It doesn’t seem to be a law, more like a rule or procedure that will govern how this item will be taken up.
1 Like
As long as the Republicans keep feeding her red meat issues like social security is doomed, broke and must be privatized then she’ll have ample opportunity to get her message out, and hopefully it will resonate with Americans. She seems to have a gift or a talent to quickly breakdown and clarify issues in a three minute speech. I’m more impressed every day.
1 Like
Yes, she understands the media’s preference for short and snappy vs. long-winded and technical.
She is media-savvy and has the benefit of coming off as genuinely concerned…
It’s not a law. Its a budgeting rule change.
Good. Bring on more of this crap. America voted for so America deserves it. I hope it hurts and I hope it hurts very bad.
Yes, where are our other ‘liberal’ ‘icons’ on this??? Schumer, Leahy, Boxer, et al?? Why is she all alone?
4 Likes
If THIS is what we need to count on, man, we are DOOMED.
Their own constituents will scream but at the wrong people (read: Dems) for the wrong thing.
Dems can’t have unified hollering because they’re afraid of confronting the above constituents, start quoting statistics, afraid of the media mischaracterizing what they’ll say as being ineffective, etc.
The media is guaranteed to mischaracterize Dems’ message so it comes off as washed out and ineffective and Dems will try to “triangulate” their ideas which feeds into the narrative of “both sides do it.”
2 Likes
Experts warned TPM that the move could spark a rare crisis which conservatives would likely try and use as a bargaining chip.
The bargaining chip gambit only works if there’s a party on the other side willing to play. As far as the Dems are concerned, let the Repubs reduce or remove SSDI benefits for “millions” of Americans, many of them in Red states. Let them. Who they gonna blame?
2 Likes
Like x 1000 on this. I’ll give Reid a pass due to his injury, but what about Pelosi? Looks like we need a new generation of better liberal icons. Lookin’ at you, Franken and Van Hollen. I agree with others that ALL dems need to be on the same page hollering about this to anyone who will listen.
2 Likes
That’s the fact of the matter that pisses me off the most. Here the world is on the brink of an unprecedented change and these idiots are dicking around with the future of the human race. Not to mention playing around with the lives of those living right now on planet earth today.
Natch, it doesn’t mean dick to them because they know that they were chosen to rule, they’ll have it all cozy and tied up in a pretty bow if they can just snatch the presidency, and not to mention they don’t care how much they fuck up the country or the planet because they’re expectin the rapture any day now and as the chosen its their Manifest Destiny to use the planet as they see fit while they’re waitin on the Lord.
I doubt most of these so-called conservatives can articulate this collective delusion because it’s based upon an unconscious and deeply embedded Calvinistic worldview that on the one hand create the conditions for the rise of modern civilization through virtue, diligence, husbandry, and, yet now all that’s left of that former ethic is the idea that we are the chosen, so what we say rules and what we say is we want it all. So in the service of that deeply held desire, they are out to rape the commons because it’s their manifest destiny to have all the money and power.
How do you reason with such dishonest non-reality based unimaginative drags on human progress when they´re sure that it’s all been guaranteed to them by divine right? The only thing that might straighten up their rapaciousness is a good slap down by Mother Nature, a super cell of Category 5 tornadoes wreaking more havoc over the plains states, only this time in the latter half of this January.
I know it’s too much to hope for, and besides, it’s not good karma to wish disaster on anyone, but they are the ones who go by the biblical rule of “spare the rod and spoil the child.” Well the gopers in the last congress showed themselves to be the biggest bunch of spoiled brats and nut cases gathered together under any capitol’s dome since the beginning of the fall of the Roman Empire. So whatever disaster befalls them, as it surely will, is going to be of their own making.
You can pretty much count on it. There is no honor among thieves nor knavish congressmen, and they are already starting off deeply divided. A house divided against itself cannot stand. My advice is that if you see the house is fixin to fall down get the fuck out of the way if you can. It hasn’t even started to get ugly yet.
4 Likes
Probably the Democrats given our worthless media and the Dems inability to present a strong unified message.
1 Like
“If THIS is what we need to count on, man, we are DOOMED.”
I’m not sure about that scenario. Yes, when Congress was divided, with a Repub-majority House and a Dem.-majority Senate – but without a super-majority to prevent endless Repub obstruction – the Republicans were able to squeak by on the “both sides do it” or the “Harry Reid is the REAL obstructionist, he’s blocking all our job-creating bills.”
Now, however, Boehner can pass his bills, and McConnell can get a lot more of them through. If he does, Obama can tell the public why he is vetoing them, in clear and forceful language. And as President, he can cut through the clutter and media noise.
I do share your concern about unorganized Democrats, but I think the next two years will be interesting. Besides opening up relations with Cuba, and executive orders on carbon emissions, the agreement with China on emissions, and immigration, Obama is expected in the near future to release EOs on methane emissions, net neutrality, and raising the salary cap on overtime pay – which will force the Republicans to take a stand – most likely unpopular – on these issues.
The coming year might also see a nuclear agreement with Iran, which might also be a game-changer in foreign relatons and take any talk of a pre-emptive strike off the table.
While the media is for the most part not recognizing this, Obama is setting the table for a Democratic insurgency in 2016.
1 Like
Because, unfortunately, we can’t count on most of her colleagues saying a thing.
Right. And there’s the problem, again. Why is she (and Sanders, who’s ignored by the MSM more than she is) the only one out there speaking up?
Hobbitdave–Good rant. Right on target.
1 Like
I saw POTUS on the stump for the midterms. As usual, he was clear and forceful. (Maybe not as down to earth as Chuckles Todd would like.) Didn’t do a damn bit of good. The clutter of media noise was thick with ebola, voter disenchantment and EO’s that were supposedly illegal while ordered by a Black Dem President.
I fully expect POTUS to veto most every damn GOP rage filled bill that comes across his desk and he and the Dems, in turn, will become the Party of NO. See how that can work?
2 Likes
Maybe, we shall see.
However, balancing that, I also think the fact that the Republicans now control both branches of Congress changes that dynamic; hopefully the media will recognize that.
I agree that Dem midterm turnout is a huge problem.
Meanwhile Hillary (The Inevitable) Clinton is waiting for polling to come in.
Give Pelosi a chance on this. She led the Dems’ successful opposition to Bush’s Social Security privatization push in 2007.
2 Likes
But do you bargain or do you let them kill the hostages? Because many Republicans would be thrilled to damage Social Security any way they can, even if doing so carries a political cost.
Disability benefits (about $140 billion anually, 1 out of 6 Social Security dollars spent) is completely and totally funded by payroll taxes collected from payroll earnings under $110K anually per taxpayer. I like that Warren is defending the benefits, but Republicans only care about the spending not the benefits.
The ballsy response would be talking about the growth killing, income inequality creating, regressive tax collection as well. If you need money to survive but can’t work we should all help, progressively, based on our ability to pay. Including the benefit as part of our national pension system makes sense, but the way we collect money for that system skews the tax burden to citizens with the least assets, in the bottom 80% of income and are least likely to personally influence the tax code in their own favor.
The Republican agenda which is to cut spending and laws (other than ones targetting rec. drugs, abortion, gayness, non-wealthiness and non-whiteness) and reduce taxes is a stand alone policy. Sanders and Warren are the closest to bringing that to the fore, but it says alot that we are stuck arguing for keeping a social program that is essentially being paid for out of the daily productivity of the workforce before the worker even touches the money, with any savings from a cut going to another social program, surplus funded for 80 years, again out of the daily productivity of workers.