Presidential Campaign: 2012

[roni]

Stars collide: Michele Bachmann vs. Sarah Palin - Ben Smith and Maggie Haberman - POLITICO.com

[ryberg]

Originally Posted by tmc

after all, it is/was my money in the first place, right?

The government has no claim to any money -- especially from us! -- to operate.

On our behalf.

In accordance with the results of our elections and Constitution and so forth.

[Jacko]

Originally Posted by StephenB

well...whatever. I'll leave you guys alone for the rest of the day...I've gotta go get a rabies shot and a brake line...

I bet!

[Jacko]

Originally Posted by tmc

I used mine to put my kids through college, save for my retirement, and make improvements on my home (many local contractors were quite pleased with that last choice); after all, it is/was my money in the first place, right? What did you do with your "tax reductions"?

It is gone, won't see it again until someone with an eye towards growing the economy and expanding the economic pie, rather than slicing up the pie and giving it to his cronies, gains control of the levers of power and stops the assault on those capable of generating wealth.

My point was it sure didn't fix the economy as well as any of us wanted it to just like the things that the Obama administration, and the best experts one could assemble, has not fixed the economy the way we wanted it to.

Well, okay....you were happy that you got the extra money to spend...and so was I...and the State's were happy they got the money from the Feds during this time...and the contractors were happy, and GM was happy and so on and so on...it looks different from each constituents perspective....the point being, none it was enough given the depths from which we are trying to extricate ourselves.

[Davev]

Originally Posted by melliedee

A home is supposed to be an investment, or so I've always been told.
Are people who are concerned about their loss of investment "exaggerating?" I don't think so.

Stocks and mutual funds are "investments" too, but like real estate they come with no guarantee that they will increase in value or even HOLD their value.. And like a stock, you only lose or make $$ when you actually SELL, todays value of that investment is hypothetical.

[horizon200]

Originally Posted by Jacko

My point was it sure didn't fix the economy as well as any of us wanted it to just like the things that the Obama administration, and the best experts one could assemble, has not fixed the economy the way we wanted it to.

Well, okay....you were happy that you got the extra money to spend...and so was I...and the State's were happy they got the money from the Feds during this time...and the contractors were happy, and GM was happy and so on and so on...it looks different from each constituents perspective....the point being, none it was enough given the depths from which we are trying to extricate ourselves.

I don't know if it is just the amount either Jacko. I was reading an OpEd this morning about the hiring freezes and reductions in Govt Employees. A very good point was made. Those government employees are being dumped into the provate sector now looking for jobs that don't exist thus exacerbating the problem. The money they were spending in the economy is now gone. So, while it sells well on TV saying a reduction in the size of governemtn and the number of govt employees are being reduced....reality is it is not the answer. I would submit that the reduction in government spending is done through reducing subsidies and funding for entitlement programs. Sure, there is some reduction in force that is associated. But, it seems the easy answer is to say we are cutting the government employees by 10% (arbitrary number for sake of discussion). The bigger resultant cost of that may have a worse impact in the long run.

Instead, we are seeing cutbacks at all levels of government. These cutbacks led to a loss of 29,000 jobs in May. The pace of job loss is only likely to increase when states impose another round of cuts on July 1, the beginning of a new fiscal year for most of them. ...

[melliedee]

Originally Posted by tmc

It is gone, won't see it again until someone with an eye towards growing the economy and expanding the economic pie, rather than slicing up the pie and giving it to his cronies, gains control of the levers of power and stops the assault on those capable of generating wealth.

It that assault is so detrimental to wealth creation, why do we see the largest income disparity in this country since the 1930's?

[melliedee]

Why we can't ignore growing income inequality. (1) - By Timothy Noah - Slate Magazine

[STOGEY]

President O isn't worried about the double dip recession. Instead he's worried about the lack of jobs.

Hey swapping needles when taking heroin isn't a bad vice. It's the aids that you can get from gay people that have used the needles before you did.

[gingele]

Handmade Anti-Obama Sign Currently Frontrunner For Republican Presidential Nomination

WASHINGTON—According to a Quinnipiac University poll conducted this week, a homemade anti-Obama sign has surged to the front of the 2012 Republican presidential field, emerging as the clear favorite to earn the party's nomination in next year's primaries.

The telephone survey of 773 likely voters indicated the sign, a piece of poster board bearing the handwritten phrase "NOBAMA 2012" in bold red letters, would defeat former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, its nearest rival, by a landslide 17 percentage points if the primaries were held today. The poll also found the sign had a "favorable" or "highly favorable" rating among 94 percent of registered Republicans, a figure greater than all other presumptive GOP candidates combined.

More at the jump: Handmade Anti-Obama Sign Currently Frontrunner For Republican Presidential Nomination

[STOGEY]

Originally Posted by ryberg

The government has no claim to any money -- especially from us! -- to operate.

On our behalf.

In accordance with the results of our elections and Constitution and so forth.

Where does it say in the US Constitution that Congress can barrow from foreign govts? Where does it say in the Constitution that the EPA can legislate laws?

[gingele]

Originally Posted by STOGEY

Where does it say in the US Constitution that Congress can barrow from foreign govts? Where does it say in the Constitution that the EPA can legislate laws?

Why don't you read it and let us know: http://www.usconstitution.net/const.html

[STOGEY]

Originally Posted by ryberg

You're the guy who claimed he'd stopped reading my posts a long time ago, right?

You may find it helpful to know that I do not have pigtails...

Instead you wear pink cloggs.

[ryberg]

Thanks for your enlightening contributions to the discussion, Stogey.

[beerbreath]

The Republicans can't feel good about this:

(Reuters) - President Barack Obama retains a big lead over possible Republican rivals in the presidential election despite anxiety about the economy and the country's future, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll on Wednesday.

Obama's approval rating inched up 1 percentage point from May to 50 percent but the number of Americans who believe the country is on the wrong track also rose as pricier gasoline, persistently high unemployment and a weak housing market chipped away at public confidence.

Obama leads all potential Republican challengers by double-digit margins. He is ahead of his closest Republican rival, former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney, by 13 percentage points -- 51 percent to 38 percent.

"Obama's position has gotten a little stronger over the last couple of months as the public mood has evened out, and as an incumbent he has some big advantages over his rivals," Ipsos pollster Cliff Young said.

"Until Republicans go through a primary season and select a nominee, they are going to be at a disadvantage in the head-to-head matchups in name recognition."

Sarah Palin and Romney lead the pack of Republicans battling for the right to challenge Obama in the November 2012 election.

Palin, who has not said whether she will run, had the support of 22 percent of the Republicans surveyed and Romney had 20 percent.

Representative Ron Paul, a libertarian Republican from Texas, and former pizza executive Herman Cain were tied for third with 7 percent each.