US debt limit: Obama and Boehner trade blows on impasse

Source - BBC News

 

US President Barack Obama and Republican House Speaker John Boehner have blamed each other for the deadlock over the federal debt crisis, as a deadline to avert a default looms.

 

Mr Obama condemned the Republicans' insistence on steep budget cuts and warned of a "reckless" outcome if the debt ceiling is not raised by Congress.

 

Mr Boehner responded by accusing the president of seeking a "blank cheque".

 

The US risks default without a deal to raise the borrowing limit by 2 August.

 

The federal government runs a budget deficit that topped $1.5tn (£920bn) this year, and has amassed a national debt of $14.3tn.

'Balanced approach'

 

Votes to raise the US debt limit have historically been a matter of routine in the US Congress, but this year, Republicans - buoyed by a newly elected crop of fiscal conservatives - have refused to agree to a debt increase without significant reductions in the budget deficit.

 

In negotiations, the chief sticking points are Republican resistance to raising taxes and the Democrats' desire to protect social programmes for the poor and elderly, and a public pension scheme.

 

In a live televised address on Monday night, Mr Obama said: "Republican House members have essentially said that the only way they'll vote to prevent America's first-ever default is if the rest of us agree to their deep, spending cuts-only approach."

 

The president reiterated his call for a "balanced approach", based on a mixture of spending cuts and tax increases on the rich.

 

He said the only reason this was not "on its way to becoming law right now is because a significant number of Republicans in Congress are insisting on a cuts-only approach".

 

That approach, he added "doesn't ask the wealthiest Americans or biggest corporations to contribute anything at all".

 

He said: "Most Americans, regardless of political party, don't understand how we can ask a senior citizen to pay more for her Medicare before we ask corporate jet owners and oil companies to give up tax breaks that other companies don't get."

Concern over jobs

 

Responding to the president immediately after his speech, Mr Boehner insisted the US government's "spending binge" was over.

 

Click to play

 

John Boehner: "The president wanted a blank cheque six months ago and he wants a blank cheque today"

 

"The president has often said we need a 'balanced' approach - which in Washington means: we spend more... you pay more. Having run a small business, I know those tax increases will destroy jobs."

 

Mr Boehner agreed the US "cannot default on its debt obligations", but showed no indication he or his Republican caucus were willing to compromise on tax increases.

 

And he called on Democrats to approve Republican proposals.

 

The president and Republican and Democratic leaders of the House and Senate have been negotiating for weeks over legislation to raise the debt ceiling and cut the nation's budget deficit.

Continue reading the main story

 

The talks have broken down several times. In order to become law, any plan would require agreement from disparate factions within both parties and to pass both chambers of Congress.

 

In Monday's latest round of negotiations, Senate Democrats introduced a plan that would trim $2.7tn (£1.66tn) over a decade.

 

The plan would protect social programmes for the poor and elderly and a public pension programme - all popular among Democrats. It would not raise new tax revenue.

 

House Republicans, meanwhile, unveiled their own plan that included $1.2tn (£736tn) in cuts, caps on future spending, and offered a $1tn debt ceiling increase - not enough to last through the 2012 election.

 

In his White House address later, Mr Obama firmly rejected the Republican plan, in part because it would require another round of debt limit talks in six months.

 

"We know what we have to do to reduce our deficits," he said. "There's no point in putting the economy at risk by kicking the can further down the road."

 

He endorsed the Senate Democrats' plan as "a much better path", though one that would fall short of his goals to reform the tax system and social programmes.

 

If the debt ceiling is not raised, the US Treasury could run out of money to pay all of its bills - which could lead to interest rate rises, threaten the US economy and in turn the global recovery.

 

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And, another article - this time a satirical one... I've included this because there are times when satire can cut through all the crap to really get to the essential brutal truth and honesty of an issue, and this is one of those times, IMO....

 

We’d much rather bankrupt the world than pay any tax, argue US Republicans

Source - Newsthump.com

http://newsthump.com/2011/07/26/we%E2%80%9...us-republicans/

 

 

US Republicans continue to happily push the US towards bankruptcy as they laughed off the latest attempt from Senate Democrats to force them to pay some taxes.

 

The Democrats’ latest proposal involves raising taxes for the rich while helping the poor and the elderly – a suggestion which appears preposterous to their opponents.

 

Republican John Boehner explained, “Once again, we completely reject these unrealistic plans which need us to part with some of our millions.”

 

“They seem to expect us to give up a bit of our endless hordes of cash in an attempt to support those less well-off. Where do they think we are, the UK!?”

 

“If we can hold off an agreement for just a bit longer, we’ll virtually guarantee getting that non-American out of the White House. A world financial meltdown would be a small price to pay.”

 

Republican supporter Dwight Manning told us, “The President makes a compelling argument about asking multi-millionaires and oil companies to pay more tax before asking the elderly to pay more for medical treatment.”

 

“He’s just seems to have forgotten that most of us Republicans couldn’t give two shits about the well-being of elderly people.”

US debt crisis

 

President Obama presented a speech on the matter, using quite a lot of challenging vocabulary that 95% of watching Americans failed to understand.

 

“My fellow Americans, the Republicans have stopped trying to prove I’m not American for long enough to tell us where to shove our latest deficit-reduction plan.”

 

“They have put forward their own proposal in response, which makes absolutely no sense to anyone – especially to themselves.”

 

“Some good news is that if Congress carries on like this, in a couple of months there will be no calculator in the world powerful enough to work out the national debt figure.”

 

“Create the greatest democracy in the worldTM, and this is what you get.”

I love Obama has been a flop President :wub:

 

Im a Republican. I dont like the Democrats

I love Obama has been a flop President :wub:

 

Im a Republican. I dont like the Democrats

Thank you for your insightful contribution.

Thank you for your insightful contribution.

 

Thats OK hun :wub: Really theres no point getting wound up by politics because they are all the same and theres nothing we can do. Thats why I ignore it :cheer:

I love Obama has been a flop President :wub:

 

Im a Republican. I dont like the Democrats

How on earth can you be a Republican they are lost as a party and have no direction unless you are also a Tea Party supporter and have the same right wing, racist and extremist views that they do.

There is no substance to current Republican policy or actions other than to protect the rich and attack Obama.If you want to look at flop Presidents take a hard look at George "Dubya" Bush-who started and sustained two illegal wars in Irag and Afghanistan, allowed the lack of financial regulation to bring about the near collapse of Wall Street and the Housing market, stood by as thousands perished during Hurricane Katrina, allowed Americas international reputation to sink into the gutter and did not manage to find and kill Osama.There is no one on Gods earth who could in 3 years have reversed any of this destruction and Obama is at least trying.

Thats OK hun :wub: Really theres no point getting wound up by politics because they are all the same and theres nothing we can do. Thats why I ignore it :cheer:

They aren't all the same though - how on earth can you say that a plan involving massive cuts to spending for people who need help is the same as a plan involving lesser cuts with more taxes on the richest people and businesses to close a deficit?

Also Shelli, what is your reasoning for being a Republican?

Also Shelli, what is your reasoning for being a Republican?

 

I like that they stick up for rich people

Why do rich people need sticking up for?

I like that they stick up for rich people

 

Uh huh. Those deprived rich people, who have spent their money to uphold God's country of America. This is what's important in politics. Sticking up for them. It's the fault of those bloody plebs. No free healthcare for you.

 

Also important, having crazy cat ladies Michelle Bachmann and Sarah Palin at the front of your party's politics.

Uh huh. Those deprived rich people, who have spent their money to uphold God's country of America. This is what's important in politics. Sticking up for them. It's the fault of those bloody plebs. No free healthcare for you.

 

Also important, having crazy cat ladies Michelle Bachmann and Sarah Palin at the front of your party's politics.

 

It is both shocking and scary that the potential Republican Presidential candidates include so many kooks, crazies and religious extremists.Michelle Bachman who claims that the founding fathers worked tirelessly to abolish slavery and that all Americans were treated equally once they arrived on American soil-fool.Sarah Palin is just diabolicallly stupid.Newt Gingrinch and Herman Cain are jokes and Romney is a Mormon. :rolleyes:

Haven't you guys noticed that Shelli is only trolling? :rolleyes:

Unfortunately the majority of Republicans are idiots. If only they were all like Meghan McCain. I disagree with her on a lot of issues, but she's down-to-earth, intelligent and can at least compose herself in an argument rather than foaming at the mouth like Bill O'Reilly.

Edited July 26, 201113 yr by Cal

Haven't you guys noticed that Shelli is only trolling? :rolleyes:

 

Maybe so, but I couldn't resist.

 

Anyway, this has come up several times before, and I've decided it doesn't matter. If she is a troll, she's got little to gain, because we're used to her now.

Unfortunately the majority of Republicans are idiots. If only they were all like Meghan McCain. I disagree with her on a lot of issues, but she's down-to-earth, intelligent and can at least compose herself in an argument rather than foaming at the mouth like Bill O'Reilly.

Hmmm... I have a feeling that you wouldn't mind doing certain things with her either.

I hear you, mate. I hear you. ;)

Well.... Check this out.... Here they are talking about the $2 trillion debt ceiling and plastering it all over the media, and then somehow missing something that is far, far worse and surely infinitely more scandalous.....

 

 

Well done to Russia Today for exposing this little unexploded bomb.....

Oh god, Shelli's back.

 

Looking beyond this issue, I'm hoping that Obama is seeing his presidency as an eight year plan - it would do little long-term good to attempt to enforce all sorts of policies in his first term if it lost him the 2012 election, far better to consolidate his position and win the election and then do far more (closure of Guantanamo for instance, that all seems to have gone quiet) in his second term.

 

As for next year's election, my rather uneducated perspective is that the Republicans have offered no serious candidate better than Romney, who couldn't beat McCain last time and can't command the respect of the far right.

It is both shocking and scary that the potential Republican Presidential candidates include so many kooks, crazies and religious extremists.Michelle Bachman who claims that the founding fathers worked tirelessly to abolish slavery and that all Americans were treated equally once they arrived on American soil-fool.Sarah Palin is just diabolicallly stupid.Newt Gingrinch and Herman Cain are jokes and Romney is a Mormon. :rolleyes:

Well they elected a moron so what difference does one letter make?

Oh god, Shelli's back.

 

Looking beyond this issue, I'm hoping that Obama is seeing his presidency as an eight year plan - it would do little long-term good to attempt to enforce all sorts of policies in his first term if it lost him the 2012 election, far better to consolidate his position and win the election and then do far more (closure of Guantanamo for instance, that all seems to have gone quiet) in his second term.

 

Obama has become a two-faced hypocrite since taking office... It's not only Guantanamo, it's the whole thing with the banks (before he took office it was all "no banks should be too big too fail", but what's he actually DONE about the banks...? Seems to me that in appointing a fool like Ben Bernanke - who wont even admit that gold is currency - to the Fed he's just carrying on the same mistakes), and his position on Mercenaries in Iraq (oops, sorry, meant to say "Private Contractors") has completely shifted.... Witness the whole Blackwater debacle, and the fact that while he may be pulling out troops, there is actually going to be a 5000-strong deniable and completely unaccountable private army heading out to Iraq.... Frankly, I'd rather have the soldiers out there than a bunch of f**king mercenary scum..... At the end of this report, you see complete 180 degree u-turn illustrated when the RT correspondent puts across the contrast between what SENATOR Obama said with what PRESIDENT Obama actually does.....

 

 

But, GAWD, doesn't it say a LOT about American politics when Obama is actually the preferable option to any of the bat-shit crazy, lunatic Republicans and Tea-baggers....... Even former Reagan admin aides and staffers think they're slightly loony.....

What scares me the most is that the South, they don't see Palin et al as batshit crazy. They're just seen as normal people that are on the conservative side of the fence.