployment is improving, soon everyone will have a job, the stimulus is working, Pres.Obama smiles and walks on water, there are no wars and everyone is happy and money grows on trees.
Posted by: Lizzie |
Barry thinks if his car is in D then he is going in the right direction. He is apparently not familiar with the purpose of the steering wheel.
Barry is John Candy in Planes, Trains and Automobiles.

“Someone care to refresh the memories of our amnesia-plagued friends on how the CBO process was gamed”
Awwww someone’s mad that the right wing spin of the CBO report did not catch on.
After all, the right wing has been comfortable offering numbers without context if not outright misleading.

“Who is her communication strategist”
Apparently she just hired one today.
Hopefully he does not schedule a press conference only to have his candidate run away (literally) from any questions.

Obama’s strategy… legalize weed! People will be too apathetic or not even remember to vote!

Ryan C: “Meanwhile two of the most popular pieces of legislation are MediCare and Social Security.”
All forms of welfare are also popular. Illegal aliens find free healthcare popular. Refundable tax credits (transfer payments) are also popular with people who don’t pay taxes. Everybody loves freebies!
But, you see, someone has to fund these popular programs.
Medicare and Social Security are essentially broke, with a combined $110 TRILLION in unfunded mandates. Medicare Part D (prescription drug program) has unfunded mandates of over $19 TRILLION and it’s only FOUR YEARS OLD. These programs continue to exist only because the government is running a gigantic Ponzi scheme. If Medicare or Social Security were managed by a private company, it would have gone out of business many years ago (and its executives would have been imprisoned Bernie Madoff style). There is no possible way these programs can be sustained without significant tax increases and benefit cuts. Congress is actively discussing this right now.
I did a Social Security analysis for a client a few months ago. When I took her and her company’s SS contributions over her working life, I could have invested that money in conservative investments and produced $60,000 per year indefinitely starting at age 65 until her death. At that point, she would still have $1.3 million to leave to her heirs. SS has promised her $24,000 per year starting at age 67 until her death with nothing after that. Popular or not, SS has dramatically degraded her retirement lifestyle and her wealth options.

Skip wrote:”But once again, you can’t guarantee that…because when you say “conservative” you’re implying lower risk I think, but there is still risk involved.”
.
There is no greater risk than being at the tail end of a Ponzi scheme. Thats where we find ourselves today. What is YOUR guaranteed return from here on out? Conservative or higher and higher risk? Who is going to pay YOUR return… cause the CAPITAL is all gone.

wait wait gk….you answer my question first. What happens if somebody invests sensibly all their life like a good little Republican but still loses their retirement funds? The way right-wingers like to blame the poor for being poor in all cases I don’t think unless you can answer that question you’re ever going to get anywhere near dismantling Social Security, so you might as well start helping everybody in trying to figure out a way to make it work. Especially if you only have the stock exchange to offer as an alternative.

Yes, to me that’s one of the reasons. Without arguing about whether SS successfully fills that role or not, a good social safety net should be really safe. Private companies are going to be willing to take risks with those funds. -but you know me foggy…I’m always going to pick the government over big business when it comes to choosing who I think will operate in the public’s best interests. Besides private firms are going to exact a fee for their profits so why will it save us any money?

While it can be said that the Social Security system is in need of another overhaul and that that the recession has hurt it, the fund is hardly going broke or essentially broke. This is a false alarm that has been debunked countless times, and those who ring it are typically the ones who would like to privatize social security completely or believe alarmist right wing talking points without further analysis or fact checking. Fixing social security is a political problem rather than a financial one. As it stands, the current program can pay out all scheduled benefits for the next 25 or 26 years with no changes whatsoever, and after 2037, it’ll still be able to pay out 75% of scheduled benefits without any tweaks.

While it can be said that the Social Security system is in need of another overhaul and that that the recession has hurt it, the fund is hardly going broke or essentially broke…
Posted by: Cara |
There is no fund.

Posted by: Foghorn Leghorn | Aug 4, 2010 10:55:46 AM
Btw, its National Clown Week.

Cara,
When Social Security runs in the red in a few years, and has to cash in all of those Treasury bills and notes so that it can have enough money to pay out what it owes, where do you think that money comes from? It comes from the federal government who will have to try to borrow it from somewhere else, raise taxes, or cut other spending.
Social Security is just another part of the government. Sure, it looks fine on paper, but it lent money to the federal government and when those IOUs come due, the rest of the government has to pay the piper.

Actually, a report a while ago said it would be in the red in a few years. You can look it up, Cara. You’re so smart, I’m sure you’ll find it before I can.
Yes, Social Security is just fine. It’s the federal government that has to pay its IOUs that’s in trouble.

Cara wrote:”Again, define a few, or provide a source. And when you mention a report, are you claiming you have actually read the annual social security report due 4/1 2010 that was postponed, probably until the end of the fiscal year? If so, please tell me where you found it. Tell us all. That would be a pretty great scoop.”
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How about taking a BASIC ECONOMICS course and you would be able to figure this out for yourself instead of pestering everyone else to “explain” it or “source” it. There is no Social Security trust fund…. the money is gone! spent! ADIOS! and what is left is an IOU payable by ME, the dwindling productive taxpayer.
What Congress has done would be no different than you writing a check to yourself for a million dollars, but not cashing it. You walk around with a million bucks in your pocket bragging to everyone, but what happens when you decide to cash it in. WHERE DOES THAT MONEY COME FROM? SOMEONE has to pay for that IOU. Bernie Madoff is in jail as we speak because he ran his own little scam based on the Social Security model. It did not work out too well for him… did it.

Cara: you are obviously so blinded by ignorant left-wing spin that you can’t see the forest for the trees.
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“So Reagan’s efforts in 1983 were all just part of a Ponzi scheme? He’s just another Madoff?”
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What did Reagan do that was different than any other president? And what specifically are you referring to anyways other than all the lefties absolutely hated Reagan. I guess you are all mad at the way he took on Communism… your brethren.
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” And the budget is unified, more or less; social security isn’t separate? ”
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Are there any tangible assets in the social security fund? Gold? Land? Dutch Tulips? Anything other than a paper IOU redeemable by ME the taxpayer?
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“We’re completely broke and can’t fund anything, including war? There’s just no money at all? We’re done? ”
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If your personal household had an income of $100K a year but you’ve got $2 Million in debt because you lived high on the hog over the year, and your interest payments on that debt are fast approaching your $100K yearly income, what would you call it.
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“Treasury doesn’t honor its bonds anymore?”
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As long as they can continue to rob more and more tax money from the fewer and fewer remaining productive taxpayers they can honor those bonds. But, those of us carrying all the load are getting mighty damn tired of the increasing freeloaders. Something is going to change soon.

Personally – R is looking good right now. I remember the “are you better off now than you were 4 years ago”? I’ll take the 4 years ago.

The Washington Times has an article JUST TODAY that disproves what you so emphatically wrote yesterday about SS being totally rock solid.
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Better to go straight to the reports released JUST TODAY and draw your own conclusions, or read a wide range of the stories out JUST TODAY (because of that release) so you actually have some clue what you’re talking about.
Read primary sources, think for yourself, don’t limit yourself to a right wing bubble, and babble.
Sample headlines: “Social Security and Medicare still face serious financial challenges, annual review says, But the new healthcare law may provide added stability to the two massive programs, which could stay in the black until 2029 and 2037;”"Medicare Gets New Lease On Life; Social Security Remains Healthy”
The report backs me up, actually, as do most credible news reports on the subject.

Dave, how funny how you try turn this around. I urge people to read the threads and the annual report. Fact check both Dave and I.
Please.
The zombies and the zombie lies are truly outrageous.
For example, I never said that there were no problems whatsover with social security. Quote me, if you can. Oh, you can’t ? How shocking (not.) What I actually said is “While it can be said that the Social Security system is in need of another overhaul and that that the recession has hurt it, the fund is hardly going broke or essentially broke. This is a false alarm that has been debunked countless times, and those who ring it are typically the ones who would like to privatize social security completely or believe alarmist right wing talking points without further analysis or fact checking. … As it stands, the current program can pay out all scheduled benefits for the next 25 or 26 years with no changes whatsoever, and after 2037, it’ll still be able to pay out 75% of scheduled benefits without any tweaks. ”
Where you actually get something right is I do think Republicans lie. Just look at your lie about my posts.
“Just genius”, Dave. Really super genius.
Not.
Lies, and more lies.

Dave, When I post something you don’t like or disagree with, you come back with cliches like “You just keep relying on the government for your retirement. The rest of us will save our money” (as if you know what my investments are… and as if pointing out zombie lies on social security means I have no savings or a wide range of investments ). You also distort and misstate what I’ve posted, refuse to define a few, cite sources or get very specific.
Now all of that is expected and cliche from a certain type, but the expected and cliches are tiresome, aren’t they?
Perhaps, you feel testy because I haven’t validated you. Instead I’ve pointed that versions of right wing assertions– social security zombie lies– have been debunked a bazillion times (social security will be broke in a “few years” – e.g. see Fact Check: Has Social Security begun tapping its trust funds?) and I’ve urged people to read the annual report themselves and to try to understand social security outside the right wing and social security opposition’s bubble, babble and blather because the public likes social security and supports it and while there are financial challenges, they are manageable outside the political bubble. Imho, social security is a worthwhile program offering basic income guarantees in the event of retirement, disability, or death of the primary breadwinner.
In addition, I have urged people to read a wide range of stories rather than clinging to what they read from one single source, such as the Washington Times. As we’ve seen countless times, our media isn’t all that it could be. Putting your trust in one source and one source only, and not reading widely and deeply is a mistake. I stand by that. You disagree?
While it is true that since payroll tax receipts are down compared to pre-recession estimates, Social Security is projected to run a primary deficit, it is a *primary deficit*, a measure that excludes interest on trust fund assets. Social Security cash flow will head back into the black for a few years after that, and then starting in 2015 it is projected to stay in the red for the long haul IF no tweaks are made. However, that doesn’t make it worthless, essentially broke or bankrupt as right wingers like to claim. Do you disagree?
From another perspective, social security has been rather resilient in the face of the recession.
And what I said about payouts is true. Per the annual report, “the projected point at which the combined Trust Funds will be exhausted comes in 2037 – the same as the estimate in last year’s report. At that time, there will be sufficient tax revenue coming in to pay about 78 percent of benefits.”
Now, to address your point, when you say, “SS is not some separate pool,” do you argue that in all cases that we have a unified budget, or only when its convenient? You’re basically claiming that assigning a particular tax to a particular program is a pretense, a fiction,make-believe (although it does have both legal and political force)in which case, fine, but be consistent with that and admit then social security as a separate entity can’t be broke, it can only be broke or in the red as part of a broke government with a broke military and no funds for endless war.
Anywho…
Given your view, I’d imagine you’d really have to wonder what Reagan was doing when in 1983 he signed into law the reforms endorsed by the Greenspan Commission that created the large and growing trust funds. He said, “This Bill demonstrates for all time our nation’s ironclad commitment to Social Security.…It assures those who are still working that they, too, have a pact with the future. From this day forward, they have our pledge that they will get their fair share of benefits when they retire.”
Was he just a scam artist, in your opinion?

‘Betting on amnesia’, I love that line! Truly after all their no’s, their lies about the health care bill, many of them trying to block financial reform, not to mention the mess 8 years of Bush left our economy, our world-standing and our national debt, the Repubs really do need us all to have amnesia.

Dave,
You asked “The trust fund is all govt bonds. How do they get paid back?”
Jeez!!! That’s EASY!!! Barry is fully confident in his #1 strategy for solving ALL issues that confront him… the same strategy he sold his lemmings from the first day of his campaign… he will HOPE them away!!
But I’ll tell you what!! Not being one to sit on his laurels, I’ve heard he’s MORE than prepared to move to Plan B… he’ll even cross his fingers too!!
So, how’s THAT for an answer, smarty pants?!! Beat THAT!

I am a Democrate that will be voting Republican next election. At least I will get a COLA raise being that I am a Disabled Veteran trying to get Social Secuity Disablilty.