The Real Leaders of the Republican party - Rush Limbaugh and Grover Norquist - are quite happy
By louisehartmann
Speaker of the House John Boehner probably had a few more cocktails and cigarettes than normal last night – it was a rough Tuesday for him. One day after a source at Standard and Poor’s credit rating agency warned that passing Boehner’s short-term debt-limit plan will still lead to a United States credit downgrade – the Congressional Budget Office piled on even more bad news. According to the CBO – the plan that Speaker Boehner touted as cutting $1 trillion from the deficit – ACTUALY only cuts about $850 billion.
Not only that – droves of Republicans came out against the bill – forcing leadership to reach out to Fox so-called News talking heads like Sean Hannity and Brit Hume – as well as a number of other Conservative journalists, radio show hosts, and pundits to whip up support for the Boehner deal. But it didn’t work. And now a vote on Boehner’s debt-limit plan that was scheduled for today has been delayed as the Speaker goes back to the drawing board. It's becoming increasingly clear that Republicans invented this economic crisis now just 5 days away – by turning a routine housekeeping matter done 18 times during the Reagan Administration and 7 times during the Bush administration into a hostage-taking event that's now gotten out of their own control.
And the hostages are the American working people - and now the success or failure of the Obama presidency. I'm sure the real leaders of their party – Rush Limbaugh and Grover Norquist - are quite happy.
Comments
#2
off subject - truckers from Mexico
This was an issue under Bush. Bush signed an executive order to allow truckers from Mexico to come into the USA and keep going --- they used to have to park and switch drivers - if not drivers and trucks. Then someone - can;t remember her name - allowed this to continue. head of some department. Now they are blaming Obama for this! I've been hearing calls come in and progressive talkers are not informed! this is not good!
#3
Truckers - there is a new program under Obama? by DOT to allow this. Not good. Mexico says to let the truck drivers in without another 'demo' program - which is easy to stop by not providing funds, However, this isn't good for Obama. Mexico raising TARIFFS because they want this open. Why can't the US stand up for American workers with TARIFFS again - against Mexico, CHINA, and others!
We had this happen in 2010 --- people were pissed off at Obama not being 'change you can believe in' and seeing the same old shit! I couldn't get people engaged enough to vote because they were mad at the lack of progress. This stuff is going to be used to take votes from Obama.
#4
Starve the Beast------No new taxes. Forget about all of that, what we need is jobs. The only issue right now should be about jobs. That's what we should all be talking about. Jobs. Jobs. Jobs. All day every day the only discussion we should be having is about how we get 15 million unemployed Americans back to work. Those 15 million job holders will produce plenty of revenues to fund infrastructure growth and a universal single payer health care system. Jobs. Jobs. Jobs. Peace
#5
Let's say we cede that Arthur Laffer was right when he proposed his Laffer Curve that the Conservatives like to roll out to justify cutting taxes. Let's give them the argument but counter with his curve is just that, a bell curve. Laffer's "theory" implies that a sweet spot exists were maximum revenue is generated by lowering taxes, but he also concedes that there comes a point when low taxation is counterproductive. When taxation is so low that it cannot fund basic governing then we have passed that sweet spot on the curve and are on the downward trajectory.
#6
Tim McVeigh was an atheist. I'm not saying that this invalidates any particular point, it's just sort of irritating to hear people on my side constantly making this mistake. :) He was definitely a right winger and all of that, but he wasn't Christian, Muslim, Hindu or anything.
#7
Didn't McVeigh blow up the Oklahoma Federal Building as payback for the Feds destruction of the Christian compound in Waco? Hmmm.....Christian compound.......militia movement.......right wing Christian causes? It all sounds very Christian terrorist, doesn't it? Peace
#8
Starve the Beast. No new taxes(money) for the EPA, Department of Education, child programs, SS, etc. What we nedd are Jobs, Jobs, Jobs. Why are those large corporations sitting on $2 trillion dollars in cash ? Why won't they hire unemployed Americans? Wouldn't that be the patriotic thing to do? Peace
#9
The day before his execution he claimed to be agnostic not atheist. While he drifted from his Catholic teachings, he maintained core beliefs. Not the same. Also, how do you explain his taking the sacrament before his execution if he was an atheist? I think you are making the same argument that O'Reilly made that Christians do not murder so murderers cease to be Christians.
#10
Maybe mathme can't wrap his/her head around the fact that there are such things as Chriatian terrorists? They were once called Crusaders. Then Nazis----they wanted to kill all of the Jews and all of the Godless Communists and Socialists. Peace
#11
I'm for spending cuts. I think it would be fine to make big cuts to defense spending. I'd be happy to cut welfare for corporations. I agree with the Republican'ts, we're spending way too much money on unnessary programs, like the Medicaid payments to anti-gay organiztions like Marcus Bachman's pray-away-the-gay counseling.
I'd also like to point out, since politicians love to use the metaphor (especially on the right) when a family is facing higher costs, they logically make cutbacks. You know what else families do when they are in such situations, the employed in the family are not shy about asking their employer for a raise to help compensate, nor are they shy about looking into the option of finding a different employer who can meet there pay requirments. The metaphor is correct, but the politicians never complete it, because it leads to logical conclusions that they don't want to bring up. If they can't get a raise from their corporate bosses, then its time that they go to work for the people, if they're expecting them to pay for their expenditures.
Not to mention that if they were running a household, Republican'ts are essentially saying lets keep the cable, and not pay the power bill... I can think of at least two obvious reasons why that's foolish, though I don't doubt there are more.
N
#12
Oh, now I get the connection. Catholics are not true Christians and the Pope is the anti-christ. So, since McVeigh was raised Catholic he must have actually worshipped the Devil. McVeigh claimed in his biography that he did not believe in Hell; and since the Devil of the Christian faith resides in Hell, this must mean he does not believe in the Devil. If you don't believe in the Devil then you can't believe in God since one comes with the other. Therefore, McVeigh has to be an atheist. He must have mistaken agnostic for atheist since they both start with the letter "a'.
#13
Separate the Debt Ceiling conversation from the Budget conversation. Debt Ceiling pays for our past mistakes, smart Budgetting corrects our future mistakes. Not the same things and should not be levers on each other.
#14
For Evangelical Christians your explanation would be quite logical. As for the rest of us --those Armageddonists are pretty strange folks. Peace
#15
Not spending on the correct things is always important. Your priorities seem to be well thought out. Especially with cutting the defense budget. Peace
#16
I like how the Republican argument has drifted from running government like a business to running it like a household. I have been out of work for 20 months and in order to stretch my unemployment compensation I have recently started using a credit card that has sat in a drawer for two years. I am doing this because I have entered into contractual agreements (house, car, phone ...) that consume almost all of my income. In order to meet these obligations, put food on my table, and fill the gas tank, I am raising my families' debt limit with hope that my employment situation will improve in the near future. How is this different from what, I'm certain, many families are doing or different from what our country has done for the past 90+ years.
#17
Wealthy are un-American
Thom mentioned that the president called on Americans to sacrifice, but the millionaires and billionaires are not sacrificing. Of course not, they are not Americans, they are traitors, they are sending jobs overseas, they are investing overseas, they are sheltering money overseas, etc.
As far as the lower classes sacrificing, that leads to accusations of "class warfare" against the wealthy. We should frame the issue differently and say the consumer class is losing ground, and without consumers, things are not sustainable.
#18
Matt Taibbi is reporting that the corporate tax holiday is gaining bi-partisan support.
#19
#20
Glad to hear Thom explain how SSI does contribute to the debt. I wager that most people did not understand when W said the SSI Trust Fund was just a filing cabinet full of worthless pieces of paper. It makes one think that W was spilling the beans on the Republican gameplan.
#21
Max Keiser and Mass Psychosis
A 26 minute videotape with the first 13 minutes on mass psychosis! One in six American adults is psychotic. One in five American children is prescribed an anti-psychotic drug. More personal debt more psychosis!!! Satan’s disciples are driving more Americans into a psychosis. Global debt is a global psychosis. Is Bernanke psychotic? We create a problem to sell more anti-psychotic drug. Psychotic financiers want more psychotics because these financiers can rip off more people and psychotic persons will not question these psychotic financiers.
Pharmaceutical companies are increasing their profits through the sales of anti-psychotic drugs from more American adults and children being diagnosed as psychotic. Satan’s disciples create problems so profits will increase through more prescribed anti-psychotic drugs. And, we call ourselves a good, holy, and saintly country. Psychotic CEOs and financiers are committing mortal sins through the breaking of the Fifth Commandment. We have Satan’s disciples controlling the money and wealth supplies. The Anti-Christ nation is becoming a zombie state. First, we are a police state; and now, we are a zombie state!
California has been noted as a trend setting state. Trends would originate in California and move eastward across the country. California is also known as the land of nuts and fruitcakes. We now see California’s influence across our country. The United States in Moral Sin is now known as the land of nuts and fruitcakes.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wUl6aFgL41U
Obama must now take on the Psychosis Party!!! Please make no mistake the Anti-Christ is a totally psychotic state!
#22
http://www.opednews.com/articles/Is-America-Caught-In-The-C-by-paul-craig-roberts-110727-582.html
Americans are air heads!!!
http://www.opednews.com/articles/America-Heading-for-Tyran-by-Stephen-Lendman-110727-858.html
America reaches the abyss of hell!!!
Personally, why do we need Republicans running for office? Let's just have Limbaugh and Norquist running the Republican Party!!!
#23
I recall reading one person’s account of heaven. He wrote that heaven is like a street of gold, diamonds, emeralds, and pearls. I could never feel comfortable with his account of heaven. I will share with you a factual experience and for me this is what I would want heaven to be. The experience took place at Yellowstone National Park. In the park there is a path that leads a person down about forty or fifty feet to the little falls and a bigger falls. As I walked down the path, I heard the crackling of the leaves from a slight breeze above. But, down about forty or fifty feet there was such a peaceful calmness. For me I would want heaven to be a peaceful calmness. I can only imagine and dream of what heaven would be.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxt5TsmEZaY
I have received the information and I have sent it to the funeral director to remove my pacemaker and send it to the University of Michigan’s Cardiovascular Center where the pacemakers are stored to be reused. Hopefully, my pacemaker will give renewed life for another human being.
#24
We had an enjoyable Wednesday, July 27, 2011. Our church newsletter had an article on Abigayle Ministries. In the article a fish and chips restaurant was mentioned. So, we tried the restaurant and than we drove to a frozen custard stand, the real frozen custard. Abigayle Ministries is a residential home for pregnant and unmarried women eighteen years and older. The women are also taught the basic child care principles. One of the Knights of Columbus is the ministries sponsor and it also raises money for food, diapers, etc. I also picked up a brochure on the ministries. i am amazed at how many ways we can help persons in need. Why are Catholic politicians and justices so opposed to helping God's children who are our brother and sisters in God's family??? We are all connected as human beings. I am truly saddened by all the build-up hatred in Catholics toward helping people.
For I know the plans I have for you" declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.." Jeremiah 29:11
The motto for Abigayle Ministries is "Life is precious from the start."
I BELIEVE THAT WOMEN ARE GOD'S GREATEST CREATION!!!!!
#25
Reflection of the week: ““We share our grave concern and dismay that the ongoing conversations and negotiations regarding our nation’s budget may yield an outcome that places individuals and families struggling with poverty at risk of even further hardship while shielding the wealthiest in our nation from any additional sacrifice.”-- Religious leaders letter to President Obama
#26
Patriotic Millionaires letter to the republicans:
One group to keep an eye on and I'm spreading the word: http://patrioticmillionaires.org/
I believe we need to get democratic politicians and forces that have money to combat republican money.
This is from their webpage - these millionaires are sending this to senate and house republicans:
We are writing to urge you to put our country ahead of politics.
For the fiscal health of our nation and the well-being of our fellow citizens, we ask that you increase taxes on incomes over $1,000,000.
We make this request as loyal citizens who now or in the past earned an income of $1,000,000 per year or more.
Our country faces a choice – we can pay our debts and build for the future, or we can shirk our financial responsibilities and cripple our nation’s potential.
Our country has been good to us. It provided a foundation through which we could succeed. Now, we want to do our part to keep that foundation strong so that others can succeed as we have.
Please do the right thing for our country. Raise our taxes.
#27
The success or failure of the Obama presidency? Thom, come on, most of the folks who listen to you, and most progressives, and a significant percentage of folks who campaigned, fund raised, caucused and voted for him are very clear his presidency is already a failure - since he is a total turncoat. The NY Times says he has to move to the center! only if he moves to the left can he move to the center. Good grief. Or bad grief. For better or worse, the days of the ascendancy of the US (and hopefully global capitalism and corporatism) are numbered. I just hope they don't take too much more toll on the environment and wildlife, and innocent folks while they are sinking the ship.
#28
The only thing that will make the tea party and republicans happy is if they destroy America, but I'm afraid that will not turn out to be enough; they will then be ordered by God to destroy the rest of the world, and then they will be happy. But wait- even if they destroy this entire planet, that would still leave the moon and the other planets, and all of the rest of God's creation to be destroyed before they can be truly happy. But then we get down to the real brass tacks, because what the republican leadership really wants is to destroy God. Then they will be happy. Really, truly, and completely happy.
In other words, there is absolutely no point in trying to give the republicans enough concessions to "make them happy," because there nothing they could be given that would cause them to say, "That's enough for me, I'm happy." Not going to happen. So we should just kick their asses in the elections and when they do manage to get elected we need to kick them out of office, and every time they try to do anything, they should see us standing in their way, because the fact that a republican wants to do a thing, is proof positive that that thing would harm us. And oddly enough, it's also proof that that thing would harm the republicans, but they're too dense to see that blatantly obvious fact.
I have an idea: we progressives need to take a page out of the tea party playbook and become more like them. Then they will be better able to understand our position. For instance, how about, until the tea party agrees not to destroy America, their members are not allowed to eat food, drink water, or go to the bathroom. And when they complain about how unfair that is, we can just say, "Hey, this entire thing is your fault and your fault alone. If you want to eat, drink, or go to the bathroom, all you have to do is be reasonable and agree to every single one of our demands without exception, and those demands include you taking training in what it means to be human."
#29
McVeigh was raised Catholic. Being raised in a religion has a lasting effect.
#30
Happiness for guys like Limpbaugh, Norquist, Cantor, Kochs, and Murdoch will go a little pale when the tea-baggers are standing in soup lines and finally realize these guys manipulated and played with their little minds........You think they're crazy now, just wait!.... Better beef up the security at those gated communties boys!..... Backlash is a bitch!
#31
"The New Homeless."
Here's a USA Today video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=obho7uBg3-A&feature=youtu.be and an article from The New Junkie Post addresing these http://newsjunkiepost.com/2011/07/03/the-debt-ceiling-political-theater-and-the-fire-sale-of-america/
IMO poverty is a subject you don't speak nearly enough about Thom.
The middle class had better stand up and recognize those who are already IN poverty because their joining them en masse.
#32
WI voter ID law that excludes college IDs even if from a state college (U of WI system campuses Madison, Milwaukee, etc.) is stricter than a current voter (ID) suppression law in Georgia. Georgia allows college IDs if the college is public but not if private. Georgia law has a disparate impact on African-American students at private colleges Morehouse (men) and Spelman (women) who are disenfranchised from using their college addresses to vote in Georgia. Public college students at Georgia Tech, Univ of Georgia can use their IDs to vote.
My comment about intelligent design/creationism for July 28 debate with Discovery Institute employee Casey Luskin: Christians dislike evolution because it contradicts concept of "God's plan" for all people.
Thom, ask Casey Luskin if Discovery Institute is still working with Turkey government to dispute or replace teaching of evolution in Turkish schools. PRI.org program "The World" reported collaboration of Discovery Institute and Turkish government education ministry twice in 2007 and 2009. It was, and still may be, a joining of fundamentalist Christians and Muslims to dumb down human knowledge of origins of life on earth.
#33
GOP mantra (Rush and Grover): "The ONLY thing wrong with America is that our richest poeple just don't have enough money."
#34
Wow! I'm new to this site, Thom, and I'm surprised at how many of the comments have nothing to do with the post they follow. I assume they're pursuing a back-and-forth initiated by an earlier post.
Anyhow, in response to the question you asked in this post, I don't have a clue as to whether Limbaugh and Norquist will be happy next week. However, I'm pretty sure that I and other progressives will be anything but happy. None of the players – including the President – seems interested in actually restoring the American economy. The struggle seems focused exclusively on how much or how little further damage to inflict.
Strange to see how eager how many Americans are to release the robber barons from regulation and civic responsibility; to invite them once again to grind the poor, the working class, and the middle class (as much of it as still exists) beneath their expensively shod heels.
I'm reminded of the line from The American President: "America isn't easy. America is advanced citizenship. You gotta want it bad, 'cause it's gonna put up a fight." Seems as if too few of us want it badly enough. Too few of us are willing to fight for democracy. Too many of us are eager to shed the weight of responsibility and welcome back the oligarchy.
#35
They didn't like catholics either, and a lot of them went to gas chambers. But ymhotep is totally correct: it's christian groups that want to blow up abortion clinics, and anyone who works there or might even be going in for help. Also on the crusader issue, the inquisition, and crusades were some of the bloodiest wars and terror EVER, both in Europe and the New World....(Mexico, Peru, etc.)
#36
re: 2950 10K Soup lines...........sorry, but the teabaggers (maybe not sharp enough to figure it out) will be thinking that the soup line they're standing in is a social welfare handout (whether public or privately cooked), and they'll be bitchin' that the soup needs salt or the bread is stale, and it's all the progressive's fault.
There is so much power in someone like the Limbaughs being paid to "spellbind", and they are very, very good at it, and make huge money doing it. We may see right thru it, but the sheeple, well......
The saddest thing is: I'll be in the soupline with those folks, listening to their same drivel, and being scared to speak up, because they may stone me to death.
#37
Yes Jobs Problem is Everything Obama tries to do for jobs GOP Baggers stall block lie twist facts - divert . ALL GOP Baggers have talked about & pushed is more and more CORP TAX CUTS ABORTION & GUNS What a bunch of greedy cowards Why are GOP voters so gullible and blind with hate for Obama that they refuse to see what is in front of their faces and what Bagger GOP really stands for ? It ain't us thats for sure
#38
Mr. Ferrera exhibits a common problem when discussing politics: anxiety about not having a response for everything the other side might throw at you. Nobody has all of the facts at their fingertips and we will all get responses that we are unable to refute on the spot. This is natural and there is no shame in it, provided that we have made a good effort to prepare for the debate and that we learn from it. Unfortunately many use this as a weapon and things quickly turn into a shouting match with little value. Some, in Peter's shoes will shrink because of their anxiety, others will lash out. We could all benefit from learning constructive ways of handling it.
Maybe both sides should go out and have a beer together.
#39
This has been my point for a long time. A tax rate approaching 100% is going to do bad things. A tax rate approaching 0% will not generate much income. There is a lot of room between 100% and 0%. Taking Laffer's ideas to their logical conclusion one would say that a progressive tax system is bad.
The whole theory is bull.
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