Friday Talking Points [181] -- Ads Obama Should Run
"Look! Up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's [insert your own "supercommittee" joke here]!"
Sigh. The collusion between Washington types and media types to provide cutesy labels for just about everything has entered a new phase, it seems.
The joint committee on reducing the deficit (I refuse to call it "super" because, well, it's just not) met this week, and immediately proved to just about everyone that the entire exercise is quite likely to produce nothing more than an increase in hot air over the Capitol building.
But maybe I'm being too cynical. Maybe the committee will do something superior. Maybe the sun will rise in the west tomorrow, too, who knows?
Enough of all that -- we'll have plenty of time between now and Thanksgiving to dissect the committee's machinations, so we're going to move quickly on to our own news.
Because today marks the fourth anniversary of this column's appearance. Woo hoo! FTP is four years old, meaning if it were human it would have stopped crapping in its diaper, be walking around under its own power by now, and forming rudimentary independent thoughts. Well, you'll have to be the judge of any parallels on this scale, I suppose. Ahem.
"But Chris," I hear some mathematically- and calendrically-astute readers exclaim, "four years is 208 weeks -- so why is this only Volume 181?" The answer is a simple one: we like to spring these anniversaries as a surprise on everyone, before you'd normally expect them! Well, that's as good an excuse as we could come up with, so it'll have to do.
The real reason is that we're sometimes lazy. Yes, we do take an occasional week off here. In our defense, the column is sometimes pre-empted by more important columns which have to also fall on a Friday (for arcane and obscure reasons), such as our two-part "best of" year-end column at the end of each December. So it is really a mix of pre-emption and downright laziness, if truth be told.
I started writing these columns in the hope that Democrats in Washington would take them to heart. There are simple rules to playing the political game in today's media environment, most of them from the advertising world (easy stuff like: "repeat things over and over again so they sink in"). Some people, early on in this column's life, were offended that I was even suggesting using the tactics of the opposition -- that the tactics themselves were bad, wrong, or even evil. I disagree. Tactics are tactics. They are neutral. It's all in how you use them, and what you use them for. Imagine a company who decided "repeating our phone number three times on a radio ad is a bad thing to do because our competition does it" -- and then imagine them going out of business because nobody called them up and ordered their products. Tactics can be used by Democrats to achieve the same effect for their ideas as Republicans continually manage to do (usually much better than Democrats) for theirs.
Sadly, today's Democrats seem just as much in need of advice on how to frame issues as they did back in 2007, so it's looking like we'll have to be writing these for another four years to come. [Here's the first-ever FTP column, for those who care about such things, and here is the first which really settled in to the current format.]
Oh, well, it certainly gives me something to do at the end of every week. But enough of this self-centered egotistical navel-gazing, let's get on with this week's show. First up, the awards, and then a special talking points section where we suggest a few ads President Obama might want to consider running.
President Obama has certainly been impressive out on the campaign trail in battleground states this week. He's been cheerleader-in-chief for his American Jobs Act, which economists estimate will put almost two million people in this country back to work. More on this in a bit.
But while Obama's been firing up the crowds, it only rises to the level of an Honorable Mention this week, for kicking off his campaign in such an energizing manner.
This week's Most Impressive Democrat Of The Week award goes to Senator Jeff Merkley from Oregon. Senator Merkley introduced an excellent new idea to the debate surrounding the supercommittee's work -- call on the Congressional Budget Office to "score" any legislation the supercommittee proposes not just on the federal budget impact, but also on the impact the legislation would have on jobs.
I wrote about this earlier in the week, and the more I think about it, the better this idea sounds. After all, it boils down to simple fairness -- let the American people know the data, and then let them decide whether to support such ideas or not. In fact, the CBO should score all major legislation in this fashion. Want to do some budget-cutting? Fine -- then please let us know how many jobs it will kill.
In fact, I think it's such a good idea that I think Obama should pick it up and run with it. But, again, I'm getting ahead of myself here -- more on that in a bit.
For such a stunningly good and impressively original idea, Senator Merkley is this week's winner of the Most Impressive Democrat Of The Week award. Democrats should be falling over one another in the rush to get behind this idea (and if your elected representative isn't, contact them and demand to know why!).
[Congratulate Senator Jeff Merkley on his Senate contact page, to let him know you appreciate his efforts.]
Democrats scored a very disappointing loss in New York this week, as a Republican won a special election for a House seat last held by the GOP in the 1920s. Now, this is cause for concern, but not as much as you might think. In the first place, New York state is about to lose a few seats in the House of Representatives (due to reapportionment), and everyone expects the NY-9 district to be one of the ones on the chopping block. So the Republicans will hold the seat until next year, when it will then disappear.
The second reason this may not be the catastrophe some are painting it as is that special elections aren't usually a very good barometer of nationwide trends. The Democrats, you will remember, won quite a number of very tough special elections -- right before they were routed in 2010 (including one in New York which had been in Republican hands since the Civil War). All of those special election wins didn't change anything much for the 2010 election, however.
Thirdly, the special election was to replace a Democrat who was forced to resign in disgrace after sending photos of his genitals out into the ether. Anthony Weiner's downfall may have contributed to the voters giving the other team a chance (in much the same way as Democrats captured Mark Foley's seat after his disgrace).
But whatever the reason, and whatever the spin, David Weprin's loss this week was a big disappointment. Which makes him, by default, the Most Disappointing Democrat Of The Week.
[We are not going to provide any public contact information for Democratic candidate David Weprin. Contacting him now would just be rubbing salt in his wounds, and that would be unseemly, wouldn't it?]
Volume 181 (9/16/11)
Since it's our anniversary, and we opened the champagne a wee bit early, we're going to provide a special edition of the talking points today. Rather than our seven discrete (but never discreet) talking points, today we were hit with a brainstorm (or, perhaps, a champagne cork -- it's hard to tell).
Since the president is not facing a primary challenger, and since the president has raised a whopping big pile of money already, and (most importantly) since the president has rediscovered the joys of speaking directly to the American people about his agenda -- why not buy some political ads, now?
OK, you can be forgiven for thinking me crazy (or tipsy) for proposing such a radical idea, but hear me out, if you will, Dear Reader. Obama should run a few ads right now which do not even mention the election. He's got the money to do so, and he can follow all the election ad rules and pay for them out of his campaign funds, so the whole thing is nice and legal (if rather unorthodox or even unprecedented). Instead of saying "vote for me!" these ads should say "pass my jobs bill" in as many creative ways as possible.
Obama discovered the power of the Bully Pulpit during the debt ceiling debate, and he could leverage this is a big way right now in the jobs debate. So far, he is doing his best to do so, in the traditional manner of speaking to friendly crowds in battleground states. But he shouldn't stop there -- Obama should boldly roll out a few television ads that call on Americans to demand that Congress act now on his jobs bill.
Obama is already setting himself up to "run against Congress" or even the Trumanesque "run against a do-nothing Congress." This is the campaign the White House is looking for, because Congress' poll numbers are much worse than Obama's. Positioning the president against Republican intransigence in Congress would be enormously helped by running ads right now demanding the public weigh in on this debate. This would keep the pressure on them, in a big way. Absent this pressure, Obama's jobs bill may just linger on the vine with no action whatsoever. With the pressure, Congress may actually wake up and do something. It's not only Obama who will have to face the voters next year, after all.
It'd cost the president's re-election campaign some money, but not all that much. Run these ads on national broadcast television (or, at the least, on cable), and all the news organizations would pick them up and run them as a "news story" -- gaining far wider attention than the cost of running the ad. Even these costs would be easy to bear, as Obama's campaign has a pile of money right now that they're hoarding for next year.
Anyway, here are my three ideas for political ads which would do President Obama a world of good right now. It would be a bold move on the political stage -- using campaign funds to speak to the American people about an agenda item, and not the election itself. It would raise the level of attention the president is getting on his jobs plan. In fact, I just can't see any downside to running a few of these in the next few weeks.
You must match my jobs numbers
Republicans, predictably, howled when Obama introduced his jobs plan. The complaint they settled on was the laughable claim that Obama was taking a "my way or the highway" approach to legislation. Perhaps they felt it was a violation of their copyright on the idea, since this has been the main Republican political position for years and years now.
Obama has been pointing this out, but he needs to do so while at the same time drawing an important line in the sand. Picture this ad beginning with still images of out-of-work Americans, perhaps in jobs fair lines. The scene morphs into a shot of the Capitol dome at night, looming ominously. Show a headline trumpeting the 1.9 million jobs figure, and then fade to a shot of Obama speaking directly to the camera (for the last few sentences), with just about any neutral background. The entire ad text (for all these ad ideas) is spoken by President Obama himself.
Too many of our fellow Americans are out of work. The public thinks unemployment and the economy should be the number one priority of Washington right now, and I fully agree with them. We've got to take action to get people back to work, and we've got to do it immediately.
I have sent my plan to create jobs over to Congress. The American Jobs Act is predicted to create almost two million jobs. Congress needs to pass this bill as soon as possible, or add their own ideas for job creation. I'm open to anyone's ideas for creating jobs, because it is so important to every American right now.
But these ideas need to be just as good, when it comes to creating jobs. Congress needs to propose legislation that creates at least the 1.9 million jobs the American Jobs Act would create -- if not more. Any ideas are welcome, but at the end of the day the bottom line needs to be the same, in terms of jobs created. We can work together to create almost two million jobs. We must do so, and we must do so now.
I'm Barack Obama, and I approved this message.
Pick up the phone -- "We can't wait!"
After running the first ad for a week or so, change it to the following call to action. This one sharpens the divide between Obama and the glacial pace of Congress -- something the American public is already annoyed at.
This worked amazingly well for Obama during the debt ceiling debate. When he urged Americans to contact Congress, they responded in droves. They overwhelmed the switchboards and the web servers on Capitol Hill the next day. Elected officials take note of this sort of thing, because each of those calls and emails is from a voter.
This ad should start out with a still shot of Obama waving the American Jobs Act in front of an audience earlier this week. Morph to another ominous (and dark) shot of the Capitol. Add another headline on the 1.9 million jobs figure as an overlay. Close with a shot of a depressed-looking American job seeker watching television, and then dialing a phone. End with white lettering on a black screen: "You can make them act." Fade this to "We can't wait any longer" at the very end.
I'd like America to know that Congress has a plan on its desk right now to create almost two million jobs. The American Jobs Act is ready to go -- all it takes is for Congress to act on it. I think this proposal deserves an up-or-down vote in both chambers of Congress. I think the American people send their representatives in Washington so that they can cast votes on solving important problems, rather than spending all their time figuring out new creative ways to slow things down.
We could begin creating almost two million new American jobs within a week or so. That's really all the time it would take to pass this bill through the House and Senate and get it on my desk to sign into law. America is sick of waiting for Congress to act to make the unemployment situation better. At the very least, Congress should be able to act by Thanksgiving.
I'm urging each and every American who wants to see almost two million new jobs created to pick up the phone and call their congressman and their senators and demand action on the American Jobs Act by Thanksgiving. Do it today. Hold their feet to the fire. Call on them to act, and to act now! Tell them directly: "We can't wait any longer!"
I'm Barack Obama and I approved this message.
Tell the people the truth
As I said before, President Obama should get behind Senator Merkley's idea, and give it a big presidential push. This ad should be run last, after the second ad produces the desired result of overloading the phones up on Capitol Hill again. Just when the phone calls start tapering off, give the people a brand new reason to call once again.
Open with a still shot of an accountant in a green eyeshade, bent over a desk, working hard. Then begin a slideshow of quick shots of happy Americans working at all types of job -- construction, police officers, firefighters, teachers, white collar workers, etc. Cut to the same shot of Obama waving the printed American Jobs Act in front of a crowd, and the same headline shot of "1.9 million jobs." Cut to a live shot of Obama, picking up a telephone and holding it out to the viewer. End with white text on black: "Tell the American people the truth about jobs."
The Congressional Budget Office is the scorekeeper for bills making their way through Congress. The CBO lets everyone know, in a non-partisan way, the impact any bill will have on the federal budget. But the CBO also can score the same bills on their impact on unemployment and jobs.
Senator Jeff Merkley has proposed that important legislation being considered right now in Congress be scored in this fashion. Every big bill should have numbers not just for how much money it will raise or cost, but also for how many jobs it would create or end.
I agree with Senator Merkley. I am calling on Democrats and Republicans alike to support this idea. Large bills should be scored so we can see if they will create jobs, or kill jobs. I am requesting that the CBO score my American Jobs Act in this fashion, to see if private economists who have predicted it will create 1.9 million new jobs are right or not. I think all major legislation should be graded on the jobs scale in this way. We need to tell the American people the truth about the effect on jobs these ideas really have. Why would anyone be against telling the people the truth?
If you agree with me, pick up the phone and let your representatives in Washington know how you feel. Score all bills on jobs! Let's see whose ideas are better for the economy, before they are voted on!
I'm Barack Obama, and I approved this message.
-- Chris Weigant
All-time award winners leaderboard, by rank
Follow Chris on Twitter: @ChrisWeigant
Cross-posted at: Democratic Underground
Cross-posted at: Democrats For Progress
Cross-posted at: The Huffington Post
Now, this is cause for concern, but not as much as you might think.
No matter how it's spun, this is a HUGE loss for the Democrats in general and Obama specifically.
Because, no matter how you slice it, this election was first and foremost about Obama and his policies.
Make no mistake about it. Obama was representing Democrats in this election and that is why the GOP won it.
Since the president is not facing a primary challenger,
... YET... :D
Hillary has been getting a lot of good press lately.. :D
As far as the Jobs package??
Obama is having more trouble convincing his fellow Democrats rather than the GOP...
"PASS THIS BILL!!!"
-Barack Obama
"Maybe later..."
-Harry Reid
By the bi, do you have a Most Creepiest Democrat Of The Week Award??
Because having a President say, "If you love me, help me pass this bill" is about the creepiest quote of all time by a sitting President.
I don't think even Clinton ever got that creepy and Clinton was pretty creepy himself..
Just sayin'....
Michale.....
"Discrete but not discreet"....ravishing
The pick of the literate.
Discrete Indiscretions?
Tactics are tactics. They are neutral.
The particular tactics in question are pretty much neutral, but in general, no. The mere fact that something is being done as a small part of a larger purpose does not protect it from moral scrutiny. The larger purpose is typically the greater source of moral significance. But if the tactic itself has morally significant characteristics, the mere fact of being a tactic does not eliminate that significance.
Michale....
Can I assume I won't be recieving a response?
As time permits
tm
TM,
Can I assume I won't be recieving a response?
To which??
[2]?
Michale.....
Apparently "right now" for the President's jobs bill means in a month or so..
GOP machinations??
Nope..
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2011/09/obama-jobs-speech-right-now-dick-durbin.html
Michale.....
This is getting really interesting - Obama is definitely stepping up.
His use of balance to frame the debate is fantastic: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/20/us/politics/obama-vows-veto-if-deficit-plan-has-no-tax-increases.html?hp
This is a fight he can win and one I think the GOP may regret picking as the last thing the GOP wants the national conversation to be about is the class warfare which they've been waging since Reagan.
CW- I went back and re-read your article on "class warfare" as, of course, this will be one of the GOP's claims. I wish Obama would say what you wrote.
But he still did a pretty good job setting the stage by saying: "This is not class warfare. It’s math."
Great line.
Anyways, I'm tremendously encouraged by recent events!
-David
David,
Well, I am happy you are happy. :D
But, at the risk of peein' on yer parade...
Obama isn't fighting with the GOP over this boondoggle of a Jobs bill..
He is fighting with his own Democrats... Hell, there is now some real talk about Obama being primaried...
But hay.... If Obama wants to foist a trillion and a half of new taxes on the American people in the middle of a recession, more power too 'im..
Let's have the CBO score how many jobs THAT will cost, eh?? :D
Michale.....
'The last thing you want to do is to raise taxes in the middle of a recession'...
-Barack Obama, 2009
Once again, President Obama's pre-Presidential words come back to bite him on the arse....
I'm just sayin'....
Michale......
He is fighting with his own Democrats... Hell, there is now some real talk about Obama being primaried.
The only people talking about that are conservatives like Dick Cheney. And Bill Clinton himself had the best line over the weekend:
“I’m always gratified whenever anyone says anything nice about her. And I very much agree that she’s done a good job, but I also have a high regard for Vice President Cheney’s political skills. And I think one of those great skills is sowing discord among the opposition.”
If Obama wants to foist a trillion and a half of new taxes on the American people in the middle of a recession
From what I can tell, the tax increases are all through closing corporate loopholes and doing things like ending the Bush tax cuts on the wealthiest (not everyone).
It would be nice to see those who have benefited most from our economy pay their fair share of taxes for a change.
They certainly don't need to be coddled with corporate welfare anymore.
-David
Ya also need to keep in mind that the Obama administration is not just sticking it to the rich..
New government fees pepper Obama deficit plan
More than $130B in new government fees pepper Obama deficit plan
WASHINGTON (AP) -- It's not just millionaires who'd pay more under President Barack Obama's latest plan to combat the deficit.
Air travelers, federal workers, military retirees, wealthier Medicare beneficiaries and people taking out new mortgages are among those who would pay more than $130 billion in new government revenues raised through new or increased fees. These fees are advertised as "savings" in administration budget documents.
Airline passengers, for instance, would see their federal security fees double from $5 to $10 for a nonstop round-trip and triple to $15 by 2017, raising $25 billion over the coming decade. Federal employees would contribute $21 billion more to their pensions over the same period. Military retirees would pay a $200 fee upon turning 65 to have the government pay their out-of-pocket Medicare expenses. They'd also pay more for non-generic prescription drugs.
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/New-government-fees-pepper-apf-4120540659.html?x=0&.v=2
But that's just collateral damage, right??
No need to be concerned about retirees or seniors or anyone like that, eh?? :^/
Michale......
Ya also need to keep in mind that the Obama administration is not just sticking it to the rich.
I never said he was. This isn't about "sticking it to the rich". Its about shared sacrifice and a balanced approach.
Whereas the Republican plan is about "shared sacrifice" from everyone but the rich.
This isn't about "sticking it to the rich".
Oh come now. I may have been born at night, but it wasn't LAST night. :D
That is EXACTLY what it's about.
We have already established that the "rich" already pay MORE than their "fair" share of the taxes..
Remember?? The top 20% pay 80% of the taxes??
The Left has the "the rich can afford to pay more so they should pay more" mentality. If that's not sticking it to the rich, what is??
Whereas the Republican plan is about "shared sacrifice" from everyone but the rich.
So, the rich do nothing for the country? Who do you think hires the workers?? Provides the jobs?? Run the companies that make all the things that Americans want and need??
I'll give you a hint. It's not the middle class or the poor...
The Obama Administration is simply fanning the "US vs THEM" flames for political gain. Obama is trying to demonize the rich to foster a "common enemy" approach so Americans will forget the fact that his policies made things 20 times worse...
What makes it so pathetic is that A} the Left actually buys into it and 2} Obama will turn right around and hit those "demons" up for campaign contributions...
Do you HONESTLY think that Obama and the Democrats will put forth tax legislation that the "rich" can't evade??
They **ARE** the rich, fer chreest's sake!!
If they had the integrity to write legislation that would actually FORCE them to pay more, then they would have they integrity to actually pay more WITHOUT being forced to do it.
They don't, so they don't...
Michale.....
The only people talking about that are conservatives like Dick Cheney. And Bill Clinton himself had the best line over the weekend:
Nader is a conservative?? Taylor Marsh is a conservative??
You need to get out more, David. :D
From what I can tell, the tax increases are all through closing corporate loopholes and doing things like ending the Bush tax cuts on the wealthiest (not everyone).
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/New-government-fees-pepper-apf-4120540659.html?x=0&.v=2
Michale.....
On a totally and completely unrelated note....
http://entertainment.blogs.foxnews.com/2011/09/20/civil-war-era-photo-eerily-resembles-nicolas-cage-sparks-vampire-rumors/?test=faces
Who knew that Nicholas Cage had a time machine!! :D
Michale.....
Why does it bug you so much, Michale, that everyone should be asked to contribute?
It's already been proven that trickle down theory doesn't create jobs. Just look at the Bush tax cuts. They didn't create new jobs.
I just want to be sure about this though. Are you going on the record and saying everyone should be asked to contribute but the wealthy?
It should only come from poor people and the middle class?
Is that what you're saying? Because that's what it sounds like you're saying.
And that sounds more like class warfare than anything Obama has proposed.
-David
Why does it bug you so much, Michale, that everyone should be asked to contribute?
Two reasons..
1. I know it's all just political BS.. The people making the laws *ARE* the rich... They are not about to pass any legislation that will actually make themselves pay more..
B. It's being footloose and fancy free with someone else's money... If the rich on the Left are so sure paying more taxes is the right thing to do, WHY DON'T THEY DO IT??? Let them put THEIR money where their mouths are. THEN we'll see how well it works...
It's all pure unadulterated political hypocrisy...
And THAT is why it bugs me so much...
It's already been proven that trickle down theory doesn't create jobs. Just look at the Bush tax cuts. They didn't create new jobs.
And look at the Porkulus spending.. THAT not only did not create new jobs, it put the whole of the economy in the toilet...
I just want to be sure about this though. Are you going on the record and saying everyone should be asked to contribute but the wealthy?
Are you on record as saying that the wealthy do NOT contribute???
All I am saying is that raising taxes in recession is moronic..
And President Obama agrees with me. At least he DID, back in '09...
Is that what you're saying? Because that's what it sounds like you're saying.
All I am saying is that if it is such a grand and perfect solution to the problem, why don't the Soroses and the Obamas and the Buffets of this country show us poor unenlightened how it works??
I'll tell you why..
Because it WON'T work...
All it will do is give the Democrats more money to spend stupidly...
All the taxes in the world will NOT help, if the SPEND SPEND SPEND mindset is not changed...
It's like giving a teenager more and more money that they blow on completely asinine crap..
Will giving that teenager MORE money teach them how to manage their money better??
Of course it won't...
Why do you think that giving more money to the government will fix things?
Has it EVER worked out that way in the past??
Michale.....
Don't take my word for it..
Look at the FACTS...
On average, the wealthiest people in America pay a lot more taxes than the middle class or the poor, according to private and government data. They pay at a higher rate, and as a group, they contribute a much larger share of the overall taxes collected by the federal government.
The 10 percent of households with the highest incomes pay more than half of all federal taxes. They pay more than 70 percent of federal income taxes, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
http://news.yahoo.com/fact-check-rich-taxed-less-secretaries-070642868.html
THAT is why this is a "STICK IT TO THE RICH" issue..
The Left wants more money for their agenda and their attitude is "The Rich can afford it"...
Is that really fair as you see fair??
If THAT is fair, then why doesn't Buffet send me $1million?? After all, he can afford it, right?? :D
Michale....
"TAX THE RICH!! TAX THE RICH"
It's a great political slogan...
But like most political slogans, it comes up wanting, once the facts are examined...
If Democrats want to support a campaign that sticks it to the rich, solely based on the fact that they can afford it, more power to them..
Have it it.. Have a ball..
But stop with the BS that it's about making the rich pay "their fair share"...
When you look at the FACT that the rich already pay MORE than their fair share, PLUS the fact that it's the rich who drive this economy it's apparent to any political agnostic that the Democrats are simply pushing an agenda that punishes the rich for their success and gives the Democrats more money to spend on THEIR own agenda..
An agenda that, we have readily seen, is NOT in the best interests of this country...
Michale.....
Michale,
Let's see. You've run the gamut from: Dems are waging class warfare to talking about some vague and shadowy Democratic agenda to a rant about Warren Buffett sending you a million dollars to bringing George Soros into the equation back to Dems are trying to stick it to the rich.
Let me simplify things for you ...
- There's no conspiracy involving George Soros.
- I don't see how this could be "sticking it to the rich" when it asks something of everyone.
- Screaming "class warfare" is a Republican tactic. One that's been very successful, but one that in this case doesn't match reality.
- Democrats proposed a balanced plan that asks something from everyone in order to help our economy and bring down the deficit.
Obama offered a plan which asks something from everyone. That is, it's based on shared sacrifice.
The plan conservatives have offered is a plan that asks for sacrifice ONLY from the middle class and poor.
Seriously, that's the Republican plan: Cut services to the middle class and poor and give more tax breaks to the wealthy.
One party has a balanced plan, the other is offering a plan that benefits their corporate donors.
Who's really waging "class warfare" again?
-David
Or, even better ...
http://veracitystew.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/Sign_Class-War.jpg
- There's no conspiracy involving George Soros.
I never said there was a conspiracy... I simply say that if anyone doesn't pay extra taxes voluntarily, then they have absolutely NO moral authority to preach to the masses..
And no one, to date, has come up with any logical reason to dispute this..
- I don't see how this could be "sticking it to the rich" when it asks something of everyone.
Really?? What is Obama asking from anyone BUT the rich???
- Screaming "class warfare" is a Republican tactic. One that's been very successful, but one that in this case doesn't match reality.
Actually, until recently, it was a Democrat tactic...
- Democrats proposed a balanced plan that asks something from everyone in order to help our economy and bring down the deficit.
1.5 TRILLION in new taxes is NOT a "balanced" plan, period...
Tell ya what. When Democrats get rid of CrapCare, THEN I'll believe they are serious about deficit reduction.
The plan conservatives have offered is a plan that asks for sacrifice ONLY from the middle class and poor.
For example??
Can you list ANY sacrifices??
The only sacrifices that are being asked is that Democrats reign in their orgasm of spending..
Seriously, do you think that this country can just spend and spend and spend it's way out of this??
Greece tried that. Look what happened to them..
When are ya'all going to realize that the Democrat's vision of our economy simply won't work...
Granted, the GOP plan wasn't all that either... But at least it didn't totally bankrupt this country and result in the reduction of the US credit rating..
That was ALL Democrat...
Remember, the FIRST thing you have to do when in an economic hole...
STOP DIGGING......
Why isn't that understood by our Democrat leaders???
Michale.....
Really?? What is Obama asking from anyone BUT the rich???
Let's start with your own article you posted earlier: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/New-government-fees-pepper-apf-4120540659.html?x=0&.v=2
Or are you going to retract that now?
It also includes cuts to Medicare and Medicaid that the GOP asked for as well as reductions in spending on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Granted, the GOP plan wasn't all that either... But at least it didn't totally bankrupt this country and result in the reduction of the US credit rating.
I seem to recall it did. Removing regulations caused the financial crisis. And the GOP caused our credit rating to drop too with their "faux crisis" when the ratings agencies worried that we wouldn't pay our bills because of political intransigence.
-David
Let's start with your own article you posted earlier:
OK, good. So we are agreed that Obama's actions are going to be hurting the very people he claims to want to help..
That it's not accidental collateral damage. That Obama is purposely going after more money from Seniors and Military Retirees..
At least we got that settled. :D
Removing regulations caused the financial crisis.
Assumes facts not in evidence.
Here's the thing. Your whole "TAX THE RICH" case is based on a series of facts and a completely off the wall assumption..
FACT: This country's economy is in the toilet.
FACT: The rich have a lot of money.
Since the Rich have a lot of money and the economy is in the toilet, the conclusion is that it must be the fault of the rich that this country's economy is in the toilet..
BEDEMIR: Quiet, quiet. Quiet! There are ways of telling whether
she is a witch.
CROWD: Are there? What are they?
BEDEMIR: Tell me, what do you do with witches?
VILLAGER #2: Burn!
CROWD: Burn, burn them up!
BEDEMIR: And what do you burn apart from witches?
VILLAGER #1: More witches!
VILLAGER #2: Wood!
BEDEMIR: So, why do witches burn?
[pause]
VILLAGER #3: B--... 'cause they're made of wood...?
BEDEMIR: Good!
CROWD: Oh yeah, yeah...
BEDEMIR: So, how do we tell whether she is made of wood?
VILLAGER #1: Build a bridge out of her.
BEDEMIR: Aah, but can you not also build bridges out of stone?
VILLAGER #2: Oh, yeah.
BEDEMIR: Does wood sink in water?
VILLAGER #1: No, no.
VILLAGER #2: It floats! It floats!
VILLAGER #1: Throw her into the pond!
CROWD: The pond!
BEDEMIR: What also floats in water?
VILLAGER #1: Bread!
VILLAGER #2: Apples!
VILLAGER #3: Very small rocks!
VILLAGER #1: Cider!
VILLAGER #2: Great gravy!
VILLAGER #1: Cherries!
VILLAGER #2: Mud!
VILLAGER #3: Churches -- churches!
VILLAGER #2: Lead -- lead!
ARTHUR: A duck.
CROWD: Oooh.
BEDEMIR: Exactly! So, logically...,
VILLAGER #1: If... she.. weighs the same as a duck, she's made of wood.
BEDEMIR: And therefore--?
VILLAGER #1: A witch!
-Monty Python And The Holy Grail
I know I know.. It's long.. Put it shows my point quite nicely...
This economy is not in the toilet because the rich have more money than others.
This economy is in the toilet because our Democrat leaders were more interested in pursuing their own Party agenda and less interested in what's best for this country.
THAT is why our economy is in the toilet. THAT is why their our no jobs to be found.. THAT is why our credit rating was downgraded..
And now, you are proposing that more of the same will fix things, make them better??
Your logic escapes me. :D
I seem to recall it did. Removing regulations caused the financial crisis. And the GOP caused our credit rating to drop too with their "faux crisis" when the ratings agencies worried that we wouldn't pay our bills because of political intransigence.
So the fact that Democrats refused to discipline their spending had NOTHING to do with it, eh? :D
Well, I am certainly glad you are not being partisan about it. :D
The rating agencies weren't concerned that the US "wouldn't" pay it's bills. The ratings agencies were concerned that the us *COULDN'T* pay it's bills, due to Democrats and their orgasmic spending.
And how did the rating agencies get the idea that the US couldn't pay it's bills??
From the Democrats and their "THE SKY IS FALLING" fear-mongering. Even without the borrowing increase, the USA could still have met it's financial obligations..
Besides, the GOP was just following OBAMA's advice from a few years ago. You remember. Obama himself said that increasing the Debt ceiling was an indication of poor leadership..
Boy, he sure called it, eh?? :D
Michale.....
Let me ask you this.. Let's just get it down to brass tacks.
Do you think that giving more money to the Federal Government, thru taxes, without any more fiscal discipline will make things better?
Michale....
Your whole "TAX THE RICH" case is based on a series of facts and a completely off the wall assumption.
It's your tax the rich case. I'm not arguing that at all. At this point, you appear to be arguing with someone else who isn't here.
-David
What a difference a few weeks make, eh?
Last month, it was the GOP who was the epitome of evil for threatening a government shutdown over a compromise..
Reid warns shutdown is possible
http://thehill.com/homenews/news/182679-reid-government-shutdown-is-possible
This month, it's the Democrats who are not compromising...
Remind me again the difference between Republicans and Democrats??
I seem to have forgotten... :D
Michale....
It's your tax the rich case. I'm not arguing that at all. At this point, you appear to be arguing with someone else who isn't here.
My mistake..
So, there is no push to tax the rich in the middle of a recession..
Whew!! Glad to hear that..
Because, like Obama said, raising taxes in the middle of a recession is just moronic...
:D
Michale.....
David,
Let me put it to you this way.
If I thought for just one iota of a second that Democrats were actually sincere about wanting to help this country by taxing the rich, I would be all over it like white on crap... Or stink on rice... Or something like that.
Because yes, I am idealistic enough to believe that, if you have more, you should give more.. But forcing people to be magnanimous and generous is simply not the way to do it..
So, I would be completely onboard with you if it was actually a case of helping this country thru tough times..
But the actions of our political "leaders" are just a bunch of fear-mongering class warfare Us vs Them crap that is only meant to serve the Democratic Party at the expense of this country.
This being the case, I simply WILL NOT support it...
It's not that I don't agree with you that the rich should give more, even though they give the most right now..
It's that I won't be part and parcel to a Party that pits Americans against Americans for political gain...
Michale.....
It's that I won't be part and parcel to a Party that pits Americans against Americans for political gain.
I'm glad to hear you'll be talking to the people who are here and not screaming about the horrible "Hysterical Left" anymore.
Best of luck in your new endeavor!
-David
New???
That's ALWAYS been my endeavor.
To remind everyone that, when all is said and done, we are all Americans and we should keep that foremost in our minds, myself included...
Michale.....
Normally, I don't pay no mind nor heed to Michelle "Marie Antoinette" Obama...
But this is just beyond the pale...
Recession????
http://houston.culturemap.com/newsdetail/09-21-11-09-26-michelle-obama-dazzles-wearing-diamond-bangles-by-h-towns-katie-decker-23/
What recession.... :^/
I think I learned about this kinda stuff at OCS..
How *NOT* to show leadership.....
Wearing $42,000 bracelets while millions of people are out of work and millions upon millions more are below the poverty line surely qualifies on how NOT to set an example..
Michale.....
House approves stopgap funding, Reid says Senate will block
http://thehill.com/homenews/house/183487-house-stopgap-funding-late-night-vote-shutdown
I thought it was irresponsible and reckless to use shutting down the government as a political bargaining chip???
Oh wait..
It's only irresponsible and reckless when REPUBLICANS do it..
My mistake.... :^/
Michale.....