Posted on 07/30/2011 8:22:43 AM PDT by Ernest_at_the_Beach
After yesterday’s embarrassing plea to Mitch McConnell to save him from a cloture vote, Harry Reid went back to the drawing board. The Hill reports that Reid has altered his plan to raise the debt ceiling by borrowing more from the plans of McConnell and John Boehner, hoping to shake loose enough Republicans to get past the procedural hurdle:
The biggest change is that Reid would give the president almost unilateral power to raise the debt limit, borrowing an idea introduced by Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.).
Reid would have President Obama request a $2.4 trillion debt-limit increase in two installments of $1.2 trillion each. The requests would be subject to congressional resolutions of disapproval, but these would do little to restrict the president.
Obama could veto any resolution of disapproval, and it would take a two-thirds vote in both chambers of Congress to override him.
According to a Senate Democratic aide, Reid also increased the total level of spending cuts from $2.2 trillion to $2.4 trillion, in part by using the January baseline — a budget maneuver House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) used on a previous version of his debt-limit plan. The January budget baseline does not count cuts Congress implemented in legislation passed this spring to avert a government shutdown.
The McConnell mechanism wouldn’t stop Obama from raising the debt ceiling limit in the next installment, but Republicans might be more inclined to see that as a bug rather than a feature by now. The “cuts” – such as they are – would come up front, with the possibility for getting more cuts down the line. Obama would have to raise the limit himself, and Republicans in both chambers would be able to vote against it, forcing Democrats to own the hikes. It’s not pretty, but it would set up the debate in 2012 as well as can be expected for the GOP at this point.
Reid also is rumored to be offering a vote on a balanced budget amendment as a sweetener for Republicans in the Senate, although not requiring passage. That’s also a good development for the GOP. A properly written amendment would force Congress to control spending rather than raise taxes by limiting the federal budget to a constant percentage of GDP. If Democrats vote such a plan down, it’s yet another point for the 2012 debate.
However, according to The Daily Caller’s Amanda Carey and the Republicans on the Senate Budget Committee, the Reid plan has a big and unpleasant surprise for Republicans on taxes. Reid’s figures rely on current law — and current law has all of the Bush-era tax rates expiring and rising to their previous levels. It also assumes that Congress won’t provide a “patch” for the AMT:
Reid’s proposal includes a provision that “deems” budget resolutions for fiscal years 2012 and 2013, but Senate Democrats have not yet produced a 2012 budget proposal, much less one for 2013.
Within those anticipated budget resolutions lie the tax increases, according to the analysis, and here is where it gets tricky.
When the Congressional Budget Office scores a proposal, it uses either current policy or current law as its baseline. Reid’s bill is based on current law, which assumes certain tax breaks will expire according to pre-determined scheduled. That is a big deal.
The 2001–2003 Bush tax cuts are set to expire at the end of 2012. And some business tax breaks, “death tax” cuts, and the patch for the Alternative Minimum Tax expire at the end of 2011. Reid’s proposal assumes that Congress will not act to renew or extend those expiring tax breaks.
Total tax hike over 10 years, according to the GOP analysis? $3.8 trillion. And those would not just be tax hikes on the “wealthy,” either. Those tax hikes would hit the middle class like a freight train, both on basic rates and the AMT creep that Congress has parried for years. If this analysis is correct, Reid either wants to hit the US with the biggest tax hike in its history, or he’s offering bogus deficit reduction that will never occur.
If this sounds like a bad deal to you, keeping in mind what Tina wrote yesterday as well, then it just shows that you’re paying attention. It could get worse, though, as this Star Wars parody shows:
I was actually looking for the original clip when I came across this one — which describes the situation far better. Who knew Lando Calrissian was a Tea Party supporter?
Considering dingy harry’s constituants voting for him and the dems in general, why he think otherwise?
This is the road to nationalist socialist tyranny, and the establishment of the United States of Zimbabwe.
This must not be approved by the House Republicans, it must be rejected. It is a grift of massive proportions, and it willbe used to destroy the investing conservative class in America.
And still the sheeple sleep... Ridiculous. The entire charade would be laughable if it were not so absolutely serious.
There is only one way to fix it... Zero Based budgeting, every year. Constitutional validation of every department, bureau, agency, commission and committee in terms of the enumerated powers found in the Constitution.
Implement the Fair Tax model (less the patently offensive subsidies), and address the ‘double tax’ issue with offset credits based on current market value of held (declared) funds (retirement funds, annuities, 401k’s, etc.).
Require two-thirds majorities in both houses of Congress to change the established tax rate, subject to recall by the electorate.
Good start.
It will be temporary when we win a landslide election next year and take the Senate. The democrats only hope is to successfully pin the economy on us right now thru the debt ceiling failure. If Obama and the dems own the economy in next years election, it will be a conservative landslide. I want the same thing you do, I think we have different views on the how to get there.
The bottom line here is Obumbum needs the debt limit to be raised past his election so that he can try and get reelected without this facing him again!
The liberal socialist will never agree to a balanced budget because they will not be able to continue running their [ponzi] schemes, i.e. social security (they ripped off for more than 70 trillion dollars)!
Liberal socialist want to raise our taxes to pay for more of their social programming and will not compromise on this!
Finally, they need social security, medicaid, and medicare as issues to use against Republicans in the election, because they have no other issue, so reductions, or any attempt to revamp these programs to make them viable will be prevented by these same socialist!
Any deal will be bad for America, don't be fooled by the old media who is carrying the water for this administration, and bigger government control over the people.
I see what you are saying. However, that path will cost us three or four trillion dollars in additional pork for the democrats and their supporters who will undoubtedly pour a lot of that back into the democratic campaign to keep control of the government.
And then if we win, we will inherit a country and economy which have been eviscerated by Obama, Reid, and Pelosi. We will have a bankrupt nation with no credit that owes 17 or 18 trillion, high unemployment, flooded with illegals, terrorist at our throats, etc. etc. I think we should make our stand now, while there may still be something to save. I know we only control the house but it is a crucial piece of the power structure and I believe we also have an edge in the supreme court.
Just in case you have missed it, the moderates have already broke from Obumbum to the Republicans in the last election, it is highly doubtful they will turn and vote for the socialist party again!
If the Republicans vote for this, or anything close to it, I don’t think I can cope with it. This gives the Executive Branch even more power than it has already consumed since Obama was elected.
First, if obama gets 2 trillion dollars to spend in the next year and a half, will be even survive for there to be another election? You KNOW he’ll spend it as fast as he can and that can’t be good for this country.
Second, I’m beginning to think the gop elite and the dems are ALL socialists. Maybe they believe the “experiment” is over and they’re just trying to keep it going as long as they can so they’re lavish lifestyle and great retirement stays in place.
More accounting gimmicks in Reid’s new “increase in cuts”, too:
“Reid also increased the total level of spending cuts from $2.2 trillion to $2.4 trillion, in part by using the January baseline - a budget maneuver House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) used on a previous version of his debt-limit plan. The January budget baseline does not count cuts Congress implemented in legislation passed this spring to avert a government shutdown.”
http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2011/07/reid_strikes_back.html
Any Republican who even debates the Harry Reid/Senate plan should be publicly flogged with a wet copy of the US Constitution and drummed from the Party in infamy.Any Democrat who votes in favor of that plan is already a Commie Pinko Fag and not an American.
ROTF!
What is this alien thing that you speak of?
Temporary tax,...Mmmm, interesting concept but by laws of political nature completely impossible under the heavens in any way shape or form.
Temporary tax has no definition placed by ANY politician conservative or liberal.
Nothing is more certain than that a general profligacy and corruption of manners makes a people ripe for destruction....”
Rev.John Witherspoon Princton sermon May 17,1776 On a national day ( a day set aside for the united colonies by Congress)of humiliation, fasting and prayer. And Thomas Jefferson letter to James Madison Sept.,1789 ‘...neither the legislature nor the nation itself can validly contract more debt than they can repay within their own age, or within the term of 19 yrs.... Sound wisdom Those insisting the Democrats need to spend more of OUR money and borrow more from foreign creditors to assure our children’s grandchildren will in in bondage from the womb to the tomb.
Detail time...see all of the thread!!!
giving more power to Obama is imbecilic and any GOPer who votes to do it should be recalled!
“Reid thinks that we are all imbeciles who cannot see through what he’s doing.”
And most voters can’t.
I may have to raise a glass to a conservative landslide tonight -- and I hope you do too! Have a great one!
fyi
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