Posted 2/26/2009 7:58 PM PST on The Sacramento Bee
Thursday, February 26th, 2009 at 6:25 pm
Press Briefing by OMB Director Peter Orszag and CEA Chair Christina Romer
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
_____________________________
For Immediate Release February 26, 2009
11:07 A.M. EST
Q. I just want you to address -- or both of you -- just the fundamental criticism that you're talking about raising taxes on businesses and investors in a recession.
DIRECTOR ORSZAG: Well, let me be very clear on that second question. That's just factually wrong. We're not doing that. Any of the revenue changes that we're talking about, whether it's for those making a quarter-million dollars or more, or the itemized deductions that we were talking about before, are in 2011 and thereafter. So the assertion that we're raising taxes in the midst of a recession is just factually wrong. And in fact, we just cut taxes as part of the recovery act, which is exactly what is appropriate from a macroeconomic perspective to boost aggregate demand during a downturn.
My question, is why not?
I mean to say, after listening to the new President’s ardent supporters, all sorts of commenting readers right here at the Bee and the President himself, I have to ask why are we not raising the taxes on these brigands, these leaches on our good American society?
Are these not the selfsame robber barons that have been sucking the very life-blood from the vulnerable throats of the proletariat?
Are these not the evil manipulating villains that have trod upon the hopes and dreams of the common worker?
Are these not the gangsters and marauders that have reaped all of the benefits of America while providing nothing in return?
WHY IS THIS ADMINISTRATION NOT RAISING THE TAXES OF THESE PILLAGING OUTLAWS RIGHT THIS VERY MINUTE?
Surely it isn’t the economy. Good grief, they created the mess and are laughing at the rest of us while they read their Wall Street Journals and eat caviar on those fancy water biscuits, laughing at the rest of us while they wash down their breakfasts with expensive French Champagne.
They don’t work, right? They just had everything handed to them, right? So tax them until their eyes begin to bleed! Go into their homes, throw them out and turn them into vast, cavernous homeless shelters!
Seize their assets, sell their children into slavery and take them out and shoot them in the streets like the dogs that they are!
Oh, sorry. I got carried away. It is just that whenever governments decide to transfer wealth, things like that tend to happen.
I do have a different theory. Could it be that these rich people have connections in Congress, or even the White House itself? Is it possible that influence is being peddled in the recently cleaned streets of Washington DC? Might it be necessary to rise up, gather our arms and our wits about us as we march on the Capitol, drag the politicians out into the streets and shoot them like the…
Sorry, keep getting carried away.
Instead, I’ll present another theory. Could it be that most people who make over $250,000 annually make closer to $250,000 than they do to $2,000,000? Is it possible that most of these affluent people live in homes not significantly fancier than your tract home? Should we consider the slight possibility that these rich folks drag their tired backsides out of bed each morning and go to work after a bowl of Cheerios?
Following this ridiculous thread, imagine that they are the people who run small businesses and are themselves up to their armpits in debt, trying desperately to keep their employees employed and going home feeling sick every night, wondering if they can remain open for business.
And is it possible that the new President, who I like very much and disagree with about almost everything, knows this? And that he also knows that if he nails these people to one of the crosses the IRS is hammering together, that all those little people who work for them might start losing their jobs even faster?
If true, that is not very transparent if you ask me. In fact it sounds pretty disingenuous. Maybe we should consider rising up, marching on DC and dragging them out into...oh, never mind.
Isn’t this the transparent administration? Maybe I was wrong. Maybe a lot of people were wrong.
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Transparency
Posted 2/25/2009 9:31 PM PST on The Sacramento Bee
If this administration wants transparency, it is going to have to take the time to instruct its members, particularly those who speak with the press in how the US comes up with budgets and how it manages the process. Otherwise, the Whitehouse press corps is going to dismantle them one body part at a time.
The President swept into office with the voters and the press in genuine love with him. And that is fine, but he needs to realize that the campaign is over for the next eighteen months and he needs to stop acting like a candidate and start acting like a President. If he needs just one warning about “transparency”, I’ll give it to him:
President James Earl Carter Jr.
Governor Carter was also swept in by a loving electorate and doting press as he too said Washington would become America’s fishbowl. He quickly discovered that the halls of DC work largely in the shadows because while politicians regardless of political stripe love to go back home and tell their constituents what they got for them, they don’t like too many people to know what they had to give up to get it.
Governor Carter also discovered that the only thing the press liked more than Cousin Jimmy himself was the opportunity to start throwing darts at him. They did too, because it became clear that the man was a truly decent guy, but he knew nothing about playing politics in the big leagues.
The Congress didn’t care for what they regarded as interference in their affairs and demonstrated this by giving him trouble with various bills he wanted passed. Eventually he actually called them “ravenous wolves”.
Then there was an ongoing energy crisis, a stagflated economy, some very inopportune presidential statements to the public, and a whole lot of lousy foreign policy situations, not the least of which was the hostage crisis in Iran. Add to this an interesting cast of family members and you had a show that no reporter in his right mind would pass up.
Former President Carter began to realize why transparency was a hard thing to achieve. The press corps that loved him so much during the election began to smell blood when the Carter Administration stopped talking so much. The result was Former President Carter becoming Former President Carter four years earlier than he wanted to.
Unlike others of my political persuasion, I do not want the new President to fail. I don’t think that would be good for anyone. But before he was elected I smelled an emerging Carter II presidency and while the big guy on the radio may be looking forward to it, I don’t want that.
The new administration needs to learn how to handle information transparently while doing so in a way that doesn’t suggest they are hiding something. I know this is a contradiction, but if they don’t figure it out there will be a lot more exchanges like this in the White House Press Room.
Excerpt from
Briefing by White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs, 2/25/2009
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
Q I wanted to come back to Chuck's question about the $2 trillion figure that the President used last night of savings over the next 10 years. We were told last night that that basically referred to two things. One is the expiration of the tax cuts on the wealthy that would happen next year. And two is a reduction of what we are currently spending in Iraq --
MR. GIBBS: I think that's a -- I think that's certainly a decent part of it.
Q Okay. But let me ask -- is it transparent to say that tax increases are part of savings? And is it transparent to say that we're going to be saving that much from Iraq when nobody expects that 10 years out we would be spending what we're spending today in Iraq? Even the previous administration agreed to get out of Iraq by 2012. And that's the baseline you're culling savings from.
MR. GIBBS: It isn't -- I mean, if we're not spending the money, and the money doesn't go out the door, and the money doesn't increase the deficit, and the deficit decreases by some amount, ultimately getting you to the President's goal of having a $1.2 trillion to $1.3 trillion deficit in his first four years in office --
Q But nobody expects to spend 10 years from now what we're spending today in Iraq. And if we use that as our baseline, saying, oh, we're saving because we're not spending what we did 10 years ago, I mean, isn't that sort of setting up a funny money comparison?
MR. GIBBS: No, I don't think so at all.
Q Does a tax increase count as savings?
MR. GIBBS: Again, it's -- you've got additional revenue -- as the President I think clearly said, tax cuts for people that are -- for families that are making $250,000 or more a year, quarter of a million dollars or more -- again, that's an increase in the amount of money that --
Q But you said you've identified savings. That's not really a savings.
MR. GIBBS: Again, I think some of this will be clearer when we can be -- can give you physically a budget for you to look at.
If this administration wants transparency, it is going to have to take the time to instruct its members, particularly those who speak with the press in how the US comes up with budgets and how it manages the process. Otherwise, the Whitehouse press corps is going to dismantle them one body part at a time.
The President swept into office with the voters and the press in genuine love with him. And that is fine, but he needs to realize that the campaign is over for the next eighteen months and he needs to stop acting like a candidate and start acting like a President. If he needs just one warning about “transparency”, I’ll give it to him:
President James Earl Carter Jr.
Governor Carter was also swept in by a loving electorate and doting press as he too said Washington would become America’s fishbowl. He quickly discovered that the halls of DC work largely in the shadows because while politicians regardless of political stripe love to go back home and tell their constituents what they got for them, they don’t like too many people to know what they had to give up to get it.
Governor Carter also discovered that the only thing the press liked more than Cousin Jimmy himself was the opportunity to start throwing darts at him. They did too, because it became clear that the man was a truly decent guy, but he knew nothing about playing politics in the big leagues.
The Congress didn’t care for what they regarded as interference in their affairs and demonstrated this by giving him trouble with various bills he wanted passed. Eventually he actually called them “ravenous wolves”.
Then there was an ongoing energy crisis, a stagflated economy, some very inopportune presidential statements to the public, and a whole lot of lousy foreign policy situations, not the least of which was the hostage crisis in Iran. Add to this an interesting cast of family members and you had a show that no reporter in his right mind would pass up.
Former President Carter began to realize why transparency was a hard thing to achieve. The press corps that loved him so much during the election began to smell blood when the Carter Administration stopped talking so much. The result was Former President Carter becoming Former President Carter four years earlier than he wanted to.
Unlike others of my political persuasion, I do not want the new President to fail. I don’t think that would be good for anyone. But before he was elected I smelled an emerging Carter II presidency and while the big guy on the radio may be looking forward to it, I don’t want that.
The new administration needs to learn how to handle information transparently while doing so in a way that doesn’t suggest they are hiding something. I know this is a contradiction, but if they don’t figure it out there will be a lot more exchanges like this in the White House Press Room.
Excerpt from
Briefing by White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs, 2/25/2009
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
Q I wanted to come back to Chuck's question about the $2 trillion figure that the President used last night of savings over the next 10 years. We were told last night that that basically referred to two things. One is the expiration of the tax cuts on the wealthy that would happen next year. And two is a reduction of what we are currently spending in Iraq --
MR. GIBBS: I think that's a -- I think that's certainly a decent part of it.
Q Okay. But let me ask -- is it transparent to say that tax increases are part of savings? And is it transparent to say that we're going to be saving that much from Iraq when nobody expects that 10 years out we would be spending what we're spending today in Iraq? Even the previous administration agreed to get out of Iraq by 2012. And that's the baseline you're culling savings from.
MR. GIBBS: It isn't -- I mean, if we're not spending the money, and the money doesn't go out the door, and the money doesn't increase the deficit, and the deficit decreases by some amount, ultimately getting you to the President's goal of having a $1.2 trillion to $1.3 trillion deficit in his first four years in office --
Q But nobody expects to spend 10 years from now what we're spending today in Iraq. And if we use that as our baseline, saying, oh, we're saving because we're not spending what we did 10 years ago, I mean, isn't that sort of setting up a funny money comparison?
MR. GIBBS: No, I don't think so at all.
Q Does a tax increase count as savings?
MR. GIBBS: Again, it's -- you've got additional revenue -- as the President I think clearly said, tax cuts for people that are -- for families that are making $250,000 or more a year, quarter of a million dollars or more -- again, that's an increase in the amount of money that --
Q But you said you've identified savings. That's not really a savings.
MR. GIBBS: Again, I think some of this will be clearer when we can be -- can give you physically a budget for you to look at.
It was a pretty good speech.
Posted 2/25/2009 1:20 AM PST on The Sacramento Bee
Our new president, who I like very much and agree with about almost nothing, is an excellent speaker. He may end up giving the old Gipper* a run for his money in that department.
But the speech was long on rhetoric and smacked of a sales pitch. Nonetheless, what I have done here, as much for my own benefit as for that of the respected reader, is remove all the hyperbole, and more importantly, I have only left that which says specifically what the new President is going to do. The process took it from ten pages to about one and a half.
Conceptual order has not changed, and except for an occasional pronoun here and there, I have not added anything. Finally, I have placed the complete text of President Obama's speach on the Public Messages Page.
*For those who are not ancient Neanderthals, the Gipper refers to President Ronald Reagan.
· We are creating a new lending fund.
· We have launched a housing plan that will help responsible families facing the threat of foreclosure.
· We will act to ensure that the major banks have enough confidence and enough money to lend.
· This plan will require significant resources from the federal government – probably more than we’ve set aside.
· I will submit a budget to Congress. Everyone will have to sacrifice.
· We will double this nation’s supply of renewable energy in the next three years.
· We will soon lay down thousands of miles of power lines.
· We will put Americans to work.
· I ask this Congress to send me legislation that places a market-based cap on carbon pollution and drives the production of more renewable energy in America.
· We will invest fifteen billion dollars a year to develop technologies like wind power and solar power; advanced biofuels, clean coal, and more fuel-efficient cars and trucks built right here in America.
· Our recovery plan will invest in electronic health records and new technology that will reduce errors, bring down costs, ensure privacy, and save lives.
· It will seek a cure for cancer in our time. And it makes the largest investment ever in preventive care.
· This budget creates new incentives for teacher performance;
· I pledged to cut the deficit in half by the end of my first term in office.
· We will end education programs that don’t work.
· (We will) end direct payments to large agribusinesses that don’t need them.
· We’ll eliminate the no-bid contracts and reform our defense budget.
· We will root out the waste, fraud, and abuse in our Medicare program.
· We will end the tax breaks for corporations that ship our jobs overseas.
· We will also end the tax breaks for the wealthiest 2% of Americans.
· The recovery plan provides a tax cut for 95% of working families.
· And these checks are on the way.
· I will soon announce a way forward in Iraq that leaves Iraq to its people and responsibly ends this war.
· We will forge a new and comprehensive strategy for Afghanistan and Pakistan to defeat al Qaeda and combat extremism.
· My budget increases the number of our soldiers and Marines. And we will raise their pay, and give our veterans the expanded health care and benefits that they have earned.
· I have ordered the closing of the detention center at Guantanamo Bay.
· We will strengthen old alliances, forge new ones, and use all elements of our national power.
Our new president, who I like very much and agree with about almost nothing, is an excellent speaker. He may end up giving the old Gipper* a run for his money in that department.
But the speech was long on rhetoric and smacked of a sales pitch. Nonetheless, what I have done here, as much for my own benefit as for that of the respected reader, is remove all the hyperbole, and more importantly, I have only left that which says specifically what the new President is going to do. The process took it from ten pages to about one and a half.
Conceptual order has not changed, and except for an occasional pronoun here and there, I have not added anything. Finally, I have placed the complete text of President Obama's speach on the Public Messages Page.
*For those who are not ancient Neanderthals, the Gipper refers to President Ronald Reagan.
· We are creating a new lending fund.
· We have launched a housing plan that will help responsible families facing the threat of foreclosure.
· We will act to ensure that the major banks have enough confidence and enough money to lend.
· This plan will require significant resources from the federal government – probably more than we’ve set aside.
· I will submit a budget to Congress. Everyone will have to sacrifice.
· We will double this nation’s supply of renewable energy in the next three years.
· We will soon lay down thousands of miles of power lines.
· We will put Americans to work.
· I ask this Congress to send me legislation that places a market-based cap on carbon pollution and drives the production of more renewable energy in America.
· We will invest fifteen billion dollars a year to develop technologies like wind power and solar power; advanced biofuels, clean coal, and more fuel-efficient cars and trucks built right here in America.
· Our recovery plan will invest in electronic health records and new technology that will reduce errors, bring down costs, ensure privacy, and save lives.
· It will seek a cure for cancer in our time. And it makes the largest investment ever in preventive care.
· This budget creates new incentives for teacher performance;
· I pledged to cut the deficit in half by the end of my first term in office.
· We will end education programs that don’t work.
· (We will) end direct payments to large agribusinesses that don’t need them.
· We’ll eliminate the no-bid contracts and reform our defense budget.
· We will root out the waste, fraud, and abuse in our Medicare program.
· We will end the tax breaks for corporations that ship our jobs overseas.
· We will also end the tax breaks for the wealthiest 2% of Americans.
· The recovery plan provides a tax cut for 95% of working families.
· And these checks are on the way.
· I will soon announce a way forward in Iraq that leaves Iraq to its people and responsibly ends this war.
· We will forge a new and comprehensive strategy for Afghanistan and Pakistan to defeat al Qaeda and combat extremism.
· My budget increases the number of our soldiers and Marines. And we will raise their pay, and give our veterans the expanded health care and benefits that they have earned.
· I have ordered the closing of the detention center at Guantanamo Bay.
· We will strengthen old alliances, forge new ones, and use all elements of our national power.
The Quickest and broadest tax cut ever.
The Quickest and broadest tax cut ever.
Posted 2/23/2009 9:41 PM PST on The Sacramento Bee
http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/09/02/20/The-quickest-and-broadest-tax-cut-ever/
Above is a link to the President’s last weekly address. Read it or not in any manner you like, but do me a favor and take a look at the last two paragraphs. After all of the “Yes, we can!” talk, it was a little surprising to read a series of “No, we can’t” statements.
In italics are a few comments of my own.
No single piece of this broad economic recovery can, by itself, meet the demands that have been placed on us.
If that means we can’t solve our problems by passing stimulus bills, I agree and am glad he sees the error of his ways. But, I think it just means “You ain’t seen nuthin yet folks.”
We can't help people find work or pay their bills unless we unlock credit for families and businesses.
I would submit that unlocked credit, or more specifically debt, is one of the main factors in the average person’s ruination right now. That said, “The Government” has never been particularly helpful in finding people employment. Anyone who has visited the unemployment office knows that.
As to unlocking credit for businesses, I can agree with that but it is not as tight as you may believe. Banks are still lending to businesses that are in good shape. It is just that right now there are many employers that are struggling and wise lending guidelines demand that banks recognize that cold-hearted reality when making business lending decisions. Don’t forget that unwise lending practices are a big part of the reason we are all in this mess.
We can't solve our housing crisis unless we help people find work so that they can make payments on their homes.
Certainly unemployment is a factor, but most of the defaulting borrowers have jobs. They should never have been approved for the loan in the first place. That was one of those unwise lending practices I mentioned earlier. And I’ve already stated my opinion regarding how well The Government finds jobs.
We can't produce shared prosperity without firm rules of the road, and we can't generate sustained growth without getting our deficits under control.
We have firm rules. We just need to enforce them. And while deficits will not in and of themselves prevent sustained growth, in this case I agree. The question is, how will we get the deficit under control? Presidential Plan Number One right out of the gate has just increased it.
In short, we cannot successfully address any of our problems without addressing them all. And that is exactly what the strategy we are pursuing is designed to do.
Sorry, not true and it is in fact a weasel statement designed and included as an escape hatch when this plan fails. It is in fact the first time our new President, who I like very much and agree with about almost nothing, has said something that actually angered me.
Mark my words, when the failure is “non-acknowledged”, it will be spun in a way to blame the opposition for holding him back and not being allowed to do enough.
None of this will be easy. The road ahead will be long and full of hazards. But I am confident that we, as a people, have the strength and wisdom to carry out this strategy and overcome this crisis. And if we do, our economy -- and our country -- will be better and stronger for it.
Life is never easy and big government types won’t accept that government can’t change that. The long road full of hazards is another weasel statement and the biggest hazard we face economically is political types applying political solutions to real problems. They make decisions that look good but don’t deliver. Rather than accepting responsibility when that happens they deny the failure until they can blame someone else for it. Both “R’s” and “D’s” do this.
Then the statement of confidence followed by…”If we do…” "If", why not "when"? I read this as “If we fail, it really is your, the public’s fault. And you know what? Since the public put him in the big chair, I happen to agree.
Posted 2/23/2009 9:41 PM PST on The Sacramento Bee
http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/09/02/20/The-quickest-and-broadest-tax-cut-ever/
Above is a link to the President’s last weekly address. Read it or not in any manner you like, but do me a favor and take a look at the last two paragraphs. After all of the “Yes, we can!” talk, it was a little surprising to read a series of “No, we can’t” statements.
In italics are a few comments of my own.
No single piece of this broad economic recovery can, by itself, meet the demands that have been placed on us.
If that means we can’t solve our problems by passing stimulus bills, I agree and am glad he sees the error of his ways. But, I think it just means “You ain’t seen nuthin yet folks.”
We can't help people find work or pay their bills unless we unlock credit for families and businesses.
I would submit that unlocked credit, or more specifically debt, is one of the main factors in the average person’s ruination right now. That said, “The Government” has never been particularly helpful in finding people employment. Anyone who has visited the unemployment office knows that.
As to unlocking credit for businesses, I can agree with that but it is not as tight as you may believe. Banks are still lending to businesses that are in good shape. It is just that right now there are many employers that are struggling and wise lending guidelines demand that banks recognize that cold-hearted reality when making business lending decisions. Don’t forget that unwise lending practices are a big part of the reason we are all in this mess.
We can't solve our housing crisis unless we help people find work so that they can make payments on their homes.
Certainly unemployment is a factor, but most of the defaulting borrowers have jobs. They should never have been approved for the loan in the first place. That was one of those unwise lending practices I mentioned earlier. And I’ve already stated my opinion regarding how well The Government finds jobs.
We can't produce shared prosperity without firm rules of the road, and we can't generate sustained growth without getting our deficits under control.
We have firm rules. We just need to enforce them. And while deficits will not in and of themselves prevent sustained growth, in this case I agree. The question is, how will we get the deficit under control? Presidential Plan Number One right out of the gate has just increased it.
In short, we cannot successfully address any of our problems without addressing them all. And that is exactly what the strategy we are pursuing is designed to do.
Sorry, not true and it is in fact a weasel statement designed and included as an escape hatch when this plan fails. It is in fact the first time our new President, who I like very much and agree with about almost nothing, has said something that actually angered me.
Mark my words, when the failure is “non-acknowledged”, it will be spun in a way to blame the opposition for holding him back and not being allowed to do enough.
None of this will be easy. The road ahead will be long and full of hazards. But I am confident that we, as a people, have the strength and wisdom to carry out this strategy and overcome this crisis. And if we do, our economy -- and our country -- will be better and stronger for it.
Life is never easy and big government types won’t accept that government can’t change that. The long road full of hazards is another weasel statement and the biggest hazard we face economically is political types applying political solutions to real problems. They make decisions that look good but don’t deliver. Rather than accepting responsibility when that happens they deny the failure until they can blame someone else for it. Both “R’s” and “D’s” do this.
Then the statement of confidence followed by…”If we do…” "If", why not "when"? I read this as “If we fail, it really is your, the public’s fault. And you know what? Since the public put him in the big chair, I happen to agree.
A Gauntlet Thrown Down!
First a link:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/09/02/20/The-quickest-and-broadest-tax-cut-ever/
Next: The opinion Piece: Political Colors
http://www.sacbee.com/opinion/story/1641424.html?pageNum=1&&mi_pluck_action=page_nav#Comments_Container
The Comments:
CreditUnionMan wrote on 02/22/2009 05:45:47 PM:
"Or, perhaps, bipartisanship may not be such a worthy goal after all."
I read the whole thing, but there it is. Bipartisanship always loses importance once you have the majority.
Well folks, when this stimulus bill fails, and it will fail, I'll know who passed it. Call it accountability. Call it blame. Call it partisanship. Call it whatever you want to. The new team has blown it big time right out of the gate.
rlw895 wrote on 02/22/2009 06:06:50 PM:
CreditUnionMan: I'll call you. Define failure. You've told us what you will do if the stimulus bill fails. What will you do if it doesn't?
CreditUnionMan wrote on 02/22/2009 06:36:02 PM:
Failure is defined as having the same problems a year from now and being no closer to solving them. Or, how about eighteen months? twenty-four?
I define failure as not solving the problem. What do you define failure as?
And if I'm wrong, I'll admit I was wrong. You don't know me, but if you did you would believe me when I say that. Heaven knows, most all of my friends and family know my opinion, most are classic liberals convinced the package will work.
Rest assured, I will be reminded of my folly if I'm wrong.
CreditUnionMan wrote on 02/22/2009 06:51:27 PM:
rlw895, I'm going to give you an even better answer (that in no way conflicts with the first!)
This link is from the White House:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/09/02/20/The-quickest-and-broadest-tax-cut-ever/
It has the President's own words. I'll give him two years, is that fair?
Click on my name and you will see I have a blog here at the Bee. If I am wrong, and what he says will happen happens, then I will admit right there on my blog that I was wrong.
How's that? Plus, you don't need my approval to write on my comments page, so you can remind me publicly if you like.
Fair enough?
My promise:
If the President achieves and sustains everything he said below, I will state publicly on this blog that I was wrong. In fact, I will state it on every blog that I write, both now and in the future.
The salient points made by the President:
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act will start having an impact as soon as a few weeks from now, in the form of the quickest and broadest tax cut in history:
By April 1st, a typical family will begin taking home at least $65 more every month.
The President is committed to taking on the massive deficits we inherited.
“On Monday I will convene a fiscal summit of independent experts and unions, advocacy groups and members of Congress to discuss how we can cut the trillion-dollar deficit that we’ve inherited.”
“On Tuesday, I will speak to the nation about our urgent national priorities.”
“On Thursday, I’ll release a budget that’s sober in its assessments, honest in its accounting, and that lays out in detail my strategy for investing in what we need, cutting what we don’t, and restoring fiscal discipline."
“3.5 million Americans will now go to work doing the work that America needs done.”
“There will now be shovels in the ground, cranes in the air, and workers rebuilding our crumbling roads and bridges, and repairing our faulty levees and dams.”
· “Companies -- large and small -- that produce renewable energy can now apply for loan guarantees and tax credits and find ways to grow, instead of laying people off”
· “Families can lower their energy bills by weatherizing their homes.”
· “Our children can now graduate from 21st century schools and millions more can do what was unaffordable just last week -- and get their college degree.”
· “Lives will be saved and health care costs will be cut with new computerized medical records. “
· “There will now be police on the beat, firefighters on the job, and teachers preparing lesson plans who thought they would not be able to continue pursuing their critical missions.”
· “And (to) ensure that all of this is done with an unprecedented level of transparency and accountability, I have assigned a team of managers to make sure that precious tax dollars are invested wisely and well.”
· “95 percent of all working families will get a tax cut -- in keeping with a promise I made on the campaign. “
· “And I'm pleased to announce that this morning, the Treasury Department began directing employers to reduce the amount of taxes withheld from paychecks -- meaning that by April 1st, a typical family will begin taking home at least $65 more every month.”
· “It is only a first step on the road to economic recovery. “
· “We can't fail to complete the journey.”
· “Will require stemming the spread of foreclosures and falling home values”
· “Doing all we can to help responsible homeowners stay in their homes”
· “It will require stabilizing and repairing our banking system”
· “Getting credit flowing again to families and businesses.”
· “Reforming the broken regulatory system that made this crisis possible.”
· “Recognizing that it's only by setting and enforcing 21st century rules of the road that we can build a thriving economy.”
· “It will require doing all we can to get exploding deficits under control as our economy begins to recover.”
· “No single piece of this broad economic recovery can, by itself, meet the demands that have been placed on us.”
· “We can't help people find work or pay their bills unless we unlock credit for families and businesses.”
· “We can't solve our housing crisis unless we help people find work so that they can make payments on their homes.”
· “We can't produce shared prosperity without firm rules of the road.”
· “We can't generate sustained growth without getting our deficits under control. “
· “We cannot successfully address any of our problems without addressing them all.”
· “That is exactly what the strategy we are pursuing is designed to do.”
· “I am confident that we, as a people, have the strength and wisdom to carry out this strategy and overcome this crisis.”
· “And if we do, our economy -- and our country -- will be better and stronger for it.”
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rlw895 wrote:
"Everything?" Come on, show some moxie. How about 90%, 75%, 50%? And many of these are not measureable by objective standards. Pick a few that are.
2/28/2009 12:59 PM PST on The Sacramento Bee
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CreditUnionMan wrote:
I'll accept your selection.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/09/02/20/The-quickest-and-broadest-tax-cut-ever/
Next: The opinion Piece: Political Colors
http://www.sacbee.com/opinion/story/1641424.html?pageNum=1&&mi_pluck_action=page_nav#Comments_Container
The Comments:
CreditUnionMan wrote on 02/22/2009 05:45:47 PM:
"Or, perhaps, bipartisanship may not be such a worthy goal after all."
I read the whole thing, but there it is. Bipartisanship always loses importance once you have the majority.
Well folks, when this stimulus bill fails, and it will fail, I'll know who passed it. Call it accountability. Call it blame. Call it partisanship. Call it whatever you want to. The new team has blown it big time right out of the gate.
rlw895 wrote on 02/22/2009 06:06:50 PM:
CreditUnionMan: I'll call you. Define failure. You've told us what you will do if the stimulus bill fails. What will you do if it doesn't?
CreditUnionMan wrote on 02/22/2009 06:36:02 PM:
Failure is defined as having the same problems a year from now and being no closer to solving them. Or, how about eighteen months? twenty-four?
I define failure as not solving the problem. What do you define failure as?
And if I'm wrong, I'll admit I was wrong. You don't know me, but if you did you would believe me when I say that. Heaven knows, most all of my friends and family know my opinion, most are classic liberals convinced the package will work.
Rest assured, I will be reminded of my folly if I'm wrong.
CreditUnionMan wrote on 02/22/2009 06:51:27 PM:
rlw895, I'm going to give you an even better answer (that in no way conflicts with the first!)
This link is from the White House:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/09/02/20/The-quickest-and-broadest-tax-cut-ever/
It has the President's own words. I'll give him two years, is that fair?
Click on my name and you will see I have a blog here at the Bee. If I am wrong, and what he says will happen happens, then I will admit right there on my blog that I was wrong.
How's that? Plus, you don't need my approval to write on my comments page, so you can remind me publicly if you like.
Fair enough?
My promise:
If the President achieves and sustains everything he said below, I will state publicly on this blog that I was wrong. In fact, I will state it on every blog that I write, both now and in the future.
The salient points made by the President:
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act will start having an impact as soon as a few weeks from now, in the form of the quickest and broadest tax cut in history:
By April 1st, a typical family will begin taking home at least $65 more every month.
The President is committed to taking on the massive deficits we inherited.
“On Monday I will convene a fiscal summit of independent experts and unions, advocacy groups and members of Congress to discuss how we can cut the trillion-dollar deficit that we’ve inherited.”
“On Tuesday, I will speak to the nation about our urgent national priorities.”
“On Thursday, I’ll release a budget that’s sober in its assessments, honest in its accounting, and that lays out in detail my strategy for investing in what we need, cutting what we don’t, and restoring fiscal discipline."
“3.5 million Americans will now go to work doing the work that America needs done.”
“There will now be shovels in the ground, cranes in the air, and workers rebuilding our crumbling roads and bridges, and repairing our faulty levees and dams.”
· “Companies -- large and small -- that produce renewable energy can now apply for loan guarantees and tax credits and find ways to grow, instead of laying people off”
· “Families can lower their energy bills by weatherizing their homes.”
· “Our children can now graduate from 21st century schools and millions more can do what was unaffordable just last week -- and get their college degree.”
· “Lives will be saved and health care costs will be cut with new computerized medical records. “
· “There will now be police on the beat, firefighters on the job, and teachers preparing lesson plans who thought they would not be able to continue pursuing their critical missions.”
· “And (to) ensure that all of this is done with an unprecedented level of transparency and accountability, I have assigned a team of managers to make sure that precious tax dollars are invested wisely and well.”
· “95 percent of all working families will get a tax cut -- in keeping with a promise I made on the campaign. “
· “And I'm pleased to announce that this morning, the Treasury Department began directing employers to reduce the amount of taxes withheld from paychecks -- meaning that by April 1st, a typical family will begin taking home at least $65 more every month.”
· “It is only a first step on the road to economic recovery. “
· “We can't fail to complete the journey.”
· “Will require stemming the spread of foreclosures and falling home values”
· “Doing all we can to help responsible homeowners stay in their homes”
· “It will require stabilizing and repairing our banking system”
· “Getting credit flowing again to families and businesses.”
· “Reforming the broken regulatory system that made this crisis possible.”
· “Recognizing that it's only by setting and enforcing 21st century rules of the road that we can build a thriving economy.”
· “It will require doing all we can to get exploding deficits under control as our economy begins to recover.”
· “No single piece of this broad economic recovery can, by itself, meet the demands that have been placed on us.”
· “We can't help people find work or pay their bills unless we unlock credit for families and businesses.”
· “We can't solve our housing crisis unless we help people find work so that they can make payments on their homes.”
· “We can't produce shared prosperity without firm rules of the road.”
· “We can't generate sustained growth without getting our deficits under control. “
· “We cannot successfully address any of our problems without addressing them all.”
· “That is exactly what the strategy we are pursuing is designed to do.”
· “I am confident that we, as a people, have the strength and wisdom to carry out this strategy and overcome this crisis.”
· “And if we do, our economy -- and our country -- will be better and stronger for it.”
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rlw895 wrote:
"Everything?" Come on, show some moxie. How about 90%, 75%, 50%? And many of these are not measureable by objective standards. Pick a few that are.
2/28/2009 12:59 PM PST on The Sacramento Bee
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CreditUnionMan wrote:
I'll accept your selection.
Sunday Musings
My sister died of brain cancer when I was four years and five months old. It was a devastating experience. I started school when I was four years and nine months old.
That experience was not much better. Today, I would be labeled a troubled child with behavioral issues. Back then I was simply a discipline problem.
I could not have put it into words back then, but my problem was injustice. The profound injustice of losing my sister and no one willing to talk about it or her. The petty injustice of having to go to school when I didn’t want to. And the simple reality that life goes on and sometimes you get school teachers that are not very good at it.
Mrs. Brewster, and that is her real name, was not a good kindergarten teacher. I don’t even say that it was her fault. You have to so something for a living. But she was one crummy teacher and not a very nice person either.
One day, I was stood in the corner for some infraction. I probably deserved it. I was not a good student. But I believed my treatment was not warranted in this case and said so. Mrs. Brewster walked over and slapped me across the face. Hard.
I told my parents she had hit me. My mother didn’t believe me and my father said I must have deserved it and gave me a good one of his own. So much for justice. Although, what never occurred to me until much later was that nothing in writing had been sent home documenting the slap. I know now that only the principle got to wallop the kids. Again, so much for justice.
More defiance on my part, more slams and slaps.
Eventually, I came to realize that’s all they had.
I spend some time over on the forums, mostly the one about gay marriage rights but others as well. You gain a unique perspective, listening to the ideologues on both sides of an issue yell at each other without listening at all. And every so often, someone leaves a post that more or less voices their opinion, states there is no reason for this discussion in the first place, suggests the Bee shut down the site and finishes off with “We won, you lost, end of story!”
I’ll bet they slap their children. Because that’s all they’ve got. They parrot some lines they heard on the radio or read in a brochure, decided they liked what they heard and that’s it. End of story. I’m right and you are wrong. We won, you lost, end of story.
I’ve even googled some of the lines I’ve read and found the damned brochures and sites they see them in. Don’t they have any original thoughts? When pressed for a few, then they just call each other names.
I don’t ignore injustice and I won’t ignore bullies on either side of an issue, even if I find myself allied with them in purpose. So I don’t give a damn if it has been voted on or not. Maybe in the Amerika these clowns come from you can shut off discussion, but in America we don’t do it that way.
That experience was not much better. Today, I would be labeled a troubled child with behavioral issues. Back then I was simply a discipline problem.
I could not have put it into words back then, but my problem was injustice. The profound injustice of losing my sister and no one willing to talk about it or her. The petty injustice of having to go to school when I didn’t want to. And the simple reality that life goes on and sometimes you get school teachers that are not very good at it.
Mrs. Brewster, and that is her real name, was not a good kindergarten teacher. I don’t even say that it was her fault. You have to so something for a living. But she was one crummy teacher and not a very nice person either.
One day, I was stood in the corner for some infraction. I probably deserved it. I was not a good student. But I believed my treatment was not warranted in this case and said so. Mrs. Brewster walked over and slapped me across the face. Hard.
I told my parents she had hit me. My mother didn’t believe me and my father said I must have deserved it and gave me a good one of his own. So much for justice. Although, what never occurred to me until much later was that nothing in writing had been sent home documenting the slap. I know now that only the principle got to wallop the kids. Again, so much for justice.
More defiance on my part, more slams and slaps.
Eventually, I came to realize that’s all they had.
I spend some time over on the forums, mostly the one about gay marriage rights but others as well. You gain a unique perspective, listening to the ideologues on both sides of an issue yell at each other without listening at all. And every so often, someone leaves a post that more or less voices their opinion, states there is no reason for this discussion in the first place, suggests the Bee shut down the site and finishes off with “We won, you lost, end of story!”
I’ll bet they slap their children. Because that’s all they’ve got. They parrot some lines they heard on the radio or read in a brochure, decided they liked what they heard and that’s it. End of story. I’m right and you are wrong. We won, you lost, end of story.
I’ve even googled some of the lines I’ve read and found the damned brochures and sites they see them in. Don’t they have any original thoughts? When pressed for a few, then they just call each other names.
I don’t ignore injustice and I won’t ignore bullies on either side of an issue, even if I find myself allied with them in purpose. So I don’t give a damn if it has been voted on or not. Maybe in the Amerika these clowns come from you can shut off discussion, but in America we don’t do it that way.
Economic Vanity: The Yellow Brick Road, Part Two
When we last left our hero he was trying to demonstrate how facial cosmetics might possibly be applied to a pig with some positive effect. In the first episode, he suggested that handing taxpayer money back to taxpayers hoping they will go to a movie and order butter with their popcorn was an even worse idea than passing a stimulus bill at all.
Instead, since the stimulus package is a fait accompli, he suggested the money be handed to the pirates and brigands that are Corporate America with instructions to use it to supplement their own investment in an industry dedicated to economically extracting our natural resources in a responsible and environmentally friendly manner.
This will come with the warning… scratch that… the genuine and very legitimate threat of violent penance should they cheat or cut corners. He also knows he is dreaming about all of this, but so is DC so, so what?
But it takes more than mining, farming and chopping down trees.
Assuming the money keeps flowing out of Washington like water from Meribah, it should continue to help build processing plants that turn natural resources into primary products. These raw materials and parts will then be used to manufacture finished goods and machinery. Domestic and foreign consumption are certain to follow.
New jobs will be created in construction, first for the industrial complexes themselves followed by housing, retail and schools for the people they will employ and their families. Transportation, research and development and even jobs that can’t be described because they will be the result of innovative technologies not yet even created!
Pie in the sky predictions from some nutcase with his head in the clouds?
Maybe. But in their own way, this is precisely what the president and Congress are telling you right now about a stimulus bill, now passed, that for most Americans will result in a few bucks more in their paycheck (and will be lost later) that they will run out to the mall to buy an iPod with.
My suggestion, that is to say using taxpayer dollars to bring manufacturing back to this country, could work. What the President and his pals are doing though, will not work. I have no doubt they will claim it worked regardless of the outcome, but it won't work.
I’ve been reading the actual bill that was passed. Next time I’ll tell you some things your stimulus dollars are going to that are not making the news. (Example: Over $3 billion for rural sewer systems.)
Instead, since the stimulus package is a fait accompli, he suggested the money be handed to the pirates and brigands that are Corporate America with instructions to use it to supplement their own investment in an industry dedicated to economically extracting our natural resources in a responsible and environmentally friendly manner.
This will come with the warning… scratch that… the genuine and very legitimate threat of violent penance should they cheat or cut corners. He also knows he is dreaming about all of this, but so is DC so, so what?
But it takes more than mining, farming and chopping down trees.
Assuming the money keeps flowing out of Washington like water from Meribah, it should continue to help build processing plants that turn natural resources into primary products. These raw materials and parts will then be used to manufacture finished goods and machinery. Domestic and foreign consumption are certain to follow.
New jobs will be created in construction, first for the industrial complexes themselves followed by housing, retail and schools for the people they will employ and their families. Transportation, research and development and even jobs that can’t be described because they will be the result of innovative technologies not yet even created!
Pie in the sky predictions from some nutcase with his head in the clouds?
Maybe. But in their own way, this is precisely what the president and Congress are telling you right now about a stimulus bill, now passed, that for most Americans will result in a few bucks more in their paycheck (and will be lost later) that they will run out to the mall to buy an iPod with.
My suggestion, that is to say using taxpayer dollars to bring manufacturing back to this country, could work. What the President and his pals are doing though, will not work. I have no doubt they will claim it worked regardless of the outcome, but it won't work.
I’ve been reading the actual bill that was passed. Next time I’ll tell you some things your stimulus dollars are going to that are not making the news. (Example: Over $3 billion for rural sewer systems.)
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