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Showing posts with label GOP Plan. Show all posts
Friday, August 2, 2013
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
Watcher’s Forum: The Fiscal Cliff – Let It Happen Or Grand Bargain?
Every week on Monday morning , the Council and invited guests weigh in at the Watcher’s Forum, short takes on a major issue of the day. This week’s question: The Fiscal Cliff: Let it happen or Grand Bargain?
For those of you whom may not be aware, ‘the Fiscal cliff’ refers to automatic and draconian spending cuts and the end of the Bush-era tax cuts and a general hike in taxes as many Americans now exempt form the Alternative Minimum Tax become subject paying it. This was agreed to the last time by both parties as part of a deal to raise President Obama’s credit card limit ( AKA the debt ceiling) last year. It goes into effect January 1st, 2013 if there’s no agreement between President Obama and the House Republicans on taxes, the debt limit and spending. The president wants to raise taxes on ‘the rich’, another binge of stimulus spending, an increase in the nation’s debt ceiling and sole authority to raise the debt ceiling as he sees fit. The Republicans say they’re open to some tax increases but want significant cuts in spending as part of any deal and are not willing to see another stimulus or give the president the authority he wants to raise the debt ceiling unilaterally.
The Razor: Republicans have put themselves in a position where “heads you win tails I lose.” Given this option we have to look at what concerns the GOP House, the ones who must actually make this bargain.
These members, many elected with Tea Party support in 2010, are ideological and concerned about their reelections. Any compromise the Democrats will offer at this point will be ideologically repugnant. The Democrats and their propaganda wing in the mainstream media have fabricated this November’s election into a progressive landslide even when in reality it was anything but. They will not compromise enough to help these members of the GOP at all, and are on a “mission from g-d” or whatever the equivalent is for fired up atheistic liberals.
So the choice is whether to accept a package of tax increases with minimal if any entitlements cuts IF the Democrats offer such a thing, or allow the country to go off the cliff. That’s a big IF at this point, whether the Democrats will offer anything; I half expect them to keep demagoging the issue in the Press to beat up the Republicans through December while failing to negotiate in good faith. The other choice is to stick to their beliefs, fully aware that the Democrats are likely not serious about negotiations. These members will be pilloried by the Press in January, but they are going to be attacked by the MSM no matter what. At least when the primaries come around in a year they will won’t face Tea Party challengers who claim they sold out to the Dems on the tax issue.
Given such a Hobbesian choice, if I were a conservative member of Congress I would publicize the fact the Democrats have not negotiated seriously because they believe the election was a landslide. I would point out that it wasn’t, and as a consequence cannot offer any compromise on my part because it takes two to reach a deal. Every time I was in front of a microphone I would repeat this mantra. I full expect John Boehner to wobble on this issue and I would resist his calls for my vote. After January I would actively work to unseat him.
The Democrats believe the GOP will take the hit if we go off the cliff, but managed properly, I believe it is still possible to portray the Democrats as overreaching. Besides, by the time these members are up for re-election the country will be more receptive to fiscal conservatism than it is today. In the meantime, unfortunately, the half of the voting public that re-elected Obama needs to be taught that elections have consequences and that handing Democrats money is like giving heroin to a junkie.
The Independent Sentinel: President Obama wants to go over the fiscal cliff. It’s a win-win for him. He gets automatic cuts (he wants the military cuts), higher taxes. and he can blame the Republicans, eliminating them once-and-for-all.
In an interview with The Des Moines Register before the election, which he immediately after asked the paper not to print, he spoke about sequestration and the end of the Bush tax cuts ( Clinton tax hikes) as if they were a done deal.
He always makes the political decision over what is right for Americans. His ideology trumps all.
The deal he offered to Republicans yesterday not only didn’t cut anything, it increased spending and it even has a new stimulus. It caused Mitch McConnell to burst out laughing when he saw it. It was more an insult than a joke however. The Republicans can’t even use it as a starting point.
We did vote for revenge as Obama asked.
We should plan to go over the cliff unless Obama extends the artificial deadline until March.
I think he has made it perfectly clear – no compromises!
JoshuaPundit: In politics, perception is always more important than reality. So let’s start with a little bit of reality. The $1.2 trillion of deficit reduction we’re taking about as the Fiscal Cliff works out to $153 billion over ten years. The federal government borrows that every month.
That said, it’s important to remember that there’s no incentive for President Obama to make any compromises. He wants to raise taxes anyway, many of the mandated cuts will come out of our military budget and best of all, he feels he can blame Republicans for it. This makes absolutely no common sense but the way the president sees it, it makes political sense and he sees it as a win-win situation: either they’ll knuckle under and give him what he wants, or they won’t, and he’ll make political capital out of while getting some things he wants anyway.
I hold no particular allegiance for the Republican Party except as (in some respects) an alternative to what I see as ruinous policies. So my main concern now is the coming midterms and 2016, which means the GOP needs to take steps to make sure their fingerprints aren’t on the coming debacle, especially since the non FOX media will side with the president in pushing his narrative.
If I were John Boehner, I’d go on national TV (or have someone who’s a much better speaker do it) and tell the American people in plain terms exactly what’s going on, and why the GOP can no longer support this irresponsible and childish behavior. And I would directly point the finger at the president, in no uncertain terms, including his failure to present any kind of meaningful compromise.
Finally, I would draw a line in the sand and offer Simpson-Bowles, (the plan of the president’s own bi-partisan commission that he later rejected) as the Republican’s final offer. And walk away.
As an even more extreme alternative, I might even tell the American people that if the president failed to come up with a reasonable offer to get our financial house in order, every Republican legislator was going to vote ‘present’ on President Obama’s proposals, in protest. I would tell the American people that Republicans have no intention of allowing this president to blame his failures on others again.
Make him own the Obama economy.
The Noisy Room: In response to this week’s question: ‘The Fiscal Cliff: Let it happen or grand bargain?’ I wholeheartedly say to the Republicans, jump off the cliff! When this whole monstrous mess started, I predicted it would come to this. I don’t know how anyone can be surprised at the outcome. The two choices are now bend over and take massive tax hikes with no meaningful spending cuts, or go off the cliff. I say take the plunge. It’s the only sane choice at this point.
If the Republicans agree to raise taxes, they will lose what little support they have with conservatives and will go the way of the Whigs. And those spending cuts, well… Reagan never saw the ones he was promised when he raised taxes and the Republicans have just about as much chance of seeing these newly promised ones as North Korea has of verifying their unicorn lair. We are sick to death of the Charlie Brown Party. Read my lips: Progressives lie.
Either way, the Left and the media will make the Republicans out to be the bad guys. So, in the face of that, just do the right thing. Stick by conservative principles, close your eyes and jump. I hear the water is fine. It will give the Republicans time to find their moral bearings, grow a spine and start righting the USS Titanic. Make the message about cutting spending which is the real problem anyway. There is no way to tax your way out of this hole.
Do real financial reform… Cut the hell out of government spending, cut taxes and bring America back to greatness. It will create jobs and prosperity. It will create confidence and freedom. It will free us from the shadow of Marxism. It’s an easy choice; it’s the right choice – the question is, does anyone up there have ‘tener cojones’ to do the right thing anymore? They will if they care more about Americans and the Constitution than their crappy political careers.
To do what Obama and the Liberals want is madness. Raise taxes while increasing spending will speed up America’s death spiral. Want massive growth? Go over the fiscal cliff, do away with the IRS and go to a flat sales tax, let small businesses do their own thing and watch America catapult once again into the strongest nation on earth. Or, compromise and push millions into poverty, slavery and violence. I say, let the cliff diving begin!
The Right Planet:It looks to me like the Republicans are faced with a no-win scenario. This became abundantly clear to me when I saw Robert Reich state on Twitter that the Republicans want to “hold the middle class hostage” by denying 98% of Americans a tax cut. Obama is trumpeting a similar theme. (Funny how all of a sudden the progressives are for Bush-era “tax cuts.”) If I understand correctly, the Obama Administration is proposing freezing the tax rate for 98% of Americans for one year if the Republicans agree to raising taxes on the top two tax rates. A number of conservative pundits, like Rush Limbaugh and Charles Krauthammer, are urging the Republicans to just “walk away” from the deal. The problem I have with this approach is it gives Obama everything he wants. It even lets the president raise the debt limit at will, thereby taking away more power from Congress to control the purse strings.
So, if the Republicans walk away from the deal, the liberal media and the Obama Administration will accuse the GOP of raising taxes on the middle class in order to protect “the rich.” But if the Republicans agree to raising taxes on the wealthy, while agreeing to freeze tax rates for the middle class, then they will be accused of selling out. The only reason I believe the Obama Administration is offering to freeze the tax rate on the middle class right now is simply for political expediency; it serves their agenda and backs the GOP into a corner. Looks like Obama and ilk are holding the Republicans hostage.
What’s particularly odious about the maneuvers by the White House et al. is the fact the Obama Administration has not passed a budget in the entire time it has been in office. Obama has offered no serious proposal to reduce any federal spending. As a matter of fact, he wants another stimulus out of the deal. The fact is taxes are going up, period. And I wouldn’t be surprised if the Republicans get all the blame.
The Glittering Eye: I’ve posted on this very subject several times this week. I find both the White House’s and Congressional Republicans’ positions on this subject very frustrating. Both sides are taking positions that appear purely political to me. They appear to be taking an unnecessarily zero-sum view of the negotiations.
Since I opposed the “Bush tax cuts” in 2002-2003, opposed their renewal in 2010, and am still opposed to them as being the wrong taxes to cut, I have no particular fondness for renewing them now. However, I find the notion that raising taxes on just the highest income earners will do much about income inequality, balancing the budget, or much of anything else for that matter pretty far-fetched.
I’d like to see good faith negotiations from both sides. I have no real hope that’s going to happen. I’d also like to see a pro-growth agenda but I have no greater hope that will happen, either.
I don’t think that any nation in the history of the world has either taxed or cost-reduced its way to greatness or prosperity.
Bookworm Room: The Republicans, who still control the house, have three choices: (1) Give Obama everything he wants; (2) Give Obama nothing; and (3) Compromise. Believe it or not, I prefer option (1).
To begin with, compromise is out. Any type of compromise will work to Obama’s benefit. Obama understands this, which is why he presented the Democrats with a laughable compromise offer, one that gives fiscal conservatives absolutely nothing. If the Republicans actually try to negotiate and he slides a little in their direction, he still wins. Obama knows that, with an utterly compliant press, he will take credit for any slight upticks in the economy, while lambasting the Republicans for the economy’s continued slide.
Giving Obama nothing is no better. The Republicans in the House can hark back to the Reagan era and “just say ‘No.’” The problem with that course of action is that it will result in a stalemate. Unfortunately, this stalemate has ticking bombs in it — sequestration and tax increases. Once these happen, the compliant media will again blame the Republicans, while Obama walks away spotless.
The only approach that offers some hope for long-term American stability and fiscally-sound, constitutional capitalism is the most painful one: The Republicans should give Obama everything he wants. They should turn to the American people and say “By re-electing Obama and keeping the Senate majority Democrat, this is what you asked for, so this is what you’ll get. We wash our hands of it. This is truly Obama’s economy now.” Things will happen quickly (and badly) under this scenario, but the Republicans will have kept their noses clean and will have spelled out very clearly for Americans the differences between socialism and constitutional capitalism.
In the short term, these are all Hobson’s choices, since they are all awful. However, it’s only Option (1) — saying to Obama “you own the economy” — that will provide a short, sharp shock sufficiently horrific to scare people away from a Fabian slide into perpetual socialism.
Well, there you have it.
Make sure to tune in every Monday for the Watcher’s Forum. And remember, every Wednesday, the Council has its weekly contest with the members nominating two posts each, one written by themselves and one written by someone from outside the group for consideration by the whole Council. The votes are cast by the Council, and the results are posted on Friday morning.
Technorati Tags: Watcher's Council,bloggers,taxes,economics,draconian,Obamaland,GOP,John Boehner,Congress,finances,debt,Fiscal Cliff
Monday, November 19, 2012
Republican governors decide against setting up ObamaCare insurance markets
Fox News - True Health Is True Wealth:
Video: Rick Perry on Neil Cavuto… Not Setting up ObamaCare Insurance Markets
Several Republican governors, in what could be their last symbolic stand against ObamaCare, announced 
A total of 20 states have now decided not to implement their own exchanges -- which could also mean increased costs for the federal government.
The governors of Wisconsin and Ohio joined Texas Gov. Rick Perry and others in confirming that they will not establish so-called "health insurance exchanges," which are set to launch in January 2014. Under the federal health care overhaul, these exchanges will act as virtual markets where people and small businesses can shop for private coverage in a regulated environment. Many will also be eligible for government subsidies.
The governors' move does not stop those exchanges from being implemented. Rather, it kicks the project back to the federal government to run with regard to those states. While a number of states, largely those run by Democrats, will establish their own exchanges, Republicans who declined argued that it wasn't worth the cost and resources to set up a marketplace that would be under the thumb of the federal government anyway.
"As long as the federal government has the ability to force unknown mandates and costs upon our citizens, while retaining the sole power in approving what an exchange looks like, the notion of a state exchange is merely an illusion," Perry wrote in a letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. "It would not be fiscally responsible to put hard-working Texans on the financial hook for an unknown amount of money to operate a system under rules that have not even been written."
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker said the same, writing in a letter to Sebelius Friday that "no matter which option is chosen, Wisconsin taxpayers will not have meaningful control over the health care policies and services sold to Wisconsin residents." With that in mind, he wrote, the state has decided not to build its own system. Ohio Gov. John Kasich echoed that point of view.
Republican governors have been largely opposed to the health care law anyway. But for months, they were effectively waiting to see if the Supreme Court would overturn it or whether Obama would lose re-election and potentially leave an opening to repeal it. Neither of those things happened.
Walker was among those who stopped implementation last year on the hopes the law would be overturned either by the U.S. Supreme Court or Republicans following the November election.
Thursday evening, the Obama administration responded to a request for more time from Republican governors on the exchange question by granting states a month's extension, until Dec. 14.
A few states have signaled they want to partner with the federal government, as opposed to running it themselves or handing the reins to Washington. Those states would handle consumer issues and oversight of health plans in the exchanges, while the feds do the heavy lifting by enrolling individuals for coverage and determining who's eligible for government assistance. Among these states are Arkansas and North Carolina.
The number of partnership states could grow significantly, since the Obama administration has given states until next February to decide on that option.
Obama's election victory virtually guaranteed the survival of his health care law, which is eventually expected to provide coverage to more than 30 million people through the exchanges and expanded Medicaid programs. It was the final hurdle, after the Supreme Court upheld a legal challenge from 26 states. In the aftermath of the election, some Republican state leaders say it's time to accept the law.
"I don't like it; I would not vote for it; I think it needs to be repealed. But it is the law," said Mississippi Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney, after announcing that his state wants to set up its own exchange. "If you default to the federal government, you forever give the keys to the state's health insurance market to the federal government."
Traditionally, states have regulated the private health insurance market.
But other Republican-led states say they don't have enough information to make a decision at this point and are clamoring for the Obama administration to release major regulations that have been bottled up for months.
"States are struggling with many unanswered questions and are not able to make comprehensive far-reaching decisions prudently," Govs. Bob McDonnell of Virginia and Bobby Jindal of Louisiana wrote Obama earlier this week. They asked for a meeting with the president, as well as a postponement of the original Nov. 16 deadline.
Some of their main concerns are hidden costs of operating the exchanges and the sheer bureaucratic complexity of the new system. The Obama administration has steadfastly maintained it will not postpone the Jan. 1, 2014, launch date for the law's coverage expansion. Open enrollment for exchange plans will begin even sooner, Oct. 1, 2013.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Related:
Rick Perry: 'Another federal power grab'
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
A Sneak Peek At Ann Romney's Speech
Here are a few snippets the Romney campaign released of Ann Romney's speech, which she'll deliver tonight at the Republican convention in Tampa:
Tonight I want to talk to you from my heart about our hearts.
“I want to talk not about what divides us, but what holds us together as an American family. I want to talk to you tonight about that one great thing that unites us, that one thing that brings us our greatest joy when times are good, and the deepest solace in our dark hours.
“Tonight I want to talk to you about love. …
“Mitt's dad never graduated from college. Instead, he became a carpenter.
“He worked hard, and he became the head of a car company, and then the governor of Michigan.
“When Mitt and I met and fell in love, we were determined not to let anything stand in the way of our life together. …
“I read somewhere that Mitt and I have a ‘storybook marriage.’ Well, in the storybooks I read, there were never long, long, rainy winter afternoons in a house with five boys screaming at once. And those storybooks never seemed to have chapters called MS or Breast Cancer.
“A storybook marriage? No, not at all. What Mitt Romney and I have is a real marriage. …
“At every turn in his life, this man I met at a high school dance, has helped lift up others. He did it with the Olympics, when many wanted to give up. …
“This is the man America needs.
“This is the man who will wake up every day with the determination to solve the problems that others say can't be solved, to fix what others say is beyond repair. This is the man who will work harder than anyone so that we can work a little less hard.
“I can't tell you what will happen over the next four years. But I can only stand here tonight, as a wife, a mother, a grandmother, an American, and make you this solemn commitment:
“This man will not fail.
“This man will not let us down.
“This man will lift up America!”
Ann Romney is Governor Romney's secret weapon. That's exactly why the Obama Media alphabet networks won't carry this live.
I hope she discusses, as she did earlier on CNN the way Governor Romney cared for her when she was ill with MS.
Oh and by the way, Ann Romney has always been proud of her country.
h/t to JoshuaPundit
RNC Convention Modified Three-Day Convention Schedule
Ann Romney and Chris Christie speak tonight…
Monday, August 27, 2012
RNC Announces Modified Three-Day Convention Schedule – Updated Here
The Original Posted Republican National Convention Speaker Lineup
On Sunday Mitt Romney's campaign laid out an updated three-day Republican National Convention schedule that incorporated a number of speakers, including former Democrat-turned Republican Rep. Artur Davis (Ala.) and Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), whose Monday sessions had been cancelled due to Tropical Storm Isaac as a safety precaution. GOP officials confirmed that the 2012 Republican National Convention will primarily take place Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday of this week, due to weather complications.
Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and his wife Ann leave Brewster Academy after finishing convention preparations for the day on Sunday, Aug. 26, 2012 in Wolfeboro, N.H. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Monday's schedule has been reduced to a five-minute pro forma session, comprised of party chairman Reince Priebus gaveling in the convention. This act will also trigger a running public debt clock, which will track the amount of national debt accrued by the US government over the four-day stretch.
The "official business" of nominating Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan will take place Tuesday afternoon. Convention organizers said they were able to incorporate all of Monday's "headliner" speakers into the truncated program by eliminating some program elements deemed to be "non essential," and by tailoring a few speeches to be slightly shorter. Party officials said Monday's theme -- "we can do better" -- will be woven into the final three nights.
As for reports and rumors about a potential Friday session, officials said they have no plans for that, and declined to discuss the "hypothetical" scenario any further. The new convention schedule is below. The limited 10-11pm ET hours, which the broadcast networks will carry live (shame on them because these are national conventions that all Americans should watch and especially if they plan to vote! ), have not been altered. Bolded speeches indicate "prime-primetime" addresses. All times are approximate:
Monday, August 27, 2012
2:00 p.m. Chairman of the RNC Reince Priebus
Call to Order/Start Debt Clocks
2:10 p.m. Announcement of Recess
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
2:00 p.m. Chairman of the RNC Reince Priebus
Color Guard Knights of Columbus
Pledge of Allegiance by Former Governor Tim Babcock (MT)/ Tom Hogan (FL)
National Anthem sung by Philip Alongi
Invocation by Rabbi Meir Soloveichik
Opening procedural steps, appointment of convention committees
Welcoming remarks, and House and Senate candidates and RNC auxiliaries
RNC Chairman Priebus
RNC Co-Chairman Sharon Day
Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn
Convention Chief Executive Officer William Harris
Chairman of Tampa Bay Host Committee Al Austin
Republican Congressional Candidates
State Delegate Barbara Comstock (VA)
Representative Tim Griffin (AR)
Republican Senate Candidates
Republican National Committee auxiliaries
Consideration of convention committee reports
RNC Chairman Reince Priebus
Committee on Credentials Chairman Mike Duncan
Committee on Permanent Organization Chairwoman Zoraida Fonalledas
Convention Permanent Chairman Speaker John Boehner, Presiding
Official Convention Photograph
Committee on Rules Chairman John Sununu
Committee on Resolutions Chairman Governor Bob McDonnell
Committee on Resolutions Co-Chairman U.S. Senator John Hoeven
Committee on Resolutions Co-Chairman U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn
Roll Call for Nomination of President of the United States
Roll Call for Nomination of Vice President of the United States
6:40 p.m. Recess
7:00 p.m. Reconvene
Remarks by Speaker John Boehner
Remarks by RNC Chairman Reince Priebus
Video and remarks by Mayor Mia Love (Saratoga Springs, UT), U.S. congressional candidate
Remarks by Janine Turner
Remarks by former U.S. Senator Rick Santorum
Remarks by Host, U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers
8:00 p.m. Remarks by U.S. Senator Kelly Ayotte (NH), accompanied by Jack Gilchrist
Remarks by Governor John Kasich (OH)
Remarks by Governor Mary Fallin (OK)
Remarks by Governor Bob McDonnell (VA), accompanied by Bev Gray
Remarks by Governor Scott Walker (WI)
9:00 p.m. Remarks by Governor Brian Sandoval (NV)
Remarks by Sher Valenzuela (small business owner, candidate for DE Lt. Governor)
Remarks by Senate Republican Candidate Ted Cruz (TX)
Remarks by Artur Davis
Remarks by Governor Nikki Haley (SC)
10:00 p.m. Remarks by Mrs. Luce' Vela Fortuño
Remarks by Mrs. Ann Romney
Remarks by Governor Chris Christie (NJ)
Benediction by Sammy Rodriguez
Adjournment
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
7:00 p.m. Convention convenes
Call to order
Introduction of Colors by Amputee Veterans of America Support Team (AVAST)
Pledge of Allegiance by Brigadier General Patrick E. Rea, US Army (Ret.)
National Anthem sung by Ayla Brown
Invocation by Ishwar Singh
Ron Paul Video
Remarks by Senate Republican Leader and Convention Temporary Chairman Mitch McConnell (KY)
Remarks by Senator Rand Paul (KY)
Remarks by Christopher Devlin-Young and Jeanine McDonnell
8:00 p.m. Remarks by Senator John McCain (AZ)
Remarks by Attorney General Pam Bondi (FL) and Attorney General Sam Olens (GA)
Remarks by Governor Bobby Jindal (LA) – Bobby Jindal cancelled early Monday morning because of Hurricane Isaac
Remarks by Senator John Thune (SD)
Remarks by Senator Rob Portman (OH)
9:00 p.m. Remarks by Governor Luis Fortuño (PR)
Remarks by Governor Tim Pawlenty (MN)
Bush 41, 43 Film
Remarks by Mike Huckabee
10:00 p.m. Remarks by Condoleezza Rice
Remarks by Governor Susana Martinez (NM)
Remarks by vice presidential nominee Rep. Paul Ryan
Benediction by Archbishop Demetrios
Adjournment
Thursday, August 30, 2012
7:00 p.m. Convention convenes
Call to order
Introduction of Colors US Central Command Joint Forces Color Guard Team
Pledge of Allegiance by Dylan Nonaka
National Anthem sung by SEVEN
Invocation by Ken and Priscilla Hutchins
Remarks by U.S. Rep. Connie Mack (FL)
Reagan Legacy Video
*Remarks by Newt and Callista Gingrich – notable additions from the original released schedule
Remarks by Craig Romney
8:00 p.m. Remarks by Governor former Jeb Bush (FL)
Remarks by Bob White, chairman of Romney for President campaign
Remarks by Grant Bennett
Remarks by Tom Stemberg
9:00 p.m. Remarks by former Massachusetts Lt. Governor Kerry Healey
Remarks by Jane Edmonds, former Massachusetts Secretary of Workforce
Remarks by Olympians Michael Eruzione, Derek Parra and Kim Rhode
10:00 p.m. Remarks by U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (FL)
Remarks by presidential nominee Mitt Romney
Benediction by Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan - Cardinal Dolan to offer closing prayer at Republican Convention
Speaker Boehner declares convention adjourned
For more information on the 2012 Republican National Convention in Tampa, check out RNC 2012 page for all the information you need regarding the convention.
FOX News announces GOP convention coverage schedule
FOX Business Network Presents Live Coverage of The Republican National Convention
Official website of the 2012 Republican National Convention
One GOP Convention Session to be Themed “We Built That”
And if anyone questions the bias of the media their coverage of the GOP Convention should settle it. RNC chairman chides TV networks over convention programming:
ABC and CBS will each air one hour of prime time convention programming on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday nights of both the Republican and Democratic conventions. NBC will mirror the other networks in coverage of the RNC, but at the DNC, will air one hour of primetime programming on Tuesday and two hours on Thursday.
But unlike the Democrats, who have no events on the Monday before their three-day convention, Republicans have four days of podium action and a full slate of speakers for Monday night. The networks are not taking any of that nights programming live in primetime. CNN Promises ‘Unbiased’ Convention Coverage
RNC: Ann Romney to address convention Tuesday Republican National Convention officials say Mitt Romney’s wife, Ann, will speaking during prime-time television coverage of the event. Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, a rising national figure in the party Gives Prime Time Speaking Slot to Ann Romney. Mitt Romney was disappointed in networks! Now with Hurricane Isaac Monday night ended up being cancelled and the gulf governors have had to cancel and stay in their states.
Related:
Republican National Convention 2012: Romney Accuses Obama Of Engaging In 'Low' Politics
Electoral College Prediction Model Points To A Mitt Romney Win In 2012
Gallup: 60 Percent of Americans Believe Media Are Biased … – The rest aren’t paying attention or drank the Kool Aid!
Romney in Crisis: Two Dark Spots in Fortunate Life
Romney Tells Israel: “You Built That!”
Romney-Ryan: America’s New Dream Team and a Clear Choice
Romney-Ryan are just the guys to turn things around; the right team for the times!
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Could There Still Be a Palin Reconsideration?
I’m hearing this question and rumblings over and over again from many sources:
Could Sarah Palin be getting into the race after all? Is there still time for her to reconsider or be drafted?
Palin herself has not said anything but some of her supporters in Iowa, and other placers, are. They have made a TV commercial that is going to debut in Iowa tomorrow, four weeks and six days before the Iowa caucuses.
From The Daily Caller:
Supporters of former Alaska Gov. Sarah Gov. Palin have unveiled a television ad they plan to air in Iowa. They hope the ad will compel her to reconsider her decision not to run for president in 2012.
The ad debuts Nov. 30 on KCAU in Sioux City, Ian Lazaran of Conservatives4Palin.com, which raised money to run the spot, told The Daily Caller.
The video does not explicitly ask Palin to reconsider. It simply shows her giving a speech and saying, “We will not solve our economic problems in this country until we confront the crony capitalism of our permanent political class.”
“This is socialism for the very rich and the very poor but it is a brutal form of capitalism for the rest of us,” Palin says. “It’s the collusion of big government, big business. It’s at the heart of President Obama’s economic vision.”
Video: The Challenge - To Run in Iowa
Palin: We will not solve our economic problems in this country until we confront the crony capitalism of our permanent political class. This is socialism for the very rich and the very poor but it is a brutal form of capitalism for the rest of us. It's the collusion of big government, big business. It's at the heart of President Obama's economic vision. We need sudden and relentless reform. That will return power to we the people. We need people with a proven record of reform. I served in public office in a state that had a corruption problem. I fought that corrupt system. I took on a corrupt and compromised political class. The challenge is not simply to replace Obama in 2012. The real challenge is who and what we will replace him with. Uploaded by PalinTV on Nov 22, 2011
The Hill has some more details:
Conservatives4Palin, a volunteer group that is unaffiliated with Palin and SarahPac, said on its website that it hopes to run the ad this week in Sioux City, Iowa.
“What we do next after the television ad goes up is a more difficult question,” the announcement said. “If this ad is able to build some momentum for the Governor, the best way to keep that momentum going may be to commission a national GOP primary poll that includes the Governor as one of the options. We’ll see if it’s possible given our resources. We’re open to other ideas but the greatest challenge may be that time is running short for her to reconsider.”
Hope does spring eternal but the reality of life is, at this late date it would be impossible for Palin to jump into the race. She has already missed the deadline to appear on a number of early state ballots.
The fascination with Palin jumping back into the race, something she has not even hinted at, is a symptom of something else going on in the Republican Party.
Right now, the conservative base remains shattered. It is split among a number of candidates. The problem is we are now on top of the Caucus date and the primaries begin a week later.
Conservatives are going to have to unite behind the most electable conservative. Otherwise, we are going to see Mitt Romney be the nominee and just as we had a choice in 2008 between two liberals, if Mitt Romney is the nominee, the only question will be which of the two liberals wins in 2012.
Video: Sarah Palin @ The Tea Party of America Rally Indianola, Iowa September 3 2011
Future Presidential Candidate Sarah Palin gives the keynote speech at the Tea Party of America Rally in Indianola, Iowa to a huge crowd in essentially in the middle of nowhere. 1000's upon 1000's got rained on all morning, then just before Sarah Palin took the stage, the rain stopped. Must be Ronald Reagan looking down. Thanks To CSPAN!
Why Sarah Could Win & Long Lost Sarah Palin Emerges From Released Emails Victoriously
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Comprehensive List of All 14 Tax Hikes in Obama's "Stimulus 2.0" Plan
National Debt: $14,683,910,471,706 - Increased by $4,057,033,422,793 since Obama’s Inauguration because of unbridled spending, bad decisions, and agenda to transform the U.S. into a second rate country and incompetence. So now he wants more money to up the debt even further through another failed stimulus. Call Congress and tell then NO!!
There are fourteen new or higher taxes in President Obama's "Stimulus 2.0" plan he wants Congress to pass. Permanent tax hikes for new spending.
President Obama has asked Congress to pass his “American Jobs Act,” a bill which is a series of permanent tax increases funding temporary tax relief and new spending programs. The overall act is a net tax increase (score pending). All tax hikes are scheduled to take effect in 2013. Below is a comprehensive list of the 14 tax hikes in the bill (in order of appearance in Stimulus 2.0):
Spectrum Tax (Sec. 278): A new $4.8 billion hidden tax on wireless consumers. Levied on users of licensed spectrum, the tax will hit consumers who use mobile phones, tablets, and other wireless devices. Worst of all, the Federal Communications Commission could raise or punitively-target this Spectrum Tax at whim from this $4.8 billion floor.
28% Limit on Itemized Deductions and Employer-Provided Health Insurance (Sec. 401). Under the Stimulus 2.0 tax hike, no matter what tax bracket you fall in, you can only benefit from deductions as if you are in the 28 percent bracket or less. This denies taxpayers in the top two brackets the full deduction for mortgage interest, charitable contributions, and state taxes that other taxpayers can claim. In addition, this tax increase limits most non-itemized deductions and exclusions for these taxpayers, in particular those for employer-provided health insurance, health savings accounts (HSAs) and self-employed health insurance premiums. Moving expenses and the foreign earned income exclusion would also be limited. For taxpayers in 2013’s top bracket of 39.6 percent, this would chop 30 percent of the value of all these exclusions and deductions.
“Carried Interest” (Sec. 411). Under current law, capital gains earned by managers of investing partnerships are taxed (properly) as capital gains. This bill would tax them instead as ordinary income, raising their tax rate from 15 percent today to 39.6 percent in 2013.
Airplane Tax Hike (Sec. 421). Businesses should be able to expense all equipment in the year of purchase (President Obama would seem to agree, since he called for an extension of 100% “bonus depreciation” which does precisely that). However, Stimulus 2.0 inconsistently also calls for a longer “depreciation” (slow deduction over time) of one business expense—airplane purchases. The bill calls for the depreciable life of aircraft (not just “corporate jets”) to be extended from 7 to 12 years. This is a tax hike that will kill jobs, just like the 1990 yacht tax killed that industry a generation ago.
Intangible Drilling Costs (Sec. 431). Current law allows energy companies to deduct most (only 70% of these costs for the larger companies) of the costs associated with drilling. All expenses should be deductible in the year they are incurred. Stimulus 2.0 would repeal this and make companies deduct the costs very slowly over fifteen years.
Tertiary Injectants (Sec. 432). Current law allows energy companies to deduct the cost of injecting materials into older energy reservoirs in order to keep them productive. This is the proper tax treatment of this cost. Stimulus 2.0 would replace this very ordinary deduction with precisely nothing. Energy companies would simply have to eat the cost with after-tax dollars.
Percentage Depletion (Sec. 433). This refers to a provision of law that allows taxpayers to recover their lease investment in a mineral interest through a percentage of gross income from a well. Stimulus 2.0 would repeal this provision ONLY for investments in oil and gas wells. Interestingly, the largest oil companies don’t benefit from this today, so this tax increase is targeted only at smaller energy companies and their investors.
Manufacturer Tax Deduction (aka “Section 199”) (Sec. 434). All employers are today allowed to deduct up to 9% of the cost of domestic manufacturing—all employers, that is, except energy companies, who can only deduct 6% of such costs. Stimulus 2.0 would deny this deduction entirely to energy companies, singling them out by picking winners and losers in the tax code.
Oil and Gas Passive Losses (Sec. 435). In general, “passive” (trade or business activities without active participation) losses are not allowed to be claimed by taxpayers. There is an exception for investment in oil and gas extraction. Stimulus 2.0 repeals this exception, which will tend to hit small energy companies and their investors the hardest.
Geological and Geophysical Costs (Sec. 436). Currently, small energy companies can deduct the costs of exploring for new sources of energy over two years (again, the proper treatment should be to expense in the first year). Stimulus 2.0 would stretch this period to seven years. This only affects small, independent energy employers as larger companies are ineligible for the two-year treatment under current law.
Enhanced Oil Recovery Credit (Sec. 437). This credit, intended to spur oil production even when prices are low, can only be claimed when oil is less than $42 per barrel. Oil is currently about $87 per barrel, so this credit is nowhere near claim-able. Nonetheless, Stimulus 2.0 repeals the credit just to raise taxes while scoring cheap points against energy employers.
Marginal Well Production Credit (Sec. 438). This credit is the same as the Enhanced Oil Recovery Credit in Sec. 437, but it is only use-able when oil prices drop to $27 per barrel. Stimulus 2.0 repeals this credit for similar reasons.
Dual Capacity Rules (Sec. 441). The U.S. is one of the only nations which attempts to tax on a “worldwide” basis—even on income which has already faced income taxation in other countries. When combined with the highest corporate tax rate in the developed world, “worldwide” taxation is an uncompetitive jobs killer. In order to avoid international double taxation, employers can claim a tax credit for income taxes paid overseas. Stimulus 2.0 makes it more difficult for energy companies to claim this tax credit, exposing their worldwide income to international double taxation—potentially shipping jobs overseas to avoid paying taxes twice.
Dual Capacity Discrimination Against Oil and Gas Employers (Sec. 442). In addition to the dual capacity rule repeal of Sec. 441, this provision of Stimulus 2.0 makes it even more difficult for oil and gas employers to avoid double taxation than it does for all other taxpayers to avoid double taxation. It adds insult to the injury of dual capacity rule repeal.
What do you think?
Will any of these 14 tax hikes help create jobs?
Source: Americans for Tax Reform
Related:
Obama Trapped in Keynesian Twilight Zone
See the: House Republican Plan for America’s Job Creators
Source: Americans for Tax Reform
Related:
Obama Trapped in Keynesian Twilight Zone
American Infrastructure Is Being Built by Chinese Workers; NOT Americans
See the: House Republican Plan for America’s Job Creators
Memo on the President’s Job’s Proposal… - From Eric Cantor
SEC. 376. FEDERAL AND STATE IMMUNITY. (a) Abrogation of State Immunity- A State shall not be immune under the 11th Amendment to the Constitution from a suit brought in a Federal court of competent jurisdiction for a violation of this Act. (b) Waiver of State Immunity- (1) IN GENERAL- (A) WAIVER- A State's receipt or use of Federal financial assistance for any program or activity of a State shall constitute a waiver of sovereign immunity, under the 11th Amendment to the Constitution or otherwise, to a suit brought by an employee or applicant for employment of that program or activity...
Go to the White House web link for the “American Jobs Act,” http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/legislative/reports/american-jobs-act.pdf
Saturday, September 17, 2011
Full Text: House Republican Plan for America’s Job Creators… As American Infrastructure Is Being Built By The Chinese, NOT Americans
Republicans in Congress have been objecting to new infrastructure spending that would put Americans to work repairing and rebuilding bridges, highways, schools, airports, skyscrapers, high speed rail lines, and clean energy industries. Now we may know why.
San Francisco is getting a new bridge connecting to Oakland. But it’s not being built by American workers. It’s being built in China and shipped back to America for assembly. But that’s not the only infrastructure project being built by the Chinese, and it’s not just being built in China. It turns out, the state owned Chinese contractors are being hired out to build American infrastructure right here in the United States.
According to Engineering News Record, five of the world’s top 10 contractors, in terms of revenue, are now Chinese. One of them, China State Construction Engineering Group, has overtaken established American giants like Bechtel.
The Chinese contractor has already built seven schools in the US, apartment blocks in Washington DC and New York and is in the middle of building a 4,000-room casino in Atlantic City. In New York, it has won contracts to renovate the subway system, build a new metro platform near Yankee stadium, and refurbish the Alexander Hamilton Bridge over the Harlem river.
But why are we hiring contractors from China to build American infrastructure, when we have a perfectly good workforce here in the states? The answer is profit, and it’s the reason why Republican politicians and many corporations do not support infrastructure projects that would put millions of Americans to work. Because the Chinese contracting firms are government owned, they are able to bid for contracts at very low prices. In other words, the labor is cheap. American companies don’t want to hire Americans to do the work when they can call up Communist China to come do the work instead. This is particularly helpful to Republicans politicians because their campaigns receive the extra profits made by these companies. It’s a win-win. But it’s a loss to Americans who are desperate to find work.
Obviously, Republicans will say that all we need to do is end regulations and abolish the minimum wage to entice companies to start hiring Americans. But that’s pretty un-American if you ask me. What Republicans are saying is that if we want to beat China, we need to be just like them. That’s very hypocritical considering the rhetoric Republicans have been using to slam communism all the while praising the free market system. How exactly “free” is the free market when they hire the Chinese to do jobs that Americans should be doing? How are private enterprises “patriotic” when they favor Chinese workers over American workers? The reason America became the richest country in the world is because we made sure that Americans were paid livable wages and not pennies. We passed regulations to keep American workers safe on the job and American consumers safe at home. And private industry employed Americans, and made products in America. That is how America became an economical superpower. American companies would still make huge profits by hiring Americans at livable wages. They just don’t want to because they want to make disgustingly bigger profits. It’s all about the bottom line.
We shouldn’t be hiring Chinese contractors to build our infrastructure. We should build our schools. We should build our roads and bridges. We Should build our high speed rail lines. The fact is, by hiring such contractors, the American private sector is relying on a foreign government owned industry to do the work, all while they oppose the United States government getting involved in infrastructure programs that would create American jobs for American citizens. It’s time for the American government to take back what American corporations have been giving away to the Chinese for the last decade. And the only way to do that is to fire the Republican politicians who only represent the interests of corporations and replace them with politicians that want to create jobs for Americans. Because it is clear, that private industry will not hire Americans to do the work when they can hire slave labor do it instead. We cannot let that be the new American way.
Source: Addicting Info
See the: House Republican Plan for America's Job Creatorsat Jobs.GOP.GOV
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
URGENT: Tell your Congressman to vote YES on the 'Cut Cap Balance' Act
Please Take Action: Vote Expected in House Today
I urge you to contact your Representative and ask him to co-sponsor and vote YES on the Cut, Cap, and Balance Act of 2011.
--The bill number is H.R.2560. (The number of the companion Senate bill is S.1340.)
--The House is slated to vote on H.R.2560 on Tuesday, July 19, 2011.
--The Cut, Cap, and Balance Act meets the criteria of the Cut, Cap, and Balance Pledge:
1) It substantially cuts spending;
2) It creates enforceable spending caps;
3) It requires congressional passage of a Balanced Budget Amendment to the U.S. Constitution that includes a spending limitation and a super-majority to raise taxes before the debt ceiling can be raised.
--The debt held by the public has more than doubled in just the past five years. Interest paid on the national debt is expected to more than triple over the next ten years.
--Many economists believe the US faces a Greek-style debt crisis within the next five years if we do not get our fiscal house in order very soon.
--The federal government has hit the $14.292 trillion debt limit set in February 2010. Raising the debt ceiling without significant spending cuts is simply a tax increase on future generations.
--Moody’s Investors Services has said the AAA rating of US government bonds is in jeopardy unless Congress passes “a budget that includes long-term deficit reduction.”
--Standard & Poor's has said it will downgrade US debt if the US doesn't 1) cut spending substantially and 2) REFORM the way it budgets, to control future spending.
--The Cut Cap and Balance Act (CCB) would meet the tests set forth by Moody's and S&P, so we never again face this kind of debt problem. In short, "CCB=AAA."
--The Cut, Cap, and Balance Act is a long-term deficit reduction package that will ensure we get back on the path of fiscal sanity and are not downgraded from our AAA bond rating.
Click here to see FreedomWorks' letter on the Cut, Cap, and Balance Act.
Click here to see FreedomWorks' Key Vote Notice on the Cut, Cap, and Balance Act.
Please fax, call and email your Congressman and Senator(s) today and tell them to vote for Cut, Cap and Balance
Related:
Michele Bachmann Personalizes Cut, Cap and Balance
Red State: Cut, Cap and Balance
Jim DeMint’s “Cut, Cap and Balance” Qualifier
The Caucus of House Conservative: Cut, Cap and Balance
Obama Officially Threatens to Veto Republicans’ Cut, Cap and Balance Bill (Before It Even Passes) – So Who Is Really the Obstructionist?
Friday, January 21, 2011
GOP Three-Part Strategy to Dismantle Obamacare
AP Graphics
House GOP begins long drive to dismantle Obamacare
By: Byron York 01/20/11 8:05 PM
Chief Political Correspondent
Everyone knows House Republicans (along with three Democrats) voted Wednesday to repeal Obamacare. But fewer people know what those same House Republicans -- this time, with 14 Democrats -- did Thursday.
By a vote of 253 to 175, the GOP directed key House committees to report on ways to lower health care premiums, allow patients to keep their current health plans, increase access to coverage for those with pre-existing conditions, and decrease the price of medical liability lawsuits. In other words, the committees are beginning work on replacing the House-repealed Obamacare with Republican health policies.
Repeal got a lot of press coverage. Replacement got far less. If they needed any reminding, GOP lawmakers are learning that controlling the levers of power in the House doesn't mean controlling the media narrative on health care. "Democrats wanted to characterize repeal as draconian, ignoring the fact that we do have very, very positive alternatives," says Rep. David Dreier, chairman of the House Rules Committee. "It's been difficult for us to get that [message] out there. We said repeal and replace, and we're in the process of replacing."
House Republicans are pursuing a three-part strategy. Part One was repeal; they promised to do it, and they did it. Part Two is replace, which in coming months will involve House votes on a series of GOP health care measures. And Part Three -- since full repeal can't win in the Senate -- is another series of votes on measures to repeal individual parts of Obamacare. The net result will be that Republicans gradually push more and more House Democrats -- and perhaps some in the Senate -- away from an all-or-nothing defense of Obamacare.
When Democrats passed the national health care bill, many admitted that they didn't like this or that part, or that the bill as a whole wasn't "perfect." But after Obamacare became law, they balked at changing even the smallest part. For example, there is widespread agreement that the so-called 1099 provision -- the requirement that requires businesses to file zillions of new Internal Revenue Service forms -- is extremely burdensome. But when Republicans tried to kill the provision last year, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid made sure it didn't happen.
Now, after voters gave the GOP control of the House and a stronger voice in the Senate, things are different. Democrats are talking openly about changing Obamacare -- just as long as the changes stop short of full repeal. "Let us modify the health care law in a bipartisan way," House Assistant Minority Leader James Clyburn told Fox News this week. "But this whole stuff of repeal and throwing it out and starting all over -- that's not going to happen."
Obamacare is filled with vulnerable provisions. In addition to the 1099, there's the individual mandate (which is also being challenged in court), cuts to Medicare, and the long-term care measure called the Community Living Assistance Services and Supports Act, better known as the CLASS Act. During the Senate's Obamacare debate in December 2009, some Democrats voiced reservations about each of those provisions.
"Just look at the ones who made noise during the original debate," says a well-connected GOP Senate source. "Claire McCaskill, Ben Nelson, Kent Conrad -- Conrad called the CLASS Act a Ponzi scheme, but he voted for the whole bill that included it. How would he vote on a separate bill to repeal it?"
We'll probably find out. In the next year and a half, Senate Democrats, including some who are facing tough re-election fights in 2012, could have a chance to vote again on the most troublesome parts of Obamacare. With 47 Republican senators, the GOP would need just four Democrats to reach majority support for repealing significant chunks of the health care law.
If that happens, Senate Democrats, who at this very moment are railing against Republican filibusters, would have to resort to -- you guessed it -- a filibuster to stop repeal of any part of Obamacare. Even if they do, Republicans believe they might muster 60 votes to win the day. And if key parts of Obamacare fall, it's not clear whether the whole structure can remain standing.
As those fights go on, House Republicans, with some Democratic help, will pass new measures to address the health care problem piece-by-piece. Some will be attractive to Senate Democrats facing re-election. "A lot of them come from states that are sympathetic to the message we heard last November 2," says David Dreier. "So in light of that, we're not going to give up on this."
Byron York, The Examiner's chief political correspondent, can be contacted at byork@washingtonexaminer.com. His column appears on Tuesday and Friday, and his stories and blogposts appear on ExaminerPolitics.com.
House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio, center, speaks about the upcoming vote to repeal the health care bill, Wednesday, Jan. 19, 2011, on Capitol Hill in Washington. From left are, Rep. Nan Hayworth, R-N.Y., Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., Boehner, House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy of Calif., and Rep. Jeb Hensarling R-Texas. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Source: Washington Examiner – Cross Posted: True Health Is True Wealth
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