Barry "Almighty" has said repeatedly that his top priority, that which he refers to as being the "north star" of his second-term, is to do "everything we can to grow the economy and create good, middle-class jobs." And, apparently, his primary means og doing that is to steal even more tax money from 'wealthy' Americans, on top of the higher tax rates that Congress went along with just a few months ago. When speaking at the White House earlier this week Barry pretty much lied through those pearly whites of his when he said that the Republicans have a choice: "Do you want to see a bunch of first responders lose their jobs because you want to protect some special interest tax loophole?"
Barry insisted that Democrats have proposed what he called a "balanced plan" to avoid the sequester, that is the across-the-board spending cuts that will take effect on March 1 unless Congress agrees on a different way to reduce the deficit. "I know that Republicans have proposed some ideas, too," Barry said. "I have to say, though -- so far, at least -- the ideas that Republicans have proposed ask nothing of the wealthiest Americans or the biggest corporations. So the burden is all on first responders, or seniors, or middle class families." Barry said Republicans have expressed a preference for huge, his word, budget cuts to take effect rather than close a single tax loophole for the wealthiest Americans.
And of course Barry went on, "Well, that's not balanced. That would be like Democrats saying we have to close our deficits without any spending cuts whatsoever -- it's all taxes. That's not the position Democrats have taken, it's certainly not the position I've taken." Ah, that’s not exactly true. He added, "So now Republicans in Congress face a simple choice: Are they willing to compromise to protect vital investments in education and health care and national security and all the jobs that depend on them, or would they rather put hundreds of thousands of jobs and our economy at risk just to protect a few special interest tax loopholes that benefit only the wealthiest Americans and biggest corporations? That's the choice." No, Barry, that NOT the choice.
And far from being done spewing what was nothing more than his standard propaganda, he said, "Do you want to see a bunch of first responders lose their jobs because you want to protect some special interest tax loophole?" Then he asked, "Are you willing to have teachers laid off, or kids not have access to head start, or deeper cuts in student loan programs, just because you want to protect special interest tax loopholes that the vast majority of Americans don't benefit from?" Then Barry made what was, I suppose was something he intended to be a threat, saying that he will not sign a plan that harms the middle class. This coming from the same who has spent nearly his entire president trying to drive the middle class right out of existence!
However, the Republicans, needless to say, don't quite see things the same way. They say Barry already got his tax increases. Rep. Paul Ryan, appearing on ABC's "This Week," made the point that it was Barry who came up with the sequester idea in the first place, and it is the House Republicans who have twice passed legislation replacing it with what Ryan called "smarter cuts." "The Senate hasn't passed a bill to replace the sequester," Ryan told ABC. "The President gave a speech showing that he'd like to replace it, but he hasn't put any details out there. So that is why I conclude, I believe it's going to take place. But take a step back. We are here because the President back in the last session of Congress refused to cut spending in anyplace, and therefore we wound up with the sequester."
We've continue to be told that unless Congress acts soon, automatic spending cuts totaling $85 billion will happen between March 1 and the end of the fiscal year in September. The actual amount of the cuts is actually ONLY $44 billion, but no matter the amount, over half of the cuts will come in defense and the rest in non-defense discretionary spending. Barry and his fellow Democrats say any alternative to the sequester MUST include MORE tax revenue, but Ryan and his fellow Republicans say Barry needant come knocking asking for higher taxes, because he already got his tax increases last year, when Congress passed a bill raising tax rates on families making $450,000 or more (and individuals making $400,000-plus).
Rep. Ryan said, and correctly so, that closing tax loopholes, as Democrats now want to do, would only fuel more spending. He said Republicans advocate closing loopholes as part of overall tax reform, not to create more 'stimulus' spending. The Budget Control Act of 2011, signed into law by Barry on August 2, 2011, required across-the-board spending cuts of $1.2 trillion over the next ten years if Congress could not agree on alternative ways to limit spending and reduce the nation's debt. The sequester was scheduled to happen back on Jan. 1, but the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 -- which raised tax rates for wealthy individuals -- moved the date to March 1, 2013, giving Congress more time to come up with a plan. No spending cuts were even discussed at that time.
So now Barry, and I've heard the same bullsh!t coming from Steny Hoyer, is now out there telling anyone too stupid to know better that the whole notion of the sequestration was all a Republican idea. And that is nothing more than a flat out lie. One more, by the way, on a very long list of many that this president has now told. He's proven time and again that he'll lie about absolutely anything! Having come up with the idea of sequestration in the first place, it is not something that he should now be allowed to away run from or to try to blame on others. This little jewel of an idea was all his, and now he's in full propaganda mode and trying to do all he can to make it appear otherwise. Enough of the American people are going to have to come to their sense here, we simply cannot go on spending like this.
