Republicans Defeat Responsibility by bruceeggum on Blogster

Republicans defeat the Democratic push to be responsible, again.

Th e Senate Republicans hold enough power to keep Democrats from passing needed reforms including stopping war funding, increasing necessary tax revenue, The high cost of THEIR war is reducing our nations dollar to be worthless.

Using filibuster to require a 3/5 majority to pass a bill, the Republicans stopped a tax increase for the rich, as well as failed to fund needed money to continue government. They also refused to fix the AMT which is their way of harvesting tax from the middle class who are already hit with inflation and low wages.

"I'm not in favor of waiving pay-go rules," said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) "I think we cannot waver on that." But that was last month. The end of the congressional session is looming. So is the prospect of a tax increase that would hit more than 23 million Americans if the alternative minimum tax (AMT) is not adjusted. Republicans - who might as well rename themselves the Grand Old Party of Fiscal Irresponsibility - refuse to pay the $50 billion tab for the one-year fix. They refuse to do away with the "carried interest" loophole that lets venture capitalists and hedge fund operators pay lower capital gains rates on ordinary income, and they refuse to countenance any other method. So Mr. Reid wavered, and the Senate passed the AMT patch with no offset by a vote of 88 to 5. The measure ensures that millions of reasonably well-off taxpayers - as Len Burman of the Tax Policy Center points out, 85 percent of the benefit goes to those earning $100,000 or more - will avoid a tax hike. Their grandchildren will have to pick up the tab.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/120907F.shtml

Do Taxes 'Hurt'? Is Government Bad?

October 04, 2007

As I read my Monday morning (Oct. 1, 2007) San Jose Mercury News a headline jumped out at me: "Cigarette tax would hurt poor".

How often do we hear that taxes "hurt" or "punish" one group or another? How often do we hear that taxes are a "burden on the economy" or "cost jobs?" How many politicians talk about providing "tax relief?"

George Lakoff, of the Rockridge Institute writes that this language "frames" taxes as an affliction:

http://speakoutca.org/archives/2007/10/do_taxes_hurt_i.php

US national debt is about $9.17 TRILLION dollars

This is the result of 7+ years of Republican rule -------------------------------

As I write this, the US national debt is about $9.17 TRILLION dollars. This debt is the amount we have borrowed to pay for our government since the Reagan tax cuts - compounded by the Bush tax cuts. This is because of a choice we made - yes I say WE, because this government is US - to borrow and pay later instead of pay now.

Don't for a minute think that you do not owe that money. It comes to about $30,000 for each American, including infants. If you are a family of four you now owe about $120,000 thanks to those tax cuts. YOU owe this money, even though the tax cuts have primarily gone to the very rich. You WILL be paying it, one way or another. Don't think that debt like that just goes away.

PLUS now each year we pay about $433 billion for interest on that debt. That amount, of course, rises every year. So in addition to owing all that money we have to service the debt by paying $433 billion every year. That amount is larger than the current federal deficit - which means if we had not cut those taxes and borrowed all that money in the past we would have $433 billion more each year to spend or save AND we would not owe $9 trillion.

I do not understand how we tolerate this situation. Yes, it happened because we listened to lies, but how many of our candidates are seriously talking about the changes that need to be made to fix this?

See the forest.

White House Threatens Budget Veto
By Andrew Taylor
The Associated Press

Sunday 09 December 2007

Washington - The White House on Saturday threatened to veto a massive spending bill being assembled by congressional Democrats, saying it's unacceptable to add billions of dollars to domestic programs.

The White House has not seen details of the $500 billion-plus measure - which senior Democrats are constructing behind closed doors - but reacted to it based on media accounts.

The bill contains $11 billion above President Bush's February budget, awarding the money to domestic programs such as education and health research. It also may contain several billion dollars in "emergency" funding for border security, foreign aid, drought relief and a food program for women and children.

The budget increases come on top of $5 billion awarded last month for disaster relief and Louisiana's "Road Home" housing program for victims of Hurricane Katrina.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/120907Y.shtml

These are critical needs at home! No money for security? education? health? welfare? These are constitutional mandates. (Printed on THAT piece of paper) Obviously we can not afford ANY republicans in office.

It takes 2/3 approval of BOTH houses to override a veto.

ENERGY the Republicans Filibustered requiring 3/5 majority. (it would have passed )

Question: On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture on the Motion to Concur in the House Amdts. to the Senate Amdts. to H.R. 6 )
Vote Number:	416	Vote Date:	December 7, 2007, 09:47 AM
Required For Majority:	3/5	Vote Result:	Cloture Motion Rejected
Measure Number:	H.R. 6 (Renewable Fuels, Consumer Protection, and Energy Efficiency Act of 2007 )
Measure Title:	An Act to move the United States toward greater energy independence and security, to increase the production of clean renewable fuels, to protect consumers, to increase the efficiency of products, buildings, and vehicles, to promote research on and deploy greenhouse gas capture and storage options, and to improve the energy performance of the Federal Government, and for other purposes.