Non Sequitor from the Right

Senator Dean Heller's Confusion

by Max Johnson
The Corporate Party took to the airwaves this morning in response to the weekly Presidential Address with a schizophrenic message that only confuses the public.  

“The American public and businesses alike are waiting on a plan that can plant the seeds of economic growth and bolster job creation,” Heller said.

A very good start that we can all agree on.  No problem.  I am thinking, "Great, now everyone is getting on the same page here."  Then Heller goes off the deep end changing the subject dramatically.  CNN characterized it with this: "Among suggested solutions for recovery, Heller advocated a balanced budget amendment, more open rules on energy exploration and a repeal of Obama’s sweeping health care reform."  How is this helpful?  What does a balanced federal budget amendment have to do with getting people to work?  If anything any cut to the federal government will just reduce the federal workforce and increase the number of people looking for jobs.

It is like declaring an emergency at the Tom's River nuclear power plant in New Jersey after it is flooded by hurricane storm surge, and then offering a solution of opening up the Arctic Wildlife Preserve for drilling.  Yes, in 15 years, that drilling will replace the power lost because Tom's River is underwater, but in the interim the area around Atlantic City becomes uninhabitable for a century because of radiation poisoning and thousands die.  The solutions being discussed have nothing to do with the problem.  Working on federal debt while we are still in crisis makes no sense.  Energy exploration is a long term issue that will have no impact on the crisis of a lack of jobs right now.  The health care reform law is fully implemented in 2014, and so why is the party of the rich talking about that now?  It has nothing to do with a small business hiring people today.  If anything if the cost of employee health care were taken off the small businesses in America and given to government there would be a massive number of jobs created.  This is an argument for Universal Health Care and not a retreat from the pathetic reform that was passed two years ago.

These guys do not get it.  They seem to be playing for 2013 with a hope there will be a different president in office.  They don't seem to care that we are suffering now, and need immediate help.  

Good Press Conference on Friday

President Finally is Hitting All the Right Notes

by Maxwell Johnson

I thought that the President did a good job on the press conference regarding the debt limit on Friday July 15, 2011. I thought that he finally hit all the issues and the hypocrisy of the other side. He seems to be stressing the issues that brought us to this point, and a history of the votes on raising the debt ceiling in the past. Stressed that the rich are going to have to pay a little more. President Obama talked about the proposal that he put forward.

"The least I can do is to say that people who are making a million dollars or more have to do something as well. And that’s the kind of tradeoff, that’s the kind of balanced approach and shared sacrifice that I think most Americans agree needs to happen," said Obama.

Obama criticized the House resolution that does not close tax loopholes, "But if you’re trying to get to $2.4 trillion without any revenue, then you are effectively gutting a whole bunch of domestic spending that is going to be too burdensome and is not going to be something that I would support. "

"So I have not seen a credible plan -- having gone through the numbers -- that would allow you to get to $2.4 trillion without really hurting ordinary folks."

"Chuck, you have 80 percent of the American people who support a balanced approach. Eighty percent of the American people support an approach that includes revenues and includes cuts. So the notion that somehow the American people aren’t sold is not the problem. The problem is members of Congress are dug in ideologically into various positions because they boxed themselves in with previous statements," said Obama.

"We don’t need more studies. We don’t need a balanced budget amendment. We simply need to make these tough choices and be willing to take on our bases."

These are all good points. The one missing point that the President was unwilling to further muddy the waters, and that was the debt was caused by the Congress. They decided not to pay for two wars. They decided to not fund a prescription drug benefit and the "No Child Left Behind" bill. Most of the current Congressional leadership were on a drunken spending spree for the last 10 years, and now they have found religion. They have to violate their Grover Norquist doctrine or bankrupt the Medicaid, space program, education department, and Department of Interior.

Forgetting their Oath: Rep. Allen West

Confused Representative Needs to be Schooled

by Max Johnson
On Thursday Representative Allen West of Florida was interviewed on NPR for perhaps the most confusing interview ever on public radio. He is a rare African American member of the tea party, and has no understanding of economics or his oath to preserve and protect the constitution.

Rep. WEST: Well, this is the thing. You know, I could very easily sit up and say, sure, let's raise the debt ceiling. And then, what happens as far as our long-term spending problem that we have in Washington, D.C. and our long-term economic situation? Anyone that is reasonable will say that we need to contend with the spending issue that we have in Washington, D.C.

A couple of problems here Congressman. First, your party built this debt with a couple of wars that were not paid for and a whole bunch of unfunded programs put on the nation's check book over the last 10 years. Remember, we were under a trajectory for federal surpluses in 2000 and then we gave a huge tax cut to the wealthy and now we have a major debt. Republicans have raised the debt ceiling under President Bush regularly, but have now found religion under Obama. Finally, since your party is in charge of one branch of government, why do you have to link long term spending with the debt ceiling.

Why can't your party figure out a solution to long term debt instead of going on your August recess and decoupling it from the debt ceiling debate? Anyone who is reasonable agrees that we need to deal with spending by bringing in more revenue, Mr. Congressman.

Here is the dumbest thing ever said on the radio:

Rep. WEST: Yeah. As a matter of fact, I'm just looking at a chart that was sent out from the U.S. Treasury, as well as Goldman Sachs, that alludes to that point, that there's revenue that will be there, about 250 billion, that will allow us to prioritize and then take care of that debt interest payment, take care of our seniors and take care of our military as well.

Then there was some back and forth with host Robert Siegel about which departments can or cannot be funded. This is a violation of his oath of office. He did not sign up to pay only some debts of the United States. How can he suggest that the courts shut down or not pay for any food inspectors? This is bordering on treason to suggest that the President has a right to pick which debts to pay and which not to pay. Don't they teach this in freshman orientation to new Congressman?

West had a career in the military, which came to an abrupt end when he was charged with assault and Article 134. He left the military after paying a fine. Now, he is suggesting paying active military over veteran's benefits. He is suggesting not paying military contractors. Rep. West is suggesting that we not pay for Florida's beloved space program debt in August, and not paying any of the doctors who should be reimbursed by the Medicaid program. It is treason and the NPR host should not allow this to stand.

Rep Price Does Not Remember His Oath

Price Proposes Default: No Media Backlash
by Max Johnson

Once again a leader in the Corporate Party is suggesting default by only paying some of our debts in August and NPR's Melissa Block on July 7th allowed him to make that suggestion without calling him on it. Budget Committee member Representative Tom Price claimed that "Americans are not interested in a tax increase" without any proof or justification for the statement. NPR's Block did not follow up asking for proof. Where is the liberal media when you need it? Then he came up with a sweeping statement about defaulting on our bills, and Block did not question his patriotism or his commitment to his oath of office.

"And then, I think the president hurts himself when he says, look, if this doesn't happen, then students won't be able to get loans, Social Security checks won't go out, we won't be able to pay the troops, when he knows that if we were to prioritize appropriately and decrease the amount of spending, for example, in the Department of the Interior, the Department of Commerce, that we could continue to pay the interest on a debt, which is a relatively simple thing to do at 8 to 10 percent of the amount of money that's coming in still, and pay the troops and pay the Social Security checks." said Rep. Price on NPR.

There is no rational person who does not see that we will not have enough money to pay all of our bills. We have obligations that we cannot cover, because the Congress for the last 10 years has fallen down on controlling spending. But Rep. Price is suggesting that we just not pay the bills for two Departments of the federal government. Does that mean that those employees do not get their paychecks? Or some small business that was doing business with these two Departments will not get reimbursed? It is a violation of their oath of office that Price would suggest defaulting on obligations of the United States. Block should have beat him up over this answer. Not that it would matter. She did try to engage him on corporate jet tax loopholes, and Price blew off the question refusing to answer.

Any discussion of not paying some of our bills or not raising the debt ceiling is a violation of the oath to protect and defend the constitution. The media should jump all over these guys, and if NPR were in fact liberal they would have slammed this Representative for violating his oath of office.

Texas Senator a Liar

John Cornyn Lies and Evades Questions on PBS

by Max
Cornyn sat down with Judy Woodruff and once again a major media question reader allows talking points over the answering of questions. Woodruff asked a perfectly legitimate question about why the Medicare/Medicaid recipient is being asked to a haircut and "share in the sacrifice" but the rich folks are not expected to accept a tax increase. Cornyn immediately launched into a talking point.

SEN. JOHN CORNYN: Well I think -- what I think my constituents in Texas want is work. They want jobs. And they're not being created now across the country.

And we know that people who don't have a job, they can't pay their home mortgage and they're losing their home. So, what we need now more than anything else in this country is jobs.

Why didn't Woodruff stop him, and say are you going to answer my question or something like, "We can just move on if you do not want to answer the questions." What about asking as a quick follow up where were the jobs over the last 10 years after the huge Bush tax cut? Senator didn't we lose millions of jobs during that time? Isn't your economic theory here a failure that has never worked?

Other whoppers from Cornyn's spin show from tonight that went unchallenged:

• The message he got from November 2010 was that people want government cut instead of people are angry with government because elected officials sat back and did nothing while the economy went in the crapper.
  
• Less regulation of an oil industry that is right now poisoning a river in Montana and still taking houses away from men serving in the US military is Cornyn's plan.
  
• Big businesses have learned how to lay people off and automate so that they do not need workers.
• The reason that big business is sitting on piles of cash is because they are uncertain about regulations and healthcare. These titans of industry, masters of the universe, are afraid of Barack Obama?
  
• He is proposing that we need to reduce entitlements and get government out of the way so that the private sector can take over. How does reducing government not result in getting rid of government jobs? Reducing medicare reduces medicare workers and thus reduces the number of jobs.
• Cornyn believes that this is not the time to raise taxes, but he and his friends have taken the no tax increase pledge for the last 25 years. When is the proper time over the last 12 years to have raised taxes? When we invaded two countries? When we added prescription drugs for seniors? When we put the federal government in charge of education with No Child Left Behind? Nope, the correct answer is NEVER EVER EVER RAISE TAXES!!!
• Cornyn said that it is going to take 60 votes to raise the debt ceiling. Why? If the right wing party leadership told their members that there will be no filibuster threat on this vote it would only take 51 votes.
  

If it were true that the mainstream media was biased, Woodruff would have teed off on Cornyn. He was serving up crap, and she could have ripped him apart. She decided to treat him with respect when he treated her with contempt by not answering her questions. He is undermining the future of the country by threatening to default on our debts, and Judy Woodruff did not treat him like the treasonous leader he is. The media is too nice to these guys preferring balance over honesty and reason.