anyone watching tonight?

[fansince62]

I think that american presidents should have to do what brit politicians have to do and face eachother unscripted, I think you would see fewer actually stupid people in your government because they get outed pretty fast. the problem is do you really want SMARTER crooks?

ha!!!!!!!!!!

 

[fansince62]

corporate america has come roaring back?

LIE!!

if he doesnt talk about gas prices im gonig to be pissed..

or food prices.

 

[Boone]

I was a political science major and used to be a major political junkie. No more though. I don't have much interest in what Obama has to say. I really have no idea what he stands for, don't view him as a guy who's going to have much of a Presidential legacy, and just can't engage with him. I don't have any animosity towards him, but in a time of fairly epic economic turmoil that presents huge opportunity for a President who could lead and who really understood innovation and bold policy making, he just leaves me cold.

I really think he may be a one term President as I believe his own party has been thoroughly unimpressed with him. That this is even a possibility boggles the mind given the popularity he rode into the White House with.

I generally agree with Henry, I have historically watched every major Presidential address, but the bipartisan spin cycle and unimaginative leadership of the past several Presidents has really beaten the enthusiasm out of me.

 

[Henry]

and my 3rd and key point?.....

why listen if one knows up front that it is smoke and mirrors?

What? You think I live to disagree with you?

I understand the skepticism. I'm still going to watch.
Posted via BGO Mobile Device

 

[fansince62]

What? You think I live to disagree with you?

I understand the skepticism. I'm still going to watch.
Posted via BGO Mobile Device

well then...enjoy yourself!

 

[Henry]

Not one of his better speeches. I thought the SOTU and Ryan's response were rather bland.

However, Bachmann's crazy little rant, complete with visual aides, was pure gold.

 

[Henry]

All the talk of working together but then he counteracts it with saying we are going to do stuff that most don't want confuses me.

Not sure exactly what you mean there.

He did say he wanted a five year domestic spending freeze. I thought that was a departure from his previous policy and an obvious attempt to reach across the aisle. He did say he was willing to make changes to his healthcare bill even if he doesn't want to totally scrap it, which again would represent a compromise.

He was very light on specifics. I don't remember anything that was blatant 'stuff that most don't want' in that speech.

 

[Elephant]

Not sure exactly what you mean there.

He did say he wanted a five year domestic spending freeze. I thought that was a departure from his previous policy and an obvious attempt to reach across the aisle. He did say he was willing to make changes to his healthcare bill even if he doesn't want to totally scrap it, which again would represent a compromise.

He was very light on specifics. I don't remember anything that was blatant 'stuff that most don't want' in that speech.

Henry, in last year's speech he called for a 3 year domestic spending freeze.

http://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/washington-whispers/2011/01/25/obamas-freeze-rehashes-failed-2010-try.html

 

[fansince62]

Henry, in last year's speech he called for a 3 year domestic spending freeze.

http://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/washington-whispers/2011/01/25/obamas-freeze-rehashes-failed-2010-try.html

funny....after the theatre event completed I jumped back and forth between MSNBC and Fox to capture the essentials. aside: man he spoke forever...as noted...I can't watch the guy...raises my blood pressure too much since I know he has no intention on following through with 90%+ of what he says. So I dial in about 60 mins into it...and then every 5 mins later trying to hit the sweet spot (the end that is). this guy talks...and talks.....and talks......

Fox: He offered nothing to cut the deficit....in fact.....this was a thinly veiled program for more spending

MSNBC: The Republicans have no plan for cutting spending...just rhetoric. They are going to attack entitlements and will pay a heavy price politically.

Translation:

Fox: We have a serious deficit problem.

MSNBC: We have no deficit problem. We have social justice problems.

My take is that the politcal class is going to fail all of us. This is going to require Presidential leadership willing to make the hard, unpopular decisions. Obama has neither the ideas nor the ideology to assume that role.

Total failure of the political system.

 

[Henry]

Henry, in last year's speech he called for a 3 year domestic spending freeze.

http://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/washington-whispers/2011/01/25/obamas-freeze-rehashes-failed-2010-try.html

That would have been a great bit of information for Ryan to point out.

 

[fansince62]

That would have been a great bit of information for Ryan to point out.

and for the Democrat controlled Congress the last two years to act on...... see the credibility problem?

and that's what didn't surface last night. at the end of the day....my suspicion....the Dems...or at least Obama...are still wedded to the Keynsian logic that deficits of whatever size are not a problem because the government spending...errrr...investment....multiplier is greater than 1. They don't believe...at least in theory....that the current deficit is a problem or a long-term threat.

 

[Alaskan]

Well he just had to a shot at the health insurance companies. I understand that he watched his mother arguing with the insurance company while she was dying from cancer and so maybe he was traumatized by it, but can’t he just stop beating that particular dead horse?

And of course we have a 2,000 page heath care bill and all he can seem to talk about is the fact that you can keep your basement boy on your health care plan until they’re 26. Of course he fails to mention that it is the rest of us that end up paying for the basement boy’s health insurance.

Maybe that little tidbit wasn’t on the teleprompter

 

[Sarge]

Well he just had to a shot at the health insurance companies. I understand that he watched his mother arguing with the insurance company while she was dying from cancer and so maybe he was traumatized by it, but can’t he just stop beating that particular dead horse?

And of course we have a 2,000 page heath care bill and all he can seem to talk about is the fact that you can keep your basement boy on your health care plan until they’re 26. Of course he fails to mention that it is the rest of us that end up paying for the basement boy’s health insurance.

Maybe that little tidbit wasn’t on the teleprompter

He only does it to play tothe public. Hell, insurance companies wrote the health care bill

 

[Alaskan]

Nah, they were certainly were at the table because her really wanted to get rid of them entirely. He preferred health care plan (and he has said this) is England’s. Government doctors, government hospitals.

 

[Alaskan]

BTW, has anyone else noticed that liberals are now progressives, global warming is now climate change and stimulus spending is now investment? Anyone else see a pattern here?

 

[Sarge]

BTW, has anyone else noticed that liberals are now progressives, global warming is now climate change and stimulus spending is now investment? Anyone else see a pattern here?

That's been going on for a couple of years now. "Liberal" has become a dirty word, so they went "progressive". Too bad they didn't look up the history of progressives in this country but hey, it' sounds cool

THere have been serious challenges to the idea that we're all gonna die by fire as the Earth burns. Mainly the itsy bitsy little fact that the Earth hasn't warmed in 10 years now. So they changed to "climate change". That way, no matter what happens, they can say man is killing the Earth and and push theri agenda

Bill Klinton was calling taxes "investments " back in the 90's. Nothing new there

 

[fansince62]

That's been going on for a couple of years now. "Liberal" has become a dirty word, so they went "progressive". Too bad they didn't look up the history of progressives in this country but hey, it' sounds cool

THere have been serious challenges to the idea that we're all gonna die by fire as the Earth burns. Mainly the itsy bitsy little fact that the Earth hasn't warmed in 10 years now. So they changed to "climate change". That way, no matter what happens, they can say man is killing the Earth and and push theri agenda

Bill Klinton was calling taxes "investments " back in the 90's. Nothing new there

sadly....a key part of the problem is...well.....us. we all want bugetary sanity to be restored. but no one is willing to sacrifice their benes. it'll take a great leader to move the population in that direction. and I don't see that individual right now in either party.

 

[Elephant]

sadly....a key part of the problem is...well.....us. we all want bugetary sanity to be restored. but no one is willing to sacrifice their benes. it'll take a great leader to move the population in that direction. and I don't see that individual right now in either party.

Therein lies the problem, no one wants the cuts to affect them. The cuts need to be across the board and that includes military and entitlements. No one can be immune from belt tightening right now.

 

[Elephant]

military cuts while in the middle of 2 wars? these men and women are already out there with sub par equipment..if we do make cuts there they should be at the bottom of the list.

Mike, I know it's a tough proposition, but there has to be something in the defense budget that can be cut that won't affect our troops in the field. I don't know...maybe one of those billion dollar contracts with Northrop Grumman on a flying vessel that will never actually materialize into something?

 

[Sarge]

sadly....a key part of the problem is...well.....us. we all want bugetary sanity to be restored. but no one is willing to sacrifice their benes. it'll take a great leader to move the population in that direction. and I don't see that individual right now in either party.

We are already sacrificing. When I came in, we were promised free health care for ourselves and our families for the rest of our lives. Needless to say, I'm a pretty staunch defender of military bennies, not so much because I'm looking out for me, but because on top of what I just mentioned, military people have paid not only by working for the government at reduced pay for 20+ years, but they also paid for their bennies with the best years of their lives. On top of that, I pay for my healthcare now, I have not seen a raise in my retirement pay for two years now and my pay at work is frozen. All while the price of everything is going up

Therein lies the problem, no one wants the cuts to affect them. The cuts need to be across the board and that includes military and entitlements. No one can be immune from belt tightening right now.

There are plenty of acquisition areas that need to be examined. While the era of the $500 hammer is no longer with us, there is still an assload of waste, especally with the multi billion dollar contracts with the Beltway Bandits. I'm not hip on Gates proposal for troop reductions bacause while troops do cost a lot of money, we're running our guys ragged right now trying to do all the stuff we do while still suffering from the Klinton troop cuts of the 90's.

What I am for is cutting foreign aid and revamping the way government does business. We literally have at least 4 people where I work that do nothing but gab all day. But try firing them and it's EEO city because of their race and gender. THAT crap needs to be looked at. Where I work could easily do without about 30% of the workforce because they have that entitlement attitude