"Trying to set expectations"

________________________________________________________________

Will Obama and his comrades ever actually try running the country instead of campaigning?

1st Reads Mark Murray writes" Drawing Laughs from the assembled reporters"!

Thats it ina nutshell from the MSM, they think it's a Freaking Joke that America is in the Shape thats it in after sitting on the Sidelines & Watching it Happen, all the while saying Nothing.

They even let National Enquirer scoopem on the Edwards Story. Now all they can do is Reality news.

Why No story on Bristol Palin speaking on the Virtues of Single Mother's, while Traveling across country, letting someone Else take care of Her baby.

The MSM is a joke Itself, thats why they have a 13% rating among watchers.

The fall of the Obama Empire has been swift.

Cal USA. I think the GOPers will continue obstructing everything--that's all they have in the way of ideas, well, that and unsustainable tax cuts.

Madison NY. Seems as if you have a fixation with communism. Care to explain why the Republican Pledge for America promises to repeal the Obama health care legislation and then pass the same law as theirs. If it was a socialist, plot to takeover health care--will it not still be a socialist plot to take over health care? Same rules, same mandates on private insurerers. Don't believe a liberal--go read it.

FR: But while Plouffe gladly set expectations for Republican success on Election Night, he refused to do the same for Democrats. "We are just trying to do as well as we can," he said, drawing laughs from the assembled reporters for his very low bar.

The Democrats are to laugh at. So what ever happen to the notion of the "Democrats ruling for the next generation" that they were touting 12 months ago? Something go wrong for you on that one Democrats?

Now the #1 political insider in the White House looks at his internal polling and he just knows that the evening of November 2nd will be a very, very bad one indeed for the Democrats.

Amazing how a party with a majority in both houses blames the other party for its failure to pass legislation. If legislation is not passed, blame it on the Repubs...or the Blue Dogs....or the Special Interest Groups....or the Right Wing Media. C'mon, the whining seems to pass from the WH to the House to the Senate to the Dem voters. Strong, knowledgeable LEADERS should always overcome adversity. Obviously, there is a lack of LEADERSHIP in all facets of the Dem political machine... it is truly sad when the WH & Congress do not have the testicular fortitude to provide LEADERSHIP. Oh yeah!!!! For any responses....don't forget to attack the Repubs, the Independents, et al. "Oh Boo-Hoo! We can't do anything even though we have everything we need to be successful". Leadership provides solutions to issues.

OF COURSE it will be a failure. Republicans are talking about taking over 100 seats in the House. They are saying that they EXPECT to take the Senate as well. There's no way for it to NOT be a failure if they FAIL to do what they're telling everyone they plan to do.

John B, Des Moines,IA :There's no way for it to NOT be a failure if they FAIL to do what they're telling everyone they plan to do

Applying the same rule to the Democrats (and the Libs just hate it when you do that) makes them total failures seeing they've been telling all of America for 20 months now about how wonderful their massive amounts of deficit spending has been at restoring a vibrant and prosperous US economy.

No, they said it would pull us out of the worst recession since the Great Depression. Since the vast majority of Economists are in agreement that it worked http://www.economy.com/mark-zandi/documents/End-of-Great-Recession.pdf?L=HPADV2&C=ZANDIBLINDER&P=LEARNMORE and in fact we were on the brink of another depression, you're painting a success as failure.

At least we're in agreement that failure to take the Senate and at least 100 House seats will be a failure for Republicans. You have no apparent problem with that statement.

Trying to set expectations before an Election Day that's 26 days away, Obama adviser (and former campaign manager) David Plouffe today said it would be a "colossal failure" for Republicans if they don't win back control of the House and Senate.

ROTFLMAO....

In other words "we have screwed the pooch so bad that if we don't lose to the Republicans, they suck!!"

That is the understatement of the year!!

It's bad when your own party thinks you SHOULD lose most of the seats in the upcoming election.

Plouffe is full of Pouppe ! This is nothing more than a Democratic spin game because the Democrats don't want to run on Obamacare, they don't want to run on Cap and Trade, and they don't want to run on "the stimulus"..........which hasn't worked.

Yes, a Democratic strategist's wishful thinking is somehow presented as "NEWS" by MSNBC. Sure, the Democrats can survive the midterm elections.....it won't be THAT bad.........start building an ARK !!

TSSUUUNNNNAAAAAMMMMMMIIIIIII !!!!!!!!

"And Plouffe railed against the GOP-leaning outside groups -- like the Rove-backed American Crossroads and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce"

But of course, the huge contributions by the unions and trial lawyers are perfectly OK with him.

It must be very disheartening to the Liberals, to see a once in a lifetime far-left Liberal President, a huge majority in the House, and a filibuster proof 60 vote majority in the Senate (outnumbering Republicans by 20 votes), and still they could not get anything significant done.

This was an opportunity that they likely will not see again.

Oh well.

Roy Wilson

I am certain that you are merely misinformed. The Democrats never had a 60 member "filibuster proof" majority in the Senate, and you should know that if you are going to frequent a political blog. In the reality based world, I am fairly certain that it takes 67 votes to end a filibuster. The dems in the house sent 300 bills to the Senate which haven't come up for debate or a vote due to RE-peat-the-lie-to-the-PUBLIC-ans making use of the FINO Rule 22 cloture exemption. They haven't used the filibuster even once, yet rather than justly delay legislation, which is the purpose of a true filibuster, they have permanently shelved legislation though the use of the FAKE filibuster, FINO, Tarantino.( KILL BILL see Rachel Maddow)

I am sure that you won't repeat this lie again, now that you have had it explained to you. Also.

Read the polls, Americans want the GOP to obstruct, repeal, and over rule ever portion of the Obama agenda. So go ahead and complain. This is what the electorate wants. Democrats complain about the Republicans wanting to repeal Health Reform. But the Gallup poll said 1 in every 4 Democrats want it repealed also. As Ronald Reagan said, "Democrats are spending money like drunken sailors but that isn't really fair to drunken sailors. Drunken sailor are at least spending their own money"

Survival as a political party is about the best can Dems can hope for, a group of spineless, panderers operating on the sidelines is what they have made themselves.

plouffe is a spineless weasel!

HE IS PUBLIC ENEMY NO 1, ALONG WITH AXELROD!

these schmucks sold "GULLIBLE AMERICANS" a false "HOPE" and BILL OF GOODS! they catered LIES to the most VULNERABLE and those people bought the LIES and were FOOLED!

they should be ashamed of the UTTER DEVASTATION they inflicted on AMERICA! i was going to say, i hope they loose sleep at night,

but, AGAIN THEY ARE PROGRESSIVE WEASELS!

excellent post RAY W! DEMS don't realize they are NOW cheering against the WILL of the PEOPLE, on EVERY agenda item.

Paul-

In the United States Senate, rules permit a senator, or a series of senators, to speak for as long as they wish and on any topic they choose, unless "three-fifths of the Senators duly chosen and sworn"^[26] (usually 60 out of 100 senators) brings debate to a close by invoking cloture under Senate Rule XXII.

With the two independents coming from CT and VT (both very much Democrat leaning states) They had a filibuster-proof majority. I'm not certain where you got your 67 from, but it's incorrect. They had their 60 percent and still blamed Republicans for failure. It's pathetic, and that's why they will lose control at the very least.

So let's suppose he's correct. THEN who is Obama going to blame everything on?

Astonished,

Obama will spend the next 2 years blaming the American people for not agreeing with his (cocaine induced) vision.

Left-wing panic attack. The colossal failure is the Obama administration not the results of the expected (even by democrats) repositioning of congressional caucuses.

Damn, the golden ring was so close.

Chef Darrell,

I agree. For a candidate that was supposed to be the "Yes we can" guy. The everything to everyone ... omnipotent mediator for everything ... The man who was going to "Bring us all together" ... it seems like he certainly takes any view other than his narrow left wing agenda as a personal affront. It's always someone else's fault! Sound like a grade school-er who has come home with all F's on his report card.

Paul @ 1.14,

Ah, the liberal mantra strkes again ! We are smarter than you, so You must be misinformed. Your little lecture and cutesy words are really quite choice..........only you need to read post #1.19..........AND GET YOURSELF EDUCATED !!!!!!!

I love when libbies try to demonstrate their self-proclaimed intellectual superiority..........only to be proven wrong. Perhaps, you have been watching too much of Rachel Madcow.

November 2nd will be bloody for the Democratic Party ! Obama will be politically neutered !!!!!!!!

Republicans created the fiction that they really represented the majority and tried to block everything the President proposed.

Seems to me the Democrats keep creating the illusion that they weren't the supermajority that was failing to pass votes. Either they're messed up internally or the bills they wrote just weren't good enough.

they think it's a Freaking Joke that America is in the Shape thats it in after sitting on the Sidelines & Watching it Happen, all the while saying Nothing.

Saying nothing? You need to broaden your media sources. Sitting on the sidelines? The voters put them there and the Dems stopped inviting them to meetings. You got what you wanted, here's the result.

I think the GOPers will continue obstructing everything--that's all they have in the way of ideas, well, that and unsustainable tax cuts.

There cannot be "unsustainable tax cuts" unless there is unsustainable spending. It's not like they're running on minimum wage here. They spend by the trillion. Why do Democrats think the answer to every question is "yes" and it's obstructionism to say otherwise (even if you specifically state it's so they have time to read the bill first)?

Republican Pledge for America promises to repeal the Obama health care legislation and then pass the same law as theirs.

Yes I saw that comment on liberal media too. It was someone's weak rebuttal to calling the extended Bush tax cuts "Obama tax cuts". Noone wants to pass the same bill. That's delusional. It needs to be bipartisan and actually do some reform rather than mandated purchase.

they said it would pull us out of the worst recession since the Great Depression. Since the vast majority of Economists are in agreement that it worked

Worked for who exactly? I'm not seeing it. Getting into too much debt without taking in more income is what causes crashes & depressions just like doing the same in your family causes foreclosures.

Vote out the incumbents as long as they're GOP.

OK S,

why would you say something idiotic like that???

you got anything to contribute here?

Ok Snokey, Yeah because the Democrats have done such a STAND-UP job we should keep them right. LOL. SUUURRREEEEE.

Sent in my ballot. Straight GOP all the way.

Eleamor... THANK YOU!

Now remind your family & friends to do the same! ;0)

David Plouffe, David Plouffe. . .where have I heard that name before?

Oh, yeah, now I remember- he flew across the Pond to help the Labour Party keep the majority.

For which David Cameron is extremely grateful. . .

Sent in my early ballot...Straight Republican all the way!!!

Liberty is what America should really be voting for not socialism.

It's time for people to start thinking for themselves rather than follow their parents party "just because that's what they've always been", and for those that have made an intellectual choice to re-evaluate through the lens of Liberty:

lib•er•ty
noun \ˈli-bər-tē\
1 : the quality or state of being free: a : the power to do as one pleases b : freedom from physical restraint c : freedom from arbitrary or despotic control d : the positive enjoyment of various social, political, or economic rights and privileges e : the power of choice

Our country's founders cherished liberty, not democracy.
Ron Paul

We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
Thomas Jefferson

Fourscore and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.
Abraham Lincoln

Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty.
John F. Kennedy

Liberty cannot be preserved without general knowledge among the people.
John Adams

Liberty has never come from Government. Liberty has always come from the subjects of it. The history of liberty is a history of limitations of governmental power, not the increase of it.
Woodrow Wilson

Democracy and socialism have nothing in common but one word, equality. But notice the difference: while democracy seeks equality in liberty, socialism seeks equality in restraint and servitude.
Alexis de Tocqueville

Give me liberty or give me death.
Patrick Henry

I don't like either of these dysfunctional parties.

Give me liberty or give me death.

Patrick Henry

I don't like either of these dysfunctional parties.

Beau: As I stated I don't like either party, but with respect to Social Security and Medicare:

Social Security's future problems are predictable, even if their exact timing is uncertain. As millions of baby boomers approach retirement, the program's annual cash surplus will shrink and then disappear. Then, Social Security will not be able to pay full benefits from its payroll and other tax revenues. It will need to consume ever-growing amounts of general revenue dollars to meet its obligations--money that now pays for everything from environmental programs to highway construction to defense. Eventually, either benefits will have to be slashed or the rest of the government will have to shrink to accommodate Social Security.

The exact timing of this crunch is less important than its inevitability. Whether Social Security begins to spend more on paying benefits than it receives in taxes in 2017 or 2018 or any other specific year means much less than what these deficits will mean to our economy. Our children may be faced with the choice of paying retirement benefits to their parents or paying for programs that help their own children. That future is coming, and no amount of wishful thinking will change that.

The reason that Social Security's deficits are inevitable is fairly simple. Demographics are more predictable than most events. Millions of baby boomers will begin to retire in 2008, when those born in 1946 reach Social Security's early retirement age of 62. From then until 2025, every year will see another crop of baby boomers reach the 62 year-old threshold. Because the baby boomers have not produced enough children to replace themselves, the number of taxpaying workers will shrink.

Demographic trends do not change rapidly. It takes about 25 years to grow a new taxpayer. We can estimate with surprising accuracy how many people born in a particular year will live to reach retirement. The retirees of 2070 were all born in 2003, and we can see and count them today.

This is critical, because a retiree's Social Security benefits are actually paid from the taxes of those who are still working. The program's finances are based on the relationship between the number of workers paying taxes and the number of retirees receiving benefits.

Back in 1950, as the baby boom was just getting started, each retiree's benefit was divided among 16 workers. Taxes could be kept low. Today, that number has dropped to 3.3 workers per retiree, and by 2025, it will reach--and remain at--about two workers per retiree. Each married couple will have to pay, in addition to their own family's expenses, Social Security retirement benefits for one retiree. In order to pay promised benefits, either taxes of some kind must rise or other government services must be cut.

This future is coming with steady speed. Social Security's annual cash surpluses will begin to fall in 2008, the same year that the first baby boomers reach early retirement age. Over roughly the next 10 years, those Social Security surpluses, about $100 billion a year at their peak, will continue to shrink and then disappear completely. Without those surpluses to reduce the size of the federal deficit, Congress will have to raise taxes to bring in billions of dollars of new revenues, cut programs, or let annual deficits climb.

And then the real problems hit. Somewhere around 2017, on top of replacing Social Security's $100 billion annual surplus, Congress will have to find billions more so that Social Security can pay all of the benefits that it has promised. Within about five years, that additional money will reach $100 billion a year (not counting inflation). From there, the annual demands will reach first $200 billion a year, and soon $300 billion a year.

Then there is Medicare. Together, Social Security and Medicare will consume an estimated 60 percent of income taxes collected by 2040. What's left would have to finance the entire rest of the government.

Without reform, Social Security's future is inevitable, like it or not. We can either prepare now, or dither about what year it will happen.

This Socialistic construct had basis in morality, but was created in the face of Liberty. (Freedom of Choice). Had this been constructed originally as more of a mandatory savings by Americans for retirement in individual personal accounts, this situation outlined above wouldn't be the predicament we are in now.

Sure you don't want to end your kind hearted moralistic social program, but the bubble is coming and frankly the blame for it lands squarely on your shoulders.

I for one don't want any more of your social engineering. I've saved for my retirement.

With respect to what "A Tea Party Candidate" wants, you may be right, but what's more likely is that you have no idea what they want, and that is a result of you being so deeply entrenched in following the party of your parents you don't even listen or give any serious thought to what the other side as to say. That would make me think you're hardly an expert on what "A Tea Party Candidate" want.

Welcome to the world of globalization. Here's the real problem though - Americans won't buy American made goods, because they want the cheapest price they can find. When's the last time you shopped at WallyWorld? Believe me, if companies could make a decent profit - and there isn't anything wrong with making profit; if you go to work everyday it's so you can make a profit on your time and labor - on goods made in America, they would absolutely make product here. But if you aren't willing to support an American made product, don't blame the corps for moving the jobs overseas. What would you do? Simply close down?

Good points. Eventually, however, the U.S. labour market will be cheap enough to be an offshore target itself. As Thomas Friedman said, 'banana republic, here we come...' in the context of the Promise to America. Which is built on worn out platitudes, discredited 'tickle down' theory. And, build on some strange accounting scheme that anyone who has managed a checkbook knows will never balance.

But the fact remains we are still headed to that "banana republic" because we are driving ourselves there. It's not a Dem vs Repubs thing. It's the simple choices we make everyday. I haven't been in a WallyWorld in 12 years and will never again set foot in one. I buy local and American whenever I can. If we would all do that, we'd drive jobs back to the USA. We only have ourselves to blame.

What STIFLING REGULATIONS?

Our company is based in Miami. We manufacture items in the USA, China, and Taiwan. Aside from a small tariff on imports, we don't see no stinkin' regulations that prevent decent profits and we're growing.

Me thinketh you folks are seeing boogey-men. That, or you're a bunch of whiners.

Unemployed? Think yourself into gainful employment with an idea for a better widget, or a faster widget, or whatever.

We're Americans aren't we?! Get up, dust yourself off, stop whining and get to work doing anything you can. That's what some less fortunate Chinese guy is planning to do today. Are you gonna let him do that, or are you gonna do it first?

And turn off the FOX TV, that crap will make you suicidal.

As stated in the below article by the former CEO of Intel "(The effective U.S. corporate income tax is 35 percent, far over the industrialized-nation average of 18.2 percent.)". Now where would a conglomerate want to be based? Certainly not here. It's just not good for business. But what happens when hypothetically PetroChina, or Toyota find out that the US cut the corporate taxes to say 10-15%? We get growth, and jobs and increased tax revenues because of the influx of business.

Source: http://news.cnet.com/8301-13578_3-20014563-38.html

For all you Socialistic Robin Hood's out there that want to rob from the rich to give to the poor. This isn't a Kingdom. One Monarch isn't tyrannically controlling all the wealth, in fact many of the wealthy are probably employing you and giving you a decent wage. Most of those wealthy are contributing to charities or public works projects, disaster aid, medical research, etc.. Why is it you think their success should be penalized and stolen from them? Didn't they earn it?

No, it's only because you think your Big Brother Socialistic Government needs to morally decide how that money is spent. For you only the masses moral dictatorship over the individuals liberty and morals should prevail. Sorry I'm not your cattle to be herded under you own moral agenda. I can make my own moral choices without infringing on your personal liberty.

Have you ever taken a lengthy test with a time limit and gotten stuck on one question that you know you should be able to answer? The harder you concentrate on it, the further the answer escapes you. You pass on it and complete the rest of the test, then go back to it. The answer pops into your head immediately.

We are rightfully concerned about losing our jobs to cheap overseas labor. Our major American corporations are busily shipping them out full speed ahead. Nike pays the Chinese or Eastern Indians $1.50 to make a pair of sneakers and sell them to us for $150.00. We and they forget that the Americans are the world's largest consumer. They are foolishly killing the goose that layed the golden egg. We are so deeply concerned that the obvious solution escapes us.

Make an inferior product there with slave labor if you wish. It's a free country. In return, we will estimate the cost of manufacturing it here and tax your product accordingly when you ship it back here. Do you really think that an unemployed American consumer will pay you $301.50 for that same pair of sneakers?

The simple solution is to force all of our traitorous poiticians to get their grimey hands out of the pockets of big business. We can now go back to that evasive question that puzzles us, starting on election day, before we flunk the most important test we've ever taken. We owe it to our proud American ancestry and to our kids.

Isn't Plouffe talking about Obama, Pelosi, Reid, and their far left wingnut policies?

Comments like this are on here a lot. Could you please give me an example of these far left wingnut policies that the Obama administration has actively pursued?

Frank... how about NobamaCare? Here's the dirty little secret of NobamaCare: It is designed to make insurance companies fail. How? Well, the gov is going to define the minimum plan coverage, which with all the mandated services, will force premiums up. Can't do otherwise. All those small and medium sized companies who were willing to provide decent bennies are going to be priced out - hey, we'll pay the fines and cancel the ins, cause it's the only cost effective thing we can do. That places millions - who were happy with their bennies - into the pools. But of course the gov is going to dictate the premium levels the pools can charge. The ins cos are then going to say, see you, good luck covering these folks with what you'll let us charge. Viscious cycle. And then, we'll all be paying more than we do now, cause gov is no where near as efficient as private ins cos, and have less access to care. When you have to wait 6 wks for an appt, or get told you can' t have a drug that might help you but costs a lot... perhaps then you'll scream bloody murder.. except then it will be too late. And then, it'll be, well, you can't drink Coke, or eat hamburgers, or have the occasional Snickers because, hey, that might make you unhealthy and we have to pay for your coverage. That's socialism. When "for your own good" they take away your ability to choose for yourself.

Frank, the far left of the country are big supporters of a centralized government that controls as many aspects of peoples lives as possible. To do so, such a government has to control and regulate as much of the nations institutions as they can with their policies. So Frank, in the last 20 months just where has the government not taken more control of these institutions? You know like with the banks, student loans, with health care, the insurance companies, attempts at federalizing energy production with Cap and Trade, the purchase of GM, and the constant demonizing of private businesses. Just where has Obama and Democrats given up any government control of anything in the last 20 months?

Starting to see the big picture now Frank?

Guess what cele, our insurance system is already in a death spiral. Premiums QUADRUPLED during the 8 years of the Bush Administration, so HCR as it's being implemented now certainly didn't start the price increase cycle. When prices increase employers drop their group policies and individuals can't afford coverage. Their care then gets piggybacked largely on the backs of those who still have coverage. Then the inflation in premiums accelerates. More business and individuals are forced to do without. Premiums race ahead. That's how we went from 30M without coverage during the Clinton Administration to 50M without coverage now.

cele2000 your argument makes no sense at all. Insurance companies will be forced to be more efficient and one way that's being done with 'Obamacare', as you call it, is that all medical records will have to be digitized, and online, which will streamline and aid efficiently, while lowering costs and adding security.

Why don't you folks get a education about our new health care laws before you sprout gibberish over the Internet? You're seeing boogeymen that don't exist and it makes you sound weak. Are you weak?

JS1, your accuracy never improves. I'm not the "far" Left but I'm proud to be a Liberal and yet I'm a business manager who wants to profit in my personal life by improving the profitability of my business. To do that we need a society with a strong middle class, the same middle class that's starving as Conservatives redistribute wealth to the top. As to some of your other Right wing talking points;

Is there something RIGHT about banks making "liar loans", creating financial instruments that are designed to be opaque and unstable, levying usurious interest rates, and them blaming the victims--er, most profitable customers who they knew darned well wouldn't be able to pay.

Studen loans are money FROM the government, GUARANTEED by the government, yet banks have been collecting hefty profits of handling the paper with no risk. What's "free enterprise" about that?

Health care handled just above.

Cap and Trade is a no go at least for now. Dead issue.

GM came hat in hand begging for money. We saved an entire industry. Mission accomplished.

But keep talking, you paint a pretty picture as long as no one looks at the facts.

You are all making my argument for me... premiums quadrupled.. ins cos will have to be more efficient... so why doesn't NobamaCAre address the cost issues? Because what he wants is for the ins cos to fail so the Gov will have to step in and take over. My whole point is that NObamaCare is designed to do this - make the private sector fail. And then we'll be stuck with a gov takeover that, when it happens, will make the private system look positively great. And you know what? The private system works for all of us who take responsibilty for our own lives.

And just so you know - I work within a gov healthcare system, and I can tell you it is the most inefficient system you can ever imagine. No private co could operate with the same inefficiencies. If you doubt me, log onto any state website and look at then Medicaid regs. governing the system now. Then add all the regs NOBAMA will add. It's already a laberinth.

Any LARGE organization, conglomerate, association, or corporation is inherently bureaucratic.

We can only work to make private and public sectors more efficient, reduce fraud/waste, increase fluidity of internal controls, leverage information technologies, provide more training to employees/management, and invest in primary/secondary education.

well, YOU are a sheep afterall!

I just spent the afternoon working the phones to get out the vote for the DNC. Was calling a lot of first time voters from the '08 election who were instrumental in that elections success. If the DNC can get them to come out and vote again, we can have more wins.

You better call the nuts at Acorn Rick, you're really going to need them. No one else will be stupid enough to vote for more of the crap we've been putting up with.

.

rick - just spent the afternoon working the phones to get out the vote for the DNC. Was calling a lot of first time voters from the '08 election who were instrumental in that elections success.

Rick, do you tell them it's "inexcusable" that they are not voting? Do you tell them to quit "whining"? Do you scold them like they were children? Do you tell them to "shake off the lethargy"? Do you call them "irresponsible"?

You know, the same things Obama and Biden are telling them.

If so, how's that working out for you?

Rick Where does the money come from? There aren't enough "rich" people in the world to fund the crap Nobama wants to do... As Ms. Thatcher put it: The problem with socialism is that sooner or later you run out of other people's money. And to do what? Prop up those who won't take care of themselves. It boggles my mind that there are good, decent folk like you who see this as the way things should be. Where does personal respnsibility enter into your views?

Dave D,

Are we stupid enough to vote back into office the same villains who destroyed the economy and this country for the previous 8 years? It's no coincidence the two great financial disasters of the last 100 years have both come after 8 yrs. of republic rule.

pat in socal,

YOU are not paying attention and are NOT knowledged!!!

the financial failures are directly due to the 2006 DEM led congress and prior to that the MASSIVE FAILURES caused by DEMS being in the POCKETS of FANNIE/FREDDIE! BUSH and McCAIN tried to real this in but barney frank, maxine walters(yep, under trial soon), and chriss dodd were taking payments under table. BUT, you must be OK with that out of YOUR leadership, or the lack there of!

oh, BTW, how's the value of your HOUSE lately! YEAH, about 25% less. YOU OK WITH THAT??? thank the DEMS!

WAKE UP!

gtbdave -- you HAVE no idea how right you are... in case you missed this I posted it earlier under First Thoughts. I don't know how you feel about foreign money influencing American elections... but it scares the crap out of me...

From Think Progress:

Yesterday, ThinkProgress reported an exclusive story on how the U.S. Chamber of Commerce — the big business lobbying juggernaut running an unprecedented $75 million dollar attack campaign against Democrats in midterms this year — is actively fundraising from foreign corporations and foreign nationals, and depositing the money in the same 501(c)(6) account used to run its campaign advertisements. Dues from foreign corporations have flowed into the Chamber’s coffers, including from government-run companies like the State Bank of India and the Bahrain Petroleum Company. ThinkProgress has reported at least $300,000 in foreign money to the Chamber from Bahrain and India alone.

Following ThinkProgress’ report, Sen. Al Franken (D-MN) wrote to the FEC — a federal agency that has ironically “been rendered toothless by its Republican members” — asking it to launch an investigation and to insist that foreign companies prove whether their funds had been used in campaign activities. Today, outside of a fundraiser for Nevada’s GOP U.S. Senate candidate Sharron Angle at the National Republican Campaign Committee, ThinkProgress asked Rep. Roy Blunt (R-MO), a candidate for U.S. Senate in Missouri, if he would comment on the story. After hearing the question, Blunt quickly turned and began walking away briskly towards the Union Station building. He initially simply ignored the question, then took out his phone and pressed it against his face. Eventually, Blunt replied, “I have no idea what you’re talking about” and told ThinkProgress to “talk to the Chamber”:

For the entire story:

http://thinkprogress.org/2010/10/06/blunt-chamber-foreign/

You mean like the undocumented dollars from foreign donors to Barack Obama? Or did you conveniently forget that?

Perhaps you should check on the Union spending this cycle. They spent $10,000,000 in Arkansas to try and oust an incumbent Democrat senator. I guess with your thoughts that doesn't matter since they support the dems. I would like to know where you came up with the idea the republicans are spending Billions? Do you even know how much a billion dollars are? Maybe it doesn't mean much to you since you like Obama wasting it on all his pet projects.

You mean like the undocumented dollars from foreign donors to Barack Obama? Or did you conveniently forget that?

I'm going to need some credible back up from you that supports your claim... otherwise you come across as nothing more than another low information voter!

I'll let you in on a little secret around here - we don't take your mother's second cousins daughter in law husbands WORD as true & factual!

And Mr. Mike - save your Union crap will ya? Last time I checked the unions are AMERICAN NOT foreign...

And the same with you - either supply credible back up or go crawl back under the bridge!

How much of that red dye are you using?

The unions spending big money to oust an incumbent Dem that didnt support HCR shows that the unions are not in lockstep with the White House. The union it appears, like Blue Dogs can think independantly rather than with the "collective" yes?

Just google Obama campaign funds. There is plenty there. But, you are a die-hard liberal, so it won't matter to you anyway.

Let's all agree that money effects both parties, not just repubs. Come on, is there anyone anywhere who thinks Dems are pure as driven snow! LOL. Ask yourself this question: What group contributes the most to
Dems? Trial lawyers, of course. And where was tort reform in NobamaCare? That one issue could save 10% of our health care cost, yet Dems are so indebited to trial lawyers they didn't even consider it.

Both parties are beholden to special interests. Problem is, Dems want gov involved in every aspect of your life. Me, I want gov to build roads, secure our borders, provide national defense and stay the hell out of the way.

Just google Obama campaign funds. There is plenty there

Uh huh... just what I thought! If there's so much there why the hesitation to share? Hmmmm?

Oh WAIT... I know it's the credible part you're having difficulties with! lmao!

Thanks for playing and we have some lovely parting gifts for you! ;0)

Feisty, How about some actual proof that the CofC is getting money from foreign companies. I don't consider Senator Franken and think progress (a very liberal organization) as reliable sources. All the left can do is make accusations without any proof.

SO let me get this straight!!!

BEcause FEISTY RED HEAD is ignorant, she continuously request WE do all her research for her! FUNNY, huh? FRH, you just need to pay attention, and i'm not talking getting your info from matthews/madcow/ and olber-loser!

OF COURSE, obama took MASSIVE foriegn contributions, weren't you paying attention?? in FACT, there was so many that the system designed to track them was over-whelmed.

Yes. That Porkulus bill really got the economy moving again!

I think you are misreading the average tea party supporter. I think you all think they are ultra-conservative. I disagree. I think many tea party ideas are attracting centists - Regan Dems and Center rights. They want LESS GOVENMENT. How hard is that to understand. For God's sake, the friggin gov can tell you what trees you can cut on your own property, what you can eat in a NYC resturaunt, what health insurance you have to have.

Here's the danger for Repubs who think tea party folk are right. Most are right on fiscal and constitutional issues, but the repubs will think they are social conservatives. They do this at their own peril. Repubs - stay the heck out of our bedrooms. Don't you understand by now that you can't legislate morality.

And Dems - stay the hell out of the rest of my house. I don't need you to tell me what I can eat, what I can drive or what my kids need to learn in school.

And Dems - stay the hell out of the rest of my house. I don't need you to tell me what I can eat, what I can drive or what my kids need to learn in school.

It's a DEAL... if you tea baggers stay out of my body & bedroom!

I would agree to that. But the present administration won't.

mark r,

considering that there is NOT a "tea-party" on CAPITOL HILL, question...

HOW does the "TEA-PARTY" vote NO on EVERYTHING???

NAH, I'M not trying to make you LOOK DUMB, you just don't make any sense!

BTW, NONE of those bills have or would of got the economy going!

Yep, Tea Party's gonna win. I'm buying stock in a company that manufactures brown cloth (and probably sews the shirts in some third world sweatshop).

As we've learned, Union workers don't take coffee breaks anymore, they take dope and booze breaks.

Whats the matter, failed your drug test and couldn't get that union job at the auto plant?

Check the listings for top rated autos. The U.S captures the #1 spot in most categories.

And you can keep spreading the lie about Obama bailing out the unions. I love showing the truth to those who are truly trying to inform themselves.

For your information, President Obama (boy i love saying that) rides around in a Caddy. Thats a nickname for an American made auto for you slow minded neanderthals.

You are generalizing all Union workers with your misgivings about ONE union, the UAW. If you do some googling, you find many reports that Union workers are more productive than non-union workers due to TRAINING.

According to the study, the average Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) apprenticeship program:

• registers relatively few apprentices
• produces more cancellations than graduations,
• enrolls a small proportion of female and minority apprentices
• provides training in a narrower range of crafts.

Union apprenticeship programs, on the other hand, enroll and graduate the majority of construction apprentices, including the majority of female and minority apprentices.

The study states: "The hundreds of millions of dollars the union sector spends annually on apprenticeship and training programs produces the skilled workers vital to the construction industry's future." Department of Labor records from 36 states show that union programs have enrolled 72 percent of construction apprentices since 1989, and have enrolled almost three times as many minorities and over four times as many women as non-union programs.

http://accounting.smartpros.com/x43674.xml

Good point. It's always dangerous to generalize. Many Union workers are extremely productive in this country and others. If you look at Germany, argueably one of the most productive western democracies, most industrial workers are unionized. Successful unions work to make their members more productive and competitive. But, their clearly are also some poor examples of collective bargaining. So, the issue isn't unions as much as how they're organized and the level of leadership corruption.

Just wondering, didn't Bush give AIG billions of dollars before giving them billions more in bailout money(TARP funds)?

Thats funny Robert because I don't know what a true Republican looks like anymore... Today, they are Tea Baggers...

I'm going straight Democratic ticket with NO exceptions...

See how that can work? lol

A true Democrat is what I voted for in Tennessee before Al Gore joined the far left fringe. Gore made alot of sense in 1988. I don't what happened to him. I guess the lure of millions from CO2 drove him mad.

If you don't look past your nose Feisty, you will meet a lot of walls.

Feisty, Are those roots blond?

I'm not sure what people consider socialist to mean. But, there is no way that the core democratic party would be considered socialist by any agreed upon definition of the that word. I'm not even applying judgement on whether socialism is bad or good here. I'm just saying that the use of that word in this context is simply inaccurate and cliched. So, go back to the RNC talking points machine and have them come up with better words if you aren;t willing to research this yourselves.

Thought all were elected to serve our best interests.Voting for those that are best for the job( Those with no idea as to how to right the ship need not apply).Simply saying no without an alternative does not cut it.

Got any proof of that $100 million from Oprah. Name the source.

Of course he doesn't. Contributions directly to candidates are strickly limited, hence no one can donate $100 million to any campaign.

He just knows the Fox mantra: "Tell a lie enough times and someone will believe it."

He just knows the Fox mantra: "Tell a lie enough times and someone will believe it."

Sort of like "health care reform will lower the cost of health care for all."

Or perhaps like words from the great social program master from the last era, Mr. LBJ himself. "Medicare will only cost $9B." Only missed that one by 10x.

Liberal hypocrisy at it's finest hour.

For a cynical slant on how the great society actually turned out, have a look at thess horrible and somber statistics.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1483206/posts

And perhaps the best observation of the inintended consequences:

The Scottish Jurist and Historian Sir Alex Fraser Tyler published a collection of lectures in 1801. He advanced a theory of democracy based on historical observation:

"A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can exist only until voters discover that they can vote themselves largesses from the public treasury. From that time on, the majority always votes for the candidate promising the most benefits from the public treasury...

Too bad LBJ didn't read Tyler.

Too bad our current legislators of both parties cannot be contianed to prevent this precise set of consequences. Is it not onvious to all the posters on this forum that Sir Alex Fraser Tyler had it right and we are living through his precise definition of democracy over ther past 50 years.

You don't need polls. Just talk to people on the streets and at work. They are mad as hell and not going to take it anymore. The sentiment is that Bush drove the bus into the ditch, but Obama has blockaded any tow truck and ambulance from getting to the ditch.

The confused voter scenario occured two years ago when Obama got elected. People learned from that. It won't happen again. Every time the bleeding hearts take control, everyone does just that, bleed. No more.

People in the streets... it's hard to tell that they're mad as hell. Unless you mean mad as in crazy. I guess that would be an easy mistake to make, considering how hysterically they're laughing at the latest Tea Party nonsense.

Were you whining about the deficit from Jan 2001 until Jan 20 2009? I did not hear any republicans complaining when the GOP PASSED every UNFUNDED piece of legislation THEY WROTE.

Republicans govern poorly because they do not believe in government. But they sure like their taxpayer paid checks.

Aren't you forgetting something? Democrats controlled the House and Senate in 2007 and 2008, they controlled the checkbook.

Jody,

There was plenty of complaining about the Republicans out of control spending. So much so that when all of the disgust and anger came to a climax, the Republicans were voted out and the Pelosi/Reid congress was voted in.

The problem is that most Americans must rely on employers for its health care; we operate under a system of FOR PROFIT private insurance companies traded on the stock market. My insurance premiums went up every year the last 10 and nearly every year before that--long before HCR was passed.

Healthcare premiums have been going up like that for years, and none of it is caused by government. Eventually, major corporations that have to keep paying these ever higher costs for private health care will become the greatest ally in the fight to truly reform the system and provide single payer.

Lisa,

Have you not heard for years how health insurance premiums has been outpacing any rational increase and how company after company is dropping coverage. Could it be that American businesses are responsible for their own failure. Isn't health care a business. Just like the oil companies, their mantra is squeeze the people for all they've got. Huge profits and crying poor. No monopolies for health insurance!!!! What is the free market based reason for these greedy monopolies.

dictionary.com has several definitions of noun tea. #8) an afternoon reception at which tea is served; #9) Slang--marijuana. Who knew.

I'm so glad we have this new format that puts the blogger's name in front of the post. That way I can skip anything written by "Your Uncle Sammy".

Maybe Sammy is talking about Texas Tea.

A special thanks to Judy for letting us know that Tea has an alternate meaning.It takes a true liberal to know their street drugs by alternate names. Now you may go and enjoy another cup or bowl of tea.

Dictionary.com is a true liberal? Fascinating.

I recall JFK proudly cut taxes. Democrats today raise taxes. JFK challenged us to go to the moon. Obama is cutting NASA to the bones. JFK asked us to not ask what our country can do for us, but what we can do for our country. Democrats today ask what will the government do for me? JFK blockaded Cuba when the Soviets wanted to put missles on the island. Obama wants to talk nice with Iran while they are building nukes and promising to destroy Israel and the United States.

Both parties are moving to the far edges. That's what makes this election so interesting. Do American want far right or far left? We will see.

Road Warrior. Democrats lowered taxes on the middle class in 2009; assume you missed that. What services can you live without in the new GOP version of government where taxes are cut and they continue spending--schools, fire, police, roads, snow removal.

I sure did missed the tax cut. The only thing I haven't missed is the premium increase on my health insurance after ObamaCare passed. Liberals always fall back on the argument of schools, firefighters, police and roads. If that is all the government spends on, we wouldn't need $1 trillion budgets. As to the GOP reducing taxes and continuing spending, that was the reason we fired them in 2006 and 2008. The new hires are not doing any better, so we will fire them too.

It's not "what services you can live without", it's what services they think they can scare you into thinking you can't live without. It's all BS and it's all they have to say to you liberals to get tax increases approved. Then they use our hard earned money for something else. If we vote out some of these dolts, maybe the rest will get the message. We're fed up.

Taxes, tax rates anyway, were higher under JFK then they are now. Get a grip people. There is a point of diminishing returns on tax cuts and revenue generation. Were Eisenhower's tax rates detrimental to economic growth?

The tax cut President Obama gave me worked out to be about $8 a week. I'm not sure that pitiful tax cut was very helpful to struggling families.

Police, fire and snow removal and education are paid for by state and local and property taxes. Our federal tax dollars do not pay for these services.

For a breakdown of where our federal taxes go, see:

http://www.cbpp.org/cms/index.cfm?fa=view&id=1258

hey road warrior, NAME the taxes raised outside of the cig tax!!!

Tom,

In Obama's health care bill, the maximum amount you can put in a medical reimbursement plan has been decreased to $2,500 per year. THAT will raise my taxes.

Those making capital gains, no matter how long they have held property, no get to pay an additional 3.70%, I believe, to help pay for Obamacare. THAT will raise my taxes.

Obamacare imposed a tax on tanning booths (I guess this was specifically designed to irk John Boehner). That will not raise my taxes since I do not use tanning beds........but it's ridiculous nonetheless.

Need more ????????

That tax is on any gain over 250,000 for a single or 500,000 for a couple - I don't know of anyone who has made "That" much money on their home. As to Muslim exemption, you would have to prove that to me, the law does not provide for such discrimination.

Please Madison don't encourage him. Hasn't he caused enough damage to this country?This country can't take more of this administrations indecicivness. Nobody knows what their taxes will be! Everyone thinks the worst of you and your administration so far.

You and your failed administration have freeked out the etire economy of this nation the TAX PAYERS are being threatend with you numerous taxes. They do not know how many jobs they will be able to afford with you and your maulti headed tax monster. People do not know if they can spend money because they do not know how much money they will have left after this administration robs them.

These people are the tax revenue of this country and you are crushing them out of contributing their revenues this country cannot survive this administration.

The people of this country wanted you to FIX HEALTH CARE not install the worlds failure. We like to save lives in this country not snuff them out when you cannot afford all of us. I personlly am insulted by the extremely poor judgement of this administration and feel as if clowns are running no I mean ruining this country the best country in the world and you have to fu*k it up.

I have to wonder are their any other taxable jobs you want to destroy please let us know in advance so we can prepair for the worst. YOU!

You cannot collect taxes from the jobs you destroy!

For the sake of this nation I truely hope those of you who defend this nightmare. If their is a god I pray you are wrong.

If you really think this will not effect you and i mean everyone in this nation except the ultra rich siliver spooners who are out of touch with reality. They arent running anything they dont have a clue. The middle class and the people with low incomes will be strongly effected when they have to buy anything in this country because the costs after you and your tax monsters will be seen at every store and on every area of our cost of living.

What happens the day china says no? Do you rob money from the unborn children because in your mind it is ok to spend their money. In your mind they will have no needs greater then yours?