How will sleep tonight knowing that Tom Coburn from the Gang of Six is leaving?
Dear me, dear me. (Clutching my pearls, looking for my smelling salts and fainting sofa).
What a fucking joke this group was in the first place. But excuse me, while I gloat if you don't mind. This Gang of Six was nothing more than another extension of the Cat Food Commission to begin with, only guess what?
The Republicans are getting raked over the coals by their own constituents at all the town hall meetings throughout our nation. Oh, I'm so surprised.
Not to mention our own Dick Durbin, another turn coat. Republican voters are finally waking up and are getting the message:
Hands off of our Social Security and Medicare, and that means both parties.
Here's a clue Senators and Congressmen/women: Americans have already paid and they are sick to death of paying.
WASHINGTON -- Influential Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) "decided to take a break" from the bipartisan "Gang of Six" budget negotiating team Tuesday, citing an impasse in the effort to agree on substantial spending cuts.
"He is disappointed the group has not been able to bridge the gap between what needs to happen and what senators will support," said Coburn spokesman John Hart. "He has decided to take a break from the talks."
Some Democrats have been predicting the gang's demise ever since one of its leaders, Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad (D-N.D.) -- one of the six members -- announced he'd start moving ahead with his own proposal. Conrad said Tuesday he'd announce plans to proceed soon. Coburn's departure could all-but deep-six the Six, since Conrad's budget plan could overtake it. And Vice President Biden also has been leading bipartisan talks aimed at conquering the deficit impasse.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/...
But of course no one in Washington DC gives a shit what the American people want anymore:
WASHINGTON— Less than a quarter of Americans support making significant cuts to Social Security or Medicare to tackle the country’s mounting deficit, according to a new Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll, illustrating the challenge facing lawmakers who want voter buy-in to alter entitlement programs.
A new WSJ/NBC poll shows Americans do not approve of the government slashing Social Security and Medicaid to reduce the nation’s deficit. They also have a bleak economic outlook for 2011, but feel President Obama is handling the economy well.
In the poll, Americans across all age groups and ideologies said by large margins that it was “unacceptable” to make significant cuts in entitlement programs in order to reduce the federal deficit. Even tea party supporters, by a nearly 2-to-1 margin, declared significant cuts to Social Security “unacceptable.”
http://www.handsoffourmedicare.org/...
And then there is this Blue Dog Democrats and Idiot Teabagger Republicans:
The Quinnipiac University poll found that 60 percent of Americans among both major political parties think raising income taxes on households making more than $250,000 should be a main tenet of the government's efforts to tame the deficit. More than 70 percent, including a majority of Republicans, say those making more than $1 million should pay more.
But 80 percent say raising taxes on those making less than that should not be part of the government's approach. Moreover, most oppose touching Medicare and Social Security - two long-term drivers of the budget deficit over the coming decades.
"Given those numbers, it's clear that those who want serious deficit reduction have their work cut out for them in convincing the public, which seems adamantly opposed to cutting the programs with the largest budgets," said Peter Brown, assistant director of the polling institute.
http://www.reuters.com/...
The message is very clear to me:
Americans are sick and tired of being sick and tired of paying for the endless wars, for the top one percent of this nation who are robbing us blind and getting away with it including, Wall St./the Banks.
This is not rocket scientists news here people. This is a total disconnect of how our leaders, on both sides of the isles (Democrats and Republicans) are just refusing to get the message.
There are no 'the adults in the room, or the serious people making serious decisions,' that apparently they all believe we are too 'ignorant to understand.'
There are the same Oligarchs and Plutocrats, who are simply doubling down on their new Shock Doctrine strategy to finish off the Middle Class and shift the blame on those that have already paid the greatest price.
Americans in fact are in a state of deep despair, and are weary of those that will no longer listen to us in Washington DC. And why shouldn't they be?
Health Care costs simply keep rising, and the Health Care industry is making record profits. Same for the Big Pharma, same for the Oil Companies, same for the big 40 percent of our national economy that is making the most money: The Banks and Wall Street.
The Corporations have absolutely no intention of giving back to that nation that gave them the right and privilege to make billions of dollars, as they continue to out source our jobs overseas.
But who is standing up for the Middle Class?
One of the best arguments I've seen recently on Social Security was on FDL:
Sloan says this cash flow situation will continue years into the future. Since the Trust Fund doesn’t matter in his accounting, this means Social Security is trouble today, right now, not just in 2036 or so when the Social Security Administration’s most recent official reports tell us the Trust Fund balance runs out.
if I’m not mistaken, this is a classic bait and switch argument he’s making, the one we’ve been warned about before by Paul Krugman, Dean Baker and others.
You can view Social Security accounting two ways: First, you can view it as a separate fund, in which case the Trust Fund surplus of $2.5 trillion is very relevant. Or you can view the issue from the perspective of the entire budget, and ask, “how much of the total is paid for by total incoming revenues?” But what you can’t do is mix the two; you can’t honestly switch between the two accounting perspectives just to make a political point about Social Security.
http://my.firedoglake.com/...
But that is exactly the problem: Our government has now become all about the 'classic bait and switch,' and guess what? NO ONE IS BUYING IT ANYMORE.
And still, the endless wars continue unabated and endless, as we ignore the weary, and beaten volunteer Army that we have, who have done tour after tour after tour.
I'm never surprised, when I hear from my freinds and family how down and depressed they feel, and how many of them have fallen into despair. All I can do, is to hold their hands and tell them, this: Don't lose hope, keep the faith alive in your heart, and pay attention to the things that make you happy. Do a small gratitude list every day in the morning when you get up.
Wish it were not so, but both parties in the 'Gang of Six,' just doesn't get the message:
Americans are sick and tired of paying, and paying and paying, when no one will stand up for us. It really is that simple.
Thanks as always.
Ms. B.