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Ear to the Ground

Boehner Accepts Smaller Deficit Cuts

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Posted on Jul 9, 2011
Flickr / SpeakerBoehner

House Speaker John Boehner, an Ohio Republican.

On Saturday evening, Speaker of the House John Boehner accepted less than he previously asked for in a deficit reduction plan. He slashed the GOP demand for total cuts from $4 trillion to, roughly, the $2 trillion suggested by the White House, and he tentatively agreed to some form of tax increase.

The concession is not necessarily a victory for the Democrats, and it’s certainly no win for the American public. Boehner’s initial request for a $4 trillion reduction may have been nothing more than a clever barterer’s tactic: ask for more than you want and you’ll probably get what you need. Stay tuned in the weeks ahead to see who is going to suffer most. You can bet it won’t be the banks. —ARK

The New York Times:

Citing differences over tax revenues, House Speaker John A. Boehner on Saturday night said he would drop his push with President Obama for a far-reaching, $4 trillion deficit-reduction plan tied to a proposal to increase the federal debt limit.

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

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By grokker, July 11, 2011 at 7:30 pm Link to this comment

“Mocha savior?” HA! That’s rich!! You so clever, Satan!

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By Lew Ciefer, July 11, 2011 at 1:46 pm Link to this comment

@ ardee, July 11 at 3:31 am
I would guess then, by inference, that old forked tongue hates Ronald Reagan who raised taxes on several occasions and spent money rather above the average for modern Presidents in peacetime.

Reagan has nothing to do with the current situation. He followed the previously worse president in American history and took drastic steps to wench the wreck that Jimma drove off a cliff, repair it, and get it back on the road to recovery.

Currently, the situation is to keep the most inept president in U.S. history and his incompetent social worker cohorts throughout government, from further converting the U.S.—a supposed representative republic—into a socialist cuspidor.

@ ardee, July 11 at 3:31 am
that all pay a fair share of the tax burden and the government spends on necessary programs. The rich and the corporations pay little to no taxes while the burden of taxation falls on the shoulders of the middle class and the poor.

Your unscrupulous Mocha Savior has at his side, Mr. Jeff Immelt—a corporate CEO—whose company, GE, has not paid a dime on $5 billion in profits. Name for me one single piece of legislation passed by the garrulous Botox Peloser led House or the Flaccid Harry led Senate, signed into law by the Mocha Savior’s delicate social-worker fingers to eliminate those tax loopholes.

Who defines what programs are ‘needed’ and what are the guidelines? Is foreign aid—a program that makes billionaires of despots, further impoverishes natives, and means billions in annual profits to multinational corporations—especially those with ties to the Pentagon—a needed program? How does foreign aid stack up against national social programs; which is needier and who decides that?

There is more than one way to reduce debt. Reducing expenditures is the first step to take. Why should workers in the U.S. pay to support other nations? Reducing or completely cutting out all foreign aid will save hundreds of billions annually WITHOUT affecting social spending nationally.

What we are witnessing is a complicated multi-front struggle between different forces of the Power Elite. The harlot class—politicians and bureaucrats—is conducting a complicated and intense internecine battle that deceives the populace in such a way that guarantees their reelection so that they can pass the legislation needed to enhance the positions of their respective Power Elite Homasters. The Power Elite maintains the status quo through manipulation of the government. Legislation doesn’t serve all factions equally—i.e. what’s beneficial for Big Pharma and Big GE may not be beneficial to Big Oil or Big Ag or Wall Street—so it’s important that their harlots in government prevail. 

Regardless which side wins the current battle there is one thing you can be sure of: The RICH will not have their taxes raised. Any tax increase will be on the working class. It has always been that way and it always will.

Should the harlots pass legislation touted to be taxing the RICH, it will be found to be chock-a-block full of heretofore unseen loopholes that benefit the ‘RICH’ to the detriment of the working class and all you’ll hear from the harlots in government is a collective: Opps!

From 1933 to January 2011, the Democrats had legislative control for 34 years to the Republicans six. During the same period the Dems had control of the House for 62 years (40 of them consecutively, 1955-1995) and the Senate majority for 56 of those 78 years.

The proof of the pudding is in the eating.

An increase in the debt ceiling will NOT be beneficial to the American people. It’s for the benefit of the Power Elite and their street walkers in government.

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By Lew Ciefer, July 11, 2011 at 1:40 pm Link to this comment

@ prisnersdilema, July 10 at 6:24 pm

Until and unless the corporations are put behind bars, this country will continue it’s
decent into economic hell.
This is a fact…

After reading that screed, I’d have to agree that it does appear education in the U.S. has definitely taken a tumble, notwithstanding, I doubt that it’s a financial problem. More like a garbage in, garbage out problem.

> You cannot put a corporation behind bars. A corporation is a man-made institution. It’s an idea, a legal framework.

> Market forces were going to ‘take out’ those evil rich bankers and corporate execs who have worked so diligently rigging the system for their benefit. George Bush and Barack Obama, with Congressional complicity, working in consort with the U.S. Treasury, the Fed and the Wall Street culprits, bailed them out. Your Mocha Savior along with little Timmy Geithner thinking of Wall Street appreciation $$$$$ later, are trying desperately to give ‘em a third serving at the trough.

> Now might be the time to ask yourself how the fossilized former Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, was able to increase her personal wealth, reportedly, a healthy 62% during what many consider to be the worse economic environment since the Great Depression. Where is Jeff Immelt (<- a big corporate exec.) whose corporation paid no taxes on $5 billion income?

> Think of a triangle. Do you see the three points? Now place a revolving door between each of the three points. The triangle’s points represent the Fed, the U.S. Treasury, and Wall Street. The revolving doors are the interconnecting passageways of opportunity that the foxes who guard the hen house have constructed.

> Try investigating how many nations, states, or countries have taxed themselves into prosperity.

> Government, contrary to what you’ve been told, DOES NOT create an economy or jobs, although, it can—as evident with the Bush and Obama administrations—destroy an economy and jobs.

> Even if government could create an economy and jobs, there is no way that the Obama government—made up of incompetent socialworkers—could ever create anything besides that which it already has created: historic discombobulation.

> derived demand.

> Centrally planned economies do not work. They always fail. They do not fail because they lack the likes of Hussein Obama, Hillary Clinton, Tim Geithner, Rahm Emmanuel, or Debbie Wasserman Schultz.

> Your Mocha Savior just 2 years ago: “So I guess what I’d say to Scott is – his economics are right. You don’t raise taxes in a recession.

Doublethink means the power of holding two contradictory beliefs in one’s mind simultaneously, and accepting both of them. -George Orwell

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By Jimnp72, July 11, 2011 at 9:57 am Link to this comment

I agree with the posts saying the MIC should be first to get cuts. Wont happen as they rule the roost in our militarized corpocracy.

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By janofmaine, July 11, 2011 at 7:09 am Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)

There never was a real middle class in the USA. According to the US Dept of Labor who exclaims only 30% of Americans who are working are making a livable wage.  There is no middleclasses, we live in a world of haves and have nots. This is by design that over 70% of working Americans are badly paid.

The reverse of that fact, is 70% is not paid enough to pay their bills. Or at least 140 million are in poverty. Not being able to pay all your monthly bills and yearly bills defines Poverty. This is a Hidden Fact. Hidden by a government who is afraid of loss of power.
Much like paying back 2 trillion dollars instead of 4 trillion is the most mutton headed step, America takes in a actual financial depression.

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By ardee, July 11, 2011 at 3:31 am Link to this comment

Lucifer rides again.


There is no need to increase income taxes.

There is a dire need to curtail the excessive, exorbitant, and out-of-control spending by government.

I would guess then, by inference, that old forked tongue hates Ronald Reagan who raised taxes on several occasions and spent money rather above the average for modern Presidents in peacetime.

http://money.cnn.com/2010/09/08/news/economy/reagan_years_taxes/index.htm

The issue, despite old Lucifer’s attempt to cloud it with snarky nonsense, is that all pay a fair share of the tax burden and the government spends on necessary programs. The rich and the corporations pay little to no taxes while the burden of taxation falls on the shoulders of the middle class and the poor.

Then, those like ‘Old Sparky’, support cutting the essential programs that benefit the poor and middle class the most.

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prisnersdilema's avatar

By prisnersdilema, July 10, 2011 at 6:24 pm Link to this comment

Until and unless the corporations are put behind bars, this country will continue it’s
decent into economic hell.

This is a fact…

The job of the republican party is to protect the criminal corporations, defend their tax
breaks, allow them to continue poisoning this country, murdering the people, while they
create a slave state.

Their throne of lies is built with greed.  They gutted this country, and concealed their
avarice by running a campaign aimed at ignorant half wits, who are still jerking off to the
bible, who they created by gutting education.

They are responsible for this mess, not teachers, unions, public television, or liberals.

It was no accident, for that they are nothing but traitors.

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ThomasG's avatar

By ThomasG, July 10, 2011 at 5:22 pm Link to this comment

The process for balancing the budget here in the United States is
to balance the budget at the expense of the social necessities of
the population without any reduction even being considered in the
costs related to the multiplicity of “wars” and “war
related expenses”
along with the “costs of maintenance
and expansion of the Military Industrial Complex.”

War and war related activity can consume the ENTIRE budget of a
country and leave nothing for social necessities of the people, so
to talk about balancing the budget at the cost of social necessities
without talking about balancing the costs of war, war related
activity, and the Military Industrial Complex that supports war and
war related activity is disingenuous at best, and criminally
culpable behavior in the context of Adolph Hitler’s behavior during
World War II at the worst.

If there is going to be serious talk about balancing the U.S. Budget
and making cuts in spending, to exclude war and war related
activity along with maintenance and expansion of the Military
Industrial Complex is a ludicrous misrepresentation with regard to
balancing the U.S. Budget that is aimed at exempting war and
war related activity from the process
, and balancing the U.S.
Budget on the back of social necessity of the populace in order to
enable war and war related activity.

The real question being debated under the guise of “Balancing
the U.S. Budget”
is, Who and What does both Houses of the
Congress and the U.S. Government sacrifice on the Altar of War
and war related activity to balance the U.S. Budget and enable
future war spending?

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By JanofMaine, July 10, 2011 at 2:37 pm Link to this comment

In a time of great strain on the budget-Repaying should not be a proirity. Making sure people get through the crisis ALIVE should be the name of the game.

There is no middleclasses according to the US Dept of Labor who exclaims only 30% of Americans who are working are making a livable wage. The converse of that fact is 70% is not paid enough to pay their bills. Or at least 140 million are in poverty. Hidden Fact.

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By Lew Ciefer, July 10, 2011 at 12:11 pm Link to this comment

There is no need to increase income taxes.

There is a dire need to curtail the excessive, exorbitant, and out-of-control spending by government.

Federal spending decreases can be EASILY accomplished WITHOUT a reduction in the so-called social services to America’s grossly obese poor and needy by stopping all foreign aid. Let other nations fend for themselves.

There is no reason to raise the debt ceiling. What purpose does a debt ceiling serve if every time the limit is reached the ceiling is raised? Since March 1962 the ceiling has been raised 74 times. Republican’ts being no better than their conjoined twins the DemocRats.

The Federal budget could be reduced significantly by having Michelle Obama pay for all those heretofore taxpayer-funded European shopping sprees and African vacations.

Whenever a blood-sucking parasite speaks of taxing the rich it is playing the class warfare card to the duped while planning tax increases on the labor of the working class. The very class the Marxist-Socialist dullards are supposed to be in support of.

Capitalists—the evil rich—make their fortunes from CAPITAL. Profits (<- gains) on capital investments; money working for them, NOT them working for money. If you really want to ‘tax the rich’ stop taxing income and raise capital gains taxes to about 75%. Then you’ll see just how big a liar your precious Mocha Savior and those of his ‘rich ilk’ are when they start tap dancing explaining why capital gains taxes aren’t the solution to ‘revenue’ problems.

Most of foreign aid is actually guaranteed sales to Big Multi-Trans-National Corps, the very institutions that all true-red Commie-Socialist types love to hate. If you’re the friend of the working man what the hell are YOU doing supporting policy that will increase hardships on the working classes?

The blood-sucking parasites in government are deceiving you to support their policy which will—as it always does—serve the purposes of their Homasters, the Power Elite, to the detriment of the working classes.

Democrats and Republicans are a “Dumb and Dumber” reality show.

“After years of historic deficits, this 110th Congress will commit itself to a higher standard: Pay as you go, no new deficit spending. ... Our new America will provide unlimited opportunity for future generations, not burden them with mountains of debt.”—Nancy ‘The Garrulous Botox Queen’ Pelosi

smile

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By Inherit The Wind, July 10, 2011 at 5:25 am Link to this comment

Update:
Last night Boehner broke even THIS deal with Obama again adhering to the TeaParty line of “no new taxes”.

They won’t even close loopholes, the phony bastards.

It’s back to getting rid of social welfare programs.  I guess the mark of prosperity to them is increasing the number of homeless.

I can just imagine a Nyquist or Ryan or Bachmann saying “Every time I see a homeless person on the street I thank God that we are not wasting public funds on them.”  There’s almost a satanic joy in seeing people homeless and starving…

And let’s not forget: The long-time image of the lazy welfare collector isn’t Caucasian….think about it.

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By ardee, July 10, 2011 at 5:16 am Link to this comment

The real agenda remains unaddressed. The tax codes are ridiculous, unenforceable and in great need of revision. The nation is collecting taxes from the poor and middle class in several ways, payroll taxes and sales taxes to name a couple. Yet corporations,  claiming that we have the highest corporate taxes in the world ( 35%), the reality remains that they pay little to nothing due to the many loopholes and exemptions that have been added onto the codes making them both unreadable and unenforceable.

Until all people pay the same percentage of income and all corporations claiming to be people too until there is no advantage in said claim pay the same we continue to live in a nation that refuses its duty .

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By Bones, July 10, 2011 at 1:31 am Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)

In these closed door meetings, the party that doesn’t get a seat is the American Middle and American Workers.  We can safely designate both political parties as treasonous and lawless.  We need to find a new way forward without them.

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zonth_zonth's avatar

By zonth_zonth, July 9, 2011 at 10:17 pm Link to this comment

this crap is so predictable.

a little dickering and it will appear that both parties have come together and worked things out for the betterment of the american people.

both sides making concessions proves it to the US masses that their leaders are working day and night with the opposing party and willing to work together??!!

A two party system is a tacit collusion

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By Inherit The Wind, July 9, 2011 at 9:42 pm Link to this comment

Obama’s been rolled again.  Boehner beat him again.

My only question is how is Boehner going secure his victory when the TeaParty won’t support him?  The price for Dem votes, each and every one will exorbitantly high.  And the ‘baggers won’t forget.

I think I’d hate to have Boehner’s job.  Even when he wins it costs him prestige.

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By the worm, July 9, 2011 at 9:00 pm Link to this comment

Please!  From this round, the Republicans have all they need:

      “Democrats Put Social Security and Medicare Down for Cuts!”

Look, Im a Democrat. But this President is not a Democrat. I dont know what he
thinks he is; Im tired of trying to figure his motives; I dont care. Obama does
not represent me or my interests, and I will not vote for him in 2012.

Some in my party - yes, Im a Democrat - want Obama to “lead”. Well, I dont.

Here’s what Obama has done when he “leads”:

1. On the Debt and Fair Taxes: 72 percent supported raising taxes on the rich
including 68 percent of Independents and 54 percent of Republicans -
Washington Post-ABC poll Washington Post-ABC poll, Spring 201. Obama twice
‘bargained’ to extend the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy – first with McConnell
and the second time with Boehner.

2. On the Financial Bailout: Over 70% of us opposed the bailout. Obama
accelerated it with two Bush carryovers - Geithner & Bernanke.

3. On Health Care: 72% of us supported “a government administered insurance
plan - something like Medicare for those under 65—that would compete for
customers with private insurers.” Obama supported a private-sector, for-profit
health insurance ‘reform’ providing insurance companies fabulous guaranteed
profits & burdening ‘customers’ with costly coverage.in the form of hundreds of
millions of new ‘mandated customers’.

4. On Wars in the Middle East: 64% of us opposed expanding the war in
Afghanistan and wanted to disentangle from Bush-era ‘War on Terror’ and
‘preventive war’ policies. When Obama leaves office there will more troops
involved in this than when he began the recent ‘draw down’.

So, no, I dont want Obama “to lead”.

Some in my party want Obama to “negotiate”: Obama twice ‘negotiated’
extension of the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy - once with McConnell and
again, a second time, with Boehner. Obama ‘negotiated’ health insurance
reform for the private sector insurance companies, leaving the middle class to
eat dirt. He ‘negotiated’ a hands-off policy on financial industry leaders, so
they could keep the ‘bonuses’ - made up primarily of taxpayer dollars.

So, no, I dont want Obama “to negotiate”.

I want Obama to be defeated in the 2012 Democratic Primary.

He has given our party a very bad name, and Im ready to work against him and
ready to work for a real Democrat. When a Democratic President puts
Democratic programs on the chopping block, Republicans have won all they
need for this round. Obama is giving the Democratic Party a bad name, first,
because he’s proven exceptionally inept, and second, because everyone of his
‘wins’ has been a win for the Republican Party.

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By Alex, July 9, 2011 at 8:59 pm Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)

Boehner’s ueber-rich cronies/sponsors got $4 trillion in tax cuts and now “the issue” is where to cut to pay for this subsidy for the rich. Shameless GREED.

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