Boehner rejects Obama’s “Grand Plan” to exchange safety net cuts for cosmetic “revenue increases”
Posted: July 9, 2011 Filed under: Barack Obama, U.S. Economy, U.S. Politics, voodoo economics | Tags: Barack Obama, John Boehner, medicare, revenue increases, social safety net, Social Security, US debt ceiling 18 Comments
Nancy Pelosi meets with right wing Republicans
WASHINGTON — House Speaker John Boehner is rejecting President Obama’s offer to make historic cuts to the federal government and the social safety net, saying in a statement Saturday evening that he can not agree to the tax increases Democrats insisted on as part of the bargain….
Obama had proposed to Republicans a “grand bargain” that accomplished a host of individual things that are unpopular on their own, but that just might pass as a huge package jammed through Congress with default looming. Obama offered to put Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid cuts on the table in exchange for a tax hike of roughly $100 billion per year over 10 years. Meanwhile, government spending would be cut by roughly three times that amount. It’s no small irony that the party’s dogmatic opposition to tax increases is costing the GOP its best opportunity to roll back social programs it has long targeted.
Republicans are now banking on a smaller deficit reduction deal that would still make major cuts, somewhere in the range of $2 trillion.
“Despite good-faith efforts to find common ground, the White House will not pursue a bigger debt reduction agreement without tax hikes,” Boehner said in a statement. “I believe the best approach may be to focus on producing a smaller measure, based on the cuts identified in the Biden-led negotiations, that still meets our call for spending reforms and cuts greater than the amount of any debt limit increase.”
Politico reports that Boehner will still attend the President’s “summit meeting” at the White House tomorrow.
Is it possible that Boehner decided he didn’t want to risk tampering with Social Security and Medicare? After all, we know the Tea Party crowd doesn’t want to lose their safety net any more than the rest of us. Remember those signs at Tea Party rallies that read “Don’t mess with my Medicare?” One of the big issues for Republicans in 2010 was the claim that Obama’s health reform bill included Medicare cuts.
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Just a thought. On the other hand, maybe it’s all just a kabuki dance to fool the progs into supporting Obama’s Hooveresque policies.
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Mona (aka Wonk the Vote)
Sky Dancing 
You know, maybe I’m stupid, but I don’t understand any of this. Social Security has nothing to do with the deficit. Why isn’t that point being made over and over and over again. Social Security is IRRELEVANT to the deficit or raising the debt ceiling. It’s separate.
Here’s what I think. They opened the lock box for the Iraq war. They “borrowed” the money, our money. They put in some IOUs. That’s the link to the deficit. Because the money to pay off the IOUs has to come from someplace.
The more they shrink the budget or the debt, the less they have to pay back. And they have no intention of paying back one red cent. IMHO
Now, TanMan has run into a little difficulty with those constituents who are poor, or old, or sick, or have children. So, he’s going to have to come up with a better scheme to fool those folks. Cuz that money is not going to be paid back. He and our feckless leader will have to get cracking on messaging.
Exactly, Social Security and Medicare are insurance programs paid by the workers and their employers. What they are offering on the chopping block isn’t theirs, what they were/are planning is THEFT!
We need someone to primary Obama as I don’t have NO HOPE in someone that is willing to do harm to the nation, it’s seniors, widows, orphans and disabled! President Obama and Biden went along with the GOP plan and we are all on the chopping board, intil we get representation, a person with the working people’s interest at heart and not the Greedos who just keep taking…
I don’t get what they are doing. The Republicans could get away with ending SS, Medicare and Medicaid and be able to blame it on Obumbles. Why would they pass on a deal like that?? Something fishy is going on here….
Hillary 2012
Yeah, I’m with you Rock, something just ain’t right…
They want a better deal….. They aren’t taking the first offer from an ease mark like Barry ,
When I saw a head line in passing ” Obama still believes in his deal”
I thought 1: that means he’s backing away from it!
Because whenver Obama says he stiil believes in something or one,
they are on the way out
and 2…I know you won’t believe it, I don’t either, but my little heart thrilled to the
thought : Oh! the Dems told him no way!
BUT OF COURSE
it was the GOP , the people/ advisers he actully listens to, who said no way
Now Barry will sweeten the pot until there is nothing…but he should slow down, he’s ahead of schedule . If he wants a 2nd term…there has to be something left to steal if he wants to be reinstalled…
Perdictions: if there is something left to steal
Bachmann will be on the ticket somewhere and Obama will win round 2
If things are really bad, she’ll be on the topof the ticket , it’s the only way Obama can win
If Obama has given the over lords everything before the conventions…the the GOP will be running for real, he’ll be toast and Bachmann will be a triva answer
It’s all about the timing
When asked about the viability of the Soc Sec trust fund, young George said those were a bunch of worthless IOU’s.
We shall see when the details come out, but that is Oboma’s view also.
I wonder – does it always take a crisis in a Democracy to get something does.
So – how do we score the Obama – Boehner negotiations. Seems to me that Boehner has his objectives intact yer.
Wil Nancey Pelosi have the spine that Obama does not have.
According to a story on CNN, Nancy was essential told to sit down by OBiden and marginalized. I guess she is just supposed to clap and give praises and raise money. :-(. Sad, but she wanted Hillary out the way for her ‘God sent him to us’ President.
What is that song, ‘How does it feel’….
to be on your own, like a rolling stone?
— Bob Dylan
I think that Pelosi will fold on the ‘new and improved’ way to figure cost-of-living increases in Social Security. If it lowers the cost of SS, by definition, it cuts the benefits paid to participants.
Besides, the damage was done when Obama put Social Security on the table and agreed to the SS tax holiday as part of the earlier financial package.
This is OT but Obama finally did something right. Apparently, service members who committed suicide even in war theaters were not sent condolence letters by the president as were those who were killed in combat. Someone in Obama’s administration recognized how very disrespectful that was and changed the policy. It was long overdue but, at least, the change was made.
great. 🙂
I fear that this is leading to a setup in which Democratic legislators will have their arms twisted to vote to cut Social Security etc. or be held responsible for failure to raise the debt ceiling (“C’mon, guys, the President needs you”—like the so-called health care bill). Boehner will release the minimum number of Republicans to push it through.
—gmanedit
Yes, I getting that feeling too.
So if they plan to cut some $2 trillion over 10 years, how long it is going to take to see a balanced budget again? I think this is just supporting the idea of raising the debt ceiling.
The debt ceiling has to be raised unless we want to send our economy and world’s into utter chaos. The budget won’t be balanced no matter how much these nuts cut. With unemployment as high as it is and consumer spending depressed, we will be in a deep depression if they really make all these cuts.
A balanced budget isn’t some kind of holy grail. The federal budget should be in surplus–with restrained spending–during boom times. It should be in deficit during bad times. A balanced budget is appropriate for economies at full employment.
I would have respect for the GOP, if they investigated the lost 2.3 Trillion dollars and the lost Billions in Iraq…but they and Obama are only interested in bleeding the working people dry.
The Republicans don’t have any back bone to start investigating where the money went and Obama wants to help hide the THEFT…where did the money go?
2.3 TRillion $$ of the TAXPAYER’s MONEY IS MISSING (2001)
The Grand Bargain looks more and more like a Royal Scam. The apparent answer to Obama’s question “If not now, when?” is not yet.