From HP:
Democrats on Tuesday had presented a plan to achieve $3 trillion in deficit savings over the next decade, cutting as much as $500 billion from Medicare, Medicaid and other health programs and raising $1.3 trillion in new revenue.
Boehner on Thursday criticized the health-care savings, particularly $50 billion from Medicare.
“Let’s understand, over the next 10 years we’re going to cut $10 trillion on Medicaid,” he said. “I just think there’s a lot more room there to help find common ground.”
Republicans, instead, have offered more than $2 trillion in savings over 10 years, highlighted by nearly $700 billion in spending reductions to Medicare and Medicaid.
So, let me get this straight.
Republicans reject a bill that has a mere $200 billion less in Medicare and Medicaid cuts than theirs. A bill that offers the opportunity to cut down any possible downgrade in the near future that was put in motion by THEIR destructive actions several months ago. A bill that cuts FAR MORE from government than their measly bill does.
Well. No big surprise here. Not when you're talking about a party that would sink the country entire over even the slightest inconvenience of 3.5% in tax increases for the top 1%.
And my wager, as always, is that Harry Reid and his cowering pals will come back with another bill that cuts even more, that makes more concessions for the MINORITY party, that would reap more hurt on an already beaten country - and the republicans will, once again, reject it and ask for more tax cuts for their friends.
And, despite a law that triggers dramatic cuts and actions if the Supercommittee fails to do their job, I think they will stand their ground once again - and our side will fold.
As they always do.
What is wrong with this scenario? I'll tell you. It is the pattern of people who don't listen, never learn from their mistakes, do not have the power of their convictions, and are thinking only about THEIR jobs, retirement and future and could give two fucks about any of us, despite the fact that their fortunes are directly tied to our good graces of voting them in.
It would be easy to put all the blame on the republicans here and I'd like to. They are a destructive, ignorant, angry and petulant bunch who's strategy is so blatantly obvious (and brazen) that it's beyond comprehension for me that ANYONE wouldn't see how directly their actions affect them.
On the other hand, our party refuses to go to the mat with anyone. This fight SHOULD HAVE been waged during the budget issues at the end of last year. Instead, the President decided to wait until the debt ceiling issue, which afforded us no fallback position short of "allowing" the other party to damage our country. Most Americans don't pay attention enough, and don't understand the maneuvering, mechanics and how certain outcomes are arrived at. Unfortunately, they only see two parties that are not working with each other and, mistakenly, assume our party is as much to blame.
In the end, our inability to cut at least $3 trillion in debt, at least on paper, will justify another downgrade from companies who have proven they have no business judging anything, particularly derivative products. Nonetheless, that won't matter. The result is all that matters. No amount of explanation will help us in the end.
The republicans, as always, will cheer for our destruction - and the democrats will weakly comply. What else is new?