So Obama’s 3rd press conference in 17 days is over and absolutely nothing was learned, once again. No specifics, just a rehash of his last two press conferences.
If this was his idea of “going to the American people” then he failed miserably.
On top of all that, his bluff was called by the Republicans:
House Republicans said Friday that they planned to vote next week on a proposal to raise the debt ceiling by $2.4 trillion, with matching cuts and guidelines to control future government spending.
House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R., Va.) said at a news conference Friday that the House next week would vote on a “cut, cap and balance” approach. The House plans to separately vote on a measure that would amend the U.S. Constitution to require the federal government to balance its budget.
House Speaker John Boehner (R., Ohio) said Friday that the White House has been “unwilling to put a real plan on the table,” but said next week’s vote would not “preclude” the chance of reaching a deal with Democrats.
The House Republicans have passed a plan to reduce spending already. Obama and the Democrats have ignored it. Now they are calling his bluff. If this bill passes, and that’s a big if with opposition from some House Republicans, then the onus will now be on Harry Reid. If it goes down to defeat in the Senate or Obama veto’s the thing….they will then own any default.
See author page
Only if the media report it. That’s 80% of the problem right now.
It would appear the GOP is learning how to “play the game”.
Dear Lord, I want to take back everything nasty I’ve said about our House leadership. I honestly do.
Time will tell.
Given the response of the Chinese promise to down grade US securities after August 2nd IF the US doesn’t reign in on spending, I believe the GOP now has the backbone to see this through. You see, if the Chinese bond rating agency does the down grade, then S&P and Moody’s will have no choice but to follow suit or lose credibility in rating the markets.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/cndy/2011-07/13/content_12889286.htm
…”If the debt limit is raised and the public debt continues to grow, it will further damage the US’ debt-paying ability, which is a key factor in Dagong’s evaluation, and we will consider lowering its ratings accordingly,” said Guan Jianzhong, chairman and CEO of Dagong.
“If the raised limit fails to pass and the US faces default, the rating will be immediately and substantially downgraded,” he said….
…The fundamental problem is that the US’ ability to generate wealth is far from compensating its increasing debt, and “paying debts by borrowing more is not a solution,” he said.
Say what you will about the Chinese, but you have to admit what they are saying is true. BTW- you are not seeing this in a US publication, this is a Chinese publication – the China Daily. Notice the picture they used for Obama…what does that imply of their impression of him? This doesn’t mean they are friends but our interests for the moment are in tandem and should be used to our advantage. Frenemies.
I’m certain republicans are hoping they can convince average Americans to see things that way. If they can’t, they’re toast.
From The Christian Science Monitor, 07/15/11: If debt ceiling talks yield no deal, how bad for US economy?
We must learn how to look at the credit raters and their warnings.
Obama is NOT trying to preserve our good credit rating by getting a higher debt ceiling AND raising taxes AND spending more.
If Obama gets his way we will be on an unsustainable path whereby we will NEVER be able to pay off our debts.
(How can any USA, now or even in our most prosperous past, cover repayment of $2.5 TRILLION for 18 months?
Yet that is Obama’s requirement.)
Were Obama to ”win,” then the only thing those credit raters could do is DOWNGRADE our credit rating.
Every credit rater, American or Chinese, is warning the USA to quit the prolific spending and start living within our means.
See also:
S&P Says It May Downgrade Credit Rating Even If Debt Limit Is Raised
A new debt ceiling is only one part of the problem.
Obama knows but ignores this fact.
Curt, you and I saw the same “news conference.” Obama NEVER said anything specific, only generalities. I agree with your comment: If this was his idea of “going to the American people” then he failed miserably.
Very good post.
That was a presser? I thought it was a campaign stop….
Great. Republicans are receiving accolades for raising the debt limit. In what kind of Alice-in-Wonderland world have I found myself?
@goodrichard, #8:
One in which the outcome will be horribly wrong and all Obama’s fault, whichever way it goes.
@Greg: mostly because it is his fault. This is what you get for electing a president with no executive experience.
Pathetic. He bashes the GOP for allegedly not presenting a plan/specifics….then does what he accuses them of. Typical leftist. Projection/hypocrisy.
Wow, the GOP is finally, FINALLY doing something besides kissing the Democrats’ er, uh…logo.
This is what I was talking about the yesterday.
I would be happier if they only vote to raise limit 1 trillion (or less) and then spend the next sessions cutting government agency waste, trimming the Federal budgets of all nonessential spending and actual downsizing of the government.
By the way, did anyone catch Jake Tapper stumping Jay Carney?
“Pathetic. He bashes the GOP for allegedly not presenting a plan/specifics….then does what he accuses them of. Typical leftist. Projection/hypocrisy.”
You don’t get it. He wants them to present their plan/specifics as clearly and as often as possible.
If you go on the assumption that Obama has nothing to do with the speeches he gives, it is Obama’s puppeteers who haven’t come up with a plan yet. I don’t think Obama even reads most of his speeches before reading them on the TOTUS. With all of the parties he throws, the golfing, all of the trips he task, and the five times a day prayers, there can’t be much time left for studying a speech.
@Wilson, #14:
I think that’s probably a central part of Obama’s political strategy in the run-up to 2012.
Republicans did well in 2010 by stirring up and harnessing public discontent while providing almost nothing in the way of policy specifics to be criticized. Now they’re the House majority and have to roll out something resembling policy. Picking a fight on the debt ceiling was probably a serious miscalculation. It has forced them to go on record with their specific intentions over a year ahead of the 2012 election. That gives democrats a long time to calculate their responses, and the voters a long time to think about all of the real-world implications of what republicans are proposing.
@Greg: You said:
False.
The key word was “specifics”. The public finally began seeing some outline of the specifics when republicans rolled out the Ryan budget.
@Greg: You said:
Again, false.
.
.
I don’t recall hearing many republicans talking about their intention to reduce the top-end tax rate to 25 percent, or to replace Medicare guarantees with vouchers and instructions to elderly to go find their own insurance, prior to the 2010 elections.
@Greg: You said:
That’s your problem. Do some research before you open your big mouth.
What you said is false.
the REPUBLICANS HAD PLANS ALL THE TIME FOR GETTING JOBS,
AND REDUCE THE SPENDING, DON’T ACCUSE THEM SO LIGHTLY,
THEY work harder than the DEMOCRATS, which are the one putting the screw in the wheel, KILLING THEIR PLANS
they hate the CONSERVATIVES GOPS IDEAS, because it make OBAMA AND THE DEMOCRATS LOOK STUPID AND UNFIT TO THE JOB THEY WHERE ELECTED FOR,
CHECK BERNIE MARCUS,