National Debt

[striperman36]

Charting the American Debt Crisis - Interactive - NYTimes.com

[spence]

So what you're saying is that Obama is acting like a Republican?

-spence

[detbuch]

Originally Posted by spence

So what you're saying is that Obama is acting like a Republican?

-spence

More specifically, like the Republicans and Democrats who expand the size of the Federal Government by spending more and more of the people's money. No doubt that their intentions are good. They want to "promote the general welfare." But they seem to believe that such promotion must, more and more, be done by the Federall Gvt. and less by the people and their local governments. Such welfare was not intended by the Constitution, and is well beyond the welfare that the central gvt. could provide through its enumerated powers, and welfare that must be provided to all in general, not specifically to some and not to others.

Yes, Obama is acting like those politicians of either party who see an overaching central government as the answer to our "problems." And they have no qualms about overfeeding it, because its overvalued importance to the well being of the people (and their own re-election) makes it too big to fail.

[spence]

Originally Posted by detbuch

More specifically, like the Republicans and Democrats who expand the size of the Federal Government by spending more and more of the people's money. No doubt that their intentions are good. They want to "promote the general welfare." But they seem to believe that such promotion must, more and more, be done by the Federall Gvt. and less by the people and their local governments. Such welfare was not intended by the Constitution, and is well beyond the welfare that the central gvt. could provide through its enumerated powers, and welfare that must be provided to all in general, not specifically to some and not to others.

Yes, Obama is acting like those politicians of either party who see an overaching central government as the answer to our "problems." And they have no qualms about overfeeding it, because its overvalued importance to the well being of the people (and their own re-election) makes it too big to fail.

I think the structure of this has been a long term erection

All well and good but you can't take a mulligan for the past century, these problems are here for the foreseeable future and need to be addressed in the current context.

-spence

[detbuch]

Originally Posted by spence

I think the structure of this has been a long term erection

Viagra in the form of higher taxes and higher debt ceilings does artificially keep it up.

All well and good but you can't take a mulligan for the past century, these problems are here for the foreseeable future and need to be addressed in the current context.

-spence

So why defend the 78 mulligans we've taken in the form of tampering with debt ceilings by doing it again. How about playing the game straight--don't spend what you don't have. Don't keep giving yourself another swing when the first swing was bad. Improve your performance. You don't get better by cheating, you just get more dependant on mulligans. If you don't play the game correctly, the foreseeable future is a hoodwink.

[spence]

Originally Posted by detbuch

So why defend the 78 mulligans we've taken in the form of tampering with debt ceilings by doing it again. How about playing the game straight--don't spend what you don't have. Don't keep giving yourself another swing when the first swing was bad. Improve your performance. You don't get better by cheating, you just get more dependant on mulligans. If you don't play the game correctly, the foreseeable future is a hoodwink.

I'd agree, if ever there was a call to flush all the bums out this is it. I think people thought the incoming Tea Party was an attempt at this...but it looks like they've mostly elected a number of crazies to Congress.

Had Boehner had the Blue Dogs to do deal with instead of his own party it's quite likely the House would have passed a reasonable bill the Senate would have had to put before the President to sign.

-spence

[detbuch]

Originally Posted by spence

I'd agree, if ever there was a call to flush all the bums out this is it. I think people thought the incoming Tea Party was an attempt at this...but it looks like they've mostly elected a number of crazies to Congress.

Obviously, we differ on who the bums are. I think it's reasonable to believe that those who were taking mulligans the past 50 years and expanding government for the past 100 or so years and the ones who are asking us to continue the process are the bums. They're the ones who got us here and want to get us deeper into the mess, not the Tea Party and their newly elected reps who want to stop this march into fiscal and unconstitutional oblivion.

Had Boehner had the Blue Dogs to do deal with instead of his own party it's quite likely the House would have passed a reasonable bill the Senate would have had to put before the President to sign.

-spence

Certainly, the caving in Republicans of the past would have come to a "reasonable accomodation" with the Dems (that is, giving the Dems everything they want but for some trifles the Dems what put back later anyway) out of fear the media would make them out to be "mean spirited" or such. The "media" is not so one sided as it used to be, and the Tea Party type Republicans don't seem to be quite as afraid as their predecessors. So they might put up a fight. They'll probably lose. Hope not.

[striperman36]

good luck with a balanced budget amendment.

[justplugit]

Originally Posted by detbuch

The "media" is not so one sided as it used to be, and the Tea Party type Republicans don't seem to be quite as afraid as their predecessors. .

As the media sees reality and the true mess we are in they almost have to
be less one sided or be seen as just plain silly by the American people.

The Tea Party types, to the shagrin of the libs, are nobody's lunch meat
and are not about to roll over and play dead. Rubio is a good example.