Tag Archives: Sequestration

Mr. Obama aka Mr. Fantastic

Mr Fantastic

I am a Marvel fan, go figure. Iron Man, X-Men, The Avengers, The Fantastic Four… If I had to liken Mr. Obama to any superhero it would be Reed Richards, Mr. Fantastic. Mr. Fantastic’s powers include amazing elasticity and superior intellect. In my view Mr. Obama qualifies in both areas and should be deemed a superhero as the first black man to win the presidency twice, and for demonstrating great flexibility in enduring the shenanigans of the Republicans and the Tea Party.

Tonight (Wednesday), Mr. Obama met with select Senate Republicans as a result of Sequestration. Is this Mr. Fantastic’s attempt to quell his foes and disarm them of their bogus arguments that he does not reach across the aisle? This meeting with members of the GOP, hand-picked by Senator Lindsey Graham, is a clever move by Mr. Obama, I mean Mr. Fantastic. Early feedback from GOP members who attended tonight’s dinner with the President are relatively positive. By the way, it is reported that Mr Obama picked up the tab for the dinner out of his own pocket.

Mitch McConnell did not attend the President’s dinner with Republican Senators this evening. Not a surprise. I am convinced that Senator McConnell will never socialize with Mr. Obama, publicly or privately, especially now since he is up for re-election in 2014. Strangely enough, it is being reported that the President’s willingness to compromise has not been effectively communicated to GOP membership from its leadership. Wow! Really? Regardless, I think these Republicans just wanted their egos stroked. I did note that President Obama was not photographed with the Republican Senators who went to dinner. Republicans still can’t be seen as playing nice with Mr. Obama.

I contend that no one can say that Mr. Fantastic has not repeatedly bent over backward and reached, and reached, and stretched, and stretched across the aisle. Not only has the President reached and stretched, but he has even twisted and contorted as it pertains to what spending cuts he has offered. Maybe tonight’s dinner between Mr. Obama and the GOP is a first step toward curbing the impact of the infamous Sequestration. We’ll see.

Tea Party Terrorism?

TPRobert Reich, former Secretary of Labor during the Clinton Administration has nailed it in his recent article The Sequester and the Tea Party Plot by revealing the full intent and purpose of Tea Party Republicans.

Tea Partiers use fear and anger in their war against the government – blaming the anemic recovery on government deficits and the government’s size, and selling a poisonous snake-oil of austerity economics and trickle-down economics as the remedy.

I hear pundits talk of the demise of the Tea Party, and they say that the Tea Party has lost its power and is on the decline. But, even though Tea Party candidates cost Republicans the White House and Senate seats during the 2012 election, the Tea Party, unfortunately, is not going away. In fact, as long as there exists a constituency of bigoted, backward-minded people who hate government and any kind of leadership other than white male leadership, the Tea Party will continue. In my view, the Tea Party has effectively co-opted the Republican Party, and the sequester is proof positive of this.

Tea Party hatred for President Obama is clearly demonstrated by obstinate, recalcitrant  and bigoted Republican behavior. Reich’s article supports the assertion that Tea Party influenced Republicans will do anything to accomplish their hate-filled, propaganda-laden goal of “taking the country back”  including destroying the government of the United States of America and our economy in the process.

It’s Not About the Deficit…

Deficit by 2019

What I have decided to do is just keep posting about how bogus the Republican party is in their propaganda campaign regarding the deficit. Republicans run up deficits, but they rail against the deficit when Democrats are in the power seat. Here are a few good pieces regarding the deficit, austerity, sequestration, blah, blah, blah…you get the point.

What’s driving the deficits from The Maddow Blog

How Premature Austerity Caused A Recession And The Market Crash Of 1937 from Business Insider

The Sequester Begins to Fester from Jared Bernstein’s blog On The Economy

Boehner on sequester: ‘I don’t know whether it’s going to hurt the economy’ from Politico

We’ve reduced the deficit and hurt the short-term economy from Wonkblog

The White House: A Balanced Plan to Avert the Sequester and Reduce the Deficit

White House

I thought I would post President Barack Obama’s plan to avert the sequester cuts, because I am tired of listening to lying Republicans like Boehner and McConnell who say that they are waiting on a plan from the White House. The GOP is still the Party of “NO”; no conscience, no sense and no help for the American people. Republicans are raging because of the results of the re-election of President Barack Obama, the results of the fiscal cliff and their hatred for the first black President. Republicans are clearly looking to score points with their bigoted, extreme right-wing fringe by simply refusing to cooperate with the President. The GOP are willing to tank the American economy with their irresponsible and seditious behavior.

Kudos to President Obama for traveling to key areas in the country that will be affected by the sequester. He is telling the truth about the impact of these cuts, and the GOP can’t bear the truth.

Only Congress can avoid this self-inflicted wound to our economy and middle class families, and the only thing standing in the way of a solution today is Congressional Republicans’ refusal to even consider closing tax loopholes that benefit wealthy Americans and well-connected corporations.

On The Economy: Sequester, Revenues, and Timing

Lets Make a Deal

Jared Bernstein’s blog On The Economy breaks down how the Republicans could have had a much better deal on spending cuts a few months ago. A combination of timing and GOP sedition are bringing the country to the economic brink, yet again. Republicans refuse to govern with the first black President. How many more scenarios like this do we need to draw this conclusion?

The State of the Union, Stronger

SOTUTogether, we have cleared away the rubble of crisis, and can say with renewed confidence that the state of our union is stronger.

I am frequently inspired by President Obama, and tonight was no exception. I thought Mr. Obama’s State of Union speech was very good overall. It was well-delivered and touched on the policy issues that are at the forefront some of our country’s most vigorous debates — gun control, immigration reform and sequestration to name a few. The speech was chock full of policy and struck a tone that demonstrates that Mr. Obama is leading in his second term with a greater resolve.

The surprise for many in the speech was the President’s proposal to raise the minimum wage to $9 an hour, and his announcement to bring 34,000 American troops home from Afghanistan this year. Great news after 10 years of war. The President also brought several visionary, forward thinking ideas to the speech, but what I found most interesting about the speech was Mr. Obama’s vision for America’s economic future through innovation. As well, Mr. Obama’s vision for education in America from preschool to post-secondary remains a consistent theme in many of his speeches. The Washington Post highlights five takeaways from the State of the Union speech, and the Los Angeles Times provides a breakdown by topic.

For me, what separates Mr. Obama from so many other leaders in American politics today is his focus, perseverance and willingness to be a pioneer and trendsetter in the face of great obstinacy and resistance from the GOP. His Presidency is progressing toward being truly transformational for the future of the United States. Forward.