US POLITICS SPRING 2011: Let's just call off this country.

what i find really frustrating are his half-hearted efforts to say that the stimulus worked and we need another one, but because "stimulus" polls badly and he's a coward he does this minute-long rambling thing about how maybe we could give a little bit more help to state governments.

stimulus didn't dent unemployment numbers ergo it "didn't work" in any way that the general public is going to accept

and yet, it's regarded even by centrists/moderates/whatthefuckever as so much "worse" than Bush tax cuts. which have had an undeniably negative effect on the deficit.

the washington post, folks!

http://k.min.us/iehqb0.png

(admittedly the reason that is the post's #1 politics story is because it was linked to by drudge who is obsessed w/ michelle's diet habits)

washington post has the scoop... more like michelle obama had an extra scoop!!!

honestly growing up with wapo as my hometown paper reading inconsequential nonsense about lobbyist marriages in the reliable source column occasionally made me feel some sort of strange hometown pride

like "our celebrity gossip is really nerdy" or something

also I should go to shake shack and eat 1700 calories

^ never not correct

Mitch McConnell at his finest:

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The top Republican in the Senate said on Tuesday that a "real solution" to the country's mounting debt is probably not possible as long as President Barack Obama remains in office.

At first, the Senator said no "final solution" could be found, but quickly revised the turn of phrase when a hush fell on the room.

hahaha

too much sensitivity, guys.

At first, the Senator said "negotiations would be a gas," but quickly revised the turn of phrase when a hush fell on the room.

"Obama's got an advantage in the media," McConnell said.

"He comes on TV, he looks good, he sounds good. He's a real, you know, eugenic guy."

After an advisor whispered furiously in his ear, McConnell turned again to the room. "And I mean that in the best possible way."

Heaven knows what fate will befall the Republic should Jeff Sessions refer to the "niggardly cuts to entitlement benefits."

"And I think at this juncture, what the American people need to be doing is getting plenty of exercise and eating right," McConnell said. "We"--he gestured to the hedge fund managers and high-level lobbyists surrounding the podium--"are going to eat them as soup, broth, a number of things. This is America, and we want them to be as tasty as possible."

we bill be eating a consummé of oxtail, topped by shaved leeks and freeze-dried fennel, flecked with 24 karet gold flakes

"The unemployed," said the Senator, "are welcome to come over to my house. Forty six acres of brush doesn't just clear itself, you know," as the room dissolved in mirth.

I like this Daily Beast item on the negotiations. Obama is prepared to screw students, Medicaid recipients, Social Security recipients, and seniors as long as the Republicans will agree to some token tax screwing of the wealthy:

As Monday’s White House budget talks got down to the nitty-gritty, Eric Cantor proposed a series of spending cuts, one of them aimed squarely at college students.

The House majority leader, who did most of the talking for the Republican side, said those taking out student loans should start paying interest right away, rather than being able to defer payments until after graduation. It is a big-ticket item that would save $40 billion over 10 years.

At one point, sources say, President Obama pushed back against the mounting menu of spending cuts while the tax column on the negotiating sheets remained blank. He asked the Republican leaders how they expected him to take their proposals seriously.

“I’m not going to do that,” Obama said. “I’m not going to take money from old people and screw students,” not without some compromise on the tax-increase side.

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2011/07/11/debt-crisis-deepens-as-eric-cantor-gop-propose-new-cuts.html

if they're 'taking a semester off, they'll be better prepared to mobilize for him in '12, right?

paul retiring!

http://thefacts.com/article_1c9785ea-ac9d-11e0-b2df-001cc4c03286.html

good riddance. too bad he's left his son behind.

surely that district will put in someone worse

probably

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_legislation_sponsored_by_Ron_Paul

Sanctity of Life Act of 2007. H.R. 2597 , 2007-06-06, originally H.R. 776 , 2005-02-10. For the purposes of statutory construction over the jurisdictional limitation imposed, declares that "human life shall be deemed to exist from conception". Removes federal court jurisdiction over abortion cases arising from state laws and effectively negates Roe v. Wade as binding legal precedent.[63] Such a law returns to each state the power to decide whether or not abortion should be allowed, banned, or regulated.

^^^dick move

hates the federal gov't, except for when it takes over women's uteruses

lol

The cover for the new transportation reauthorization bill put forward by house GOP.

http://streetsblog.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/cover-300x194.jpg

“If you approve our bill, then our highways will look like this … because we won’t be able to maintain them, and engineers will have to close them off because the overpasses are structurally unsound.”

At least Mac is honest!

The Senate's top Republican said Tuesday that he did not see a way for Republicans and Democrats to come to agreement on meaningful deficit reduction as long as President Obama remains in office.

"After years of discussions and months of negotiations, I have little question that as long as this president is in the Oval Office, a real solution is probably unattainable," Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell said in remarks on the Senate floor.

http://streetsblog.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/cover-300x194.jpg

no don't you see the gop is secretly pushing mass transit

'this can be our amazing future when everyone takes the train'

"Removes federal court jurisdiction over abortion cases arising from state laws"

OK gl trying to overturn Art. III of the Constitution let me know how that goes.

kind of a dumb idle thought here but, we shouldn't raise the debt ceiling, we should repeal it. we shouldn't have a 'debt ceiling'.

inclined to agree here

Obama seems to be taking a much harder tack, well aware of the political peril GOP is flirting with. but man if SS checks actually fail to go out, and interest rates skyrocket - even for a couple days.... hooboy

Here's why victory doesn't matter.

I don't care about the debt ceiling debate, which will get settled, as I do about taxes and SS.

uh aren't those things kind of all bound up together at the moment

No. That's what the GOP wants us to thin. Like I said, Kabuki.

*think

anyway what does it matter if Obama "wins" this fight if it means destroying Medicare and SS?

i might've said this before but "kabuki" is way too close to "bukkake" for me to feel comfortable reading the word

"ah you know, just the typical republican bukkake theater"

anyway, SOTO OTM

wait so Alfred you think the GOP is just going to vote to raise the debt limit and not get any concessions on SS/Medicare

xp

KABUKI, THE ART FORM, HAD ACTUAL MEANING YOU KNOW

it's a worse saying than "under the bus" imo

somebody mentioned this, right?

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20078789-503544.html

Obama says he cannot guarantee Social Security checks will go out on August 3

that's playing some kind of card.

Of course they will! I gave up weeks ago. The Dems did too – it's their fault for allowing the two problems to get conflated.

KABUKI, THE ART FORM, HAD ACTUAL MEANING YOU KNOW

it's a worse saying than "under the bus" imo

yes but Boehner and Macca look like they're actually wearing makeup.

that's playing some kind of card.

otm

at first i was like, why not make that really clear a long time ago? but nobody was paying attention then

i feel like this dumb argument has been grinding on for like 6 mos but we're not exactly "normal"