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Getbig Main Boards => Politics and Political Issues Board => Topic started by: Soul Crusher on January 10, 2012, 11:40:04 AM
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http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/203359-obama-administration-to-ask-congress-for-debt-ceiling-increase-in-matter-of-days
This is really unreal.
rot in hell and drop dead of a heart attack every pofs obama voter. you gave us this you assholes!
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Size of U.S. debt is now the same as its entire economy: $15.23 TRILLION
By Nick Enoch
America's national debt has reached a worrying milestone - it is now as big as the whole of its economy.
The amount owed by the federal government to its creditors, combined with IOUs to government retirement and other schemes, now stands at $15.23 trillion.
The government estimated the value of goods and services produced by the economy in a year at $15.17trillion as of September.
Private projections showed that the economy grew to roughly $15.3 trillion by December, which the debt is likely to surpass this month
Private projections showed that the economy grew to roughly $15.3 trillion by December, which the debt is likely to surpass this month, USA Today reported today.
Steve Bell of the Bipartisan Policy Center, which has proposed cutting nearly $6trillion over ten years, said: 'The 100 per cent mark means that your entire debt is as big as everything you're producing in your country. Clearly, that can't continue.'
According to long-term forecasts, debt will carry on growing faster than the economy, which would need to expand by at least 6 per year to keep pace.
President Obama's 2012 budget shows the debt passing $26trillion ten years from now.
Growth of U.S. debt as a percentage of the economy
Last summer's deficit reduction deal could reduce that to $24trillion.
Many economists, such as the Brookings Institution's William Gale, say a better measure of the nation's debt is how much the government owes creditors, not counting $4.7trillion owed to future Social Security recipients and other government beneficiaries.
By that measure, the debt is roughly a third less: $10.5 trillion, or nearly 70 per cent the size of the economy.
By historic standards, that is still high.
The total national debt topped the size of the economy for three years during and after World War II.
It dropped to 32.5 per cent of the economy by 1981, and then started a steady climb under President Reagan, doubling over the next 12 years.
The combination of recession and stimulus spending caused it to soar again under Obama.
Among advanced economies, only Iceland, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Japan and Portugal have debts larger than their economies.
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Greece, Ireland, Portugal and Italy are at the root of the European debt crisis.
The first three needed bailouts from European central banks; Italy's books are monitored by the International Monetary Fund.
The White House and Congress agreed in August to cut about $1trillion from federal agencies over ten years.
An additional $1.2trillion in automatic spending cuts are on the horizon, starting next year if lawmakers can't agree on an alternative.
Mark Zandi of Moody's Analytics said reaching the 100 per cent mark highlighted 'the grave need to address our long-term fiscal problems'.
Obama urges U.S. firms to keep jobs at home
President Barack Obama kicked off an effort to encourage U.S. businesses to keep jobs at home instead of outsourcing them overseas, as he rolled out a new election-year theme on Saturday aimed at courting middle-class voters.
In his weekly radio and video address, Obama previewed an event he will hold this week with business executives to highlight the advantages of investing in the U.S.
'We'll hear from business leaders who are bringing jobs back home and see how we can help other businesses follow their lead,' Obama said.
President Obama kicked off an effort to encourage U.S. businesses to keep jobs at home instead of outsourcing them overseas at the weekend
The White House forum on 'Insourcing American Jobs' will be held on Wednesday.
Executives from more than a dozen companies will attend, including padlock maker Master Lock, furniture company Lincolnton Furniture, software application developer GalaxE Solutions, and chemicals company DuPont.
The emphasis on keeping U.S. jobs at home is in line with a populist economic message championed by Obama that could play well with union workers, whose support the Democratic president will need to win re-election in November.
The White House sees an increasing trend of companies deciding to 'insource' jobs and invest in U.S.-based plants and factories, according to a White House official.
It wants to encourage more businesses to follow that trend, the official said.
The practice of U.S. companies moving jobs to foreign countries such as India and China, where labour is cheaper, is a source of concern to many U.S. workers.
The issue resonates strongly in Midwest industrial states such as Ohio and Michigan that have been hard hit, not only by the 2007-2009 economic crisis, but also by years of shrinkage in the manufacturing jobs sector.
Many of those states are battlegrounds that are vital to Obama's re-election hopes.
Republicans vying to challenge Obama in November, including front-runner Mitt Romney, have hammered him over his economic stewardship.
They contend that his regulatory policies, including new rules for Wall Street and the overhaul of the healthcare system, have discouraged investment.
They also say his fiscal stimulus measures have not succeeded in bringing down high unemployment.
But the White House was encouraged by the December jobs report, released last Friday, which showed a drop in the jobless rate to 8.5 per cent - its lowest level in nearly three years.
'We're heading in the right direction. And we're not going to let up,' Obama said.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2084353/Size-U-S-debt-entire-economy--15-23-TRILLION.html#ixzz1j5Q3tiRk
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You are an idiot. Not just a partisan hack but dumb.
Before you blame the debt on the President you should look in to the cost of two unfunded wars.
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You are an idiot. Not just a partisan hack but dumb.
Before you blame the debt on the President you should look in to the cost of two unfunded wars.
LOL!!!!!
Whose gimmick are you?
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LOL!!!!!
Whose gimmick are you?
One that will have a very short shelf life if he continues with the personal attacks. He needs to pay his dues. :)
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You are an idiot. Not just a partisan hack but dumb.
Before you blame the debt on the President you should look in to the cost of two unfunded wars.
When Obama came to office the debt was 10 trillion it is now 15. 5 Trillion in 3 years.
When Bush came to office the debt was 4 trillion. He left office with it 10 - 6 trillion over 8 years.
Are you that incompetent to not be able to do simple math?
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So he's allowed to call Obama voters idiots and say that we should all drop dead but I can't say the same thing back? Because I haven't "paid my dues" by spamming the politics board with stolen copywrited material?
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Whhaaaa. Now that a black man is in office I suddenly care about fiscal responsibility. Whaaah. And even though the debt would plummet if the Bush tax cuts were repealed I think that's socialism.
That sums it up, right?
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Whhaaaa. Now that a black man is in office I suddenly care about fiscal responsibility. Whaaah. And even though the debt would plummet if the Bush tax cuts were repealed I think that's socialism.
That sums it up, right?
LMFAO! ! !
So because GWB was a fiscal mess in his second term that makes it ok for ghettobama to be a mess as well?
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LMFAO! ! !
So because GWB was a fiscal mess in his second term that makes it ok for ghettobama to be a mess as well?
Ha. The "black man" dig was a shot in the dark but it looks like I nailed it. See you racists are so angry that an African American man is in YOUR White House that you are blinded to the fact that he's a center right president. Ha.
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Ha. The "black man" dig was a shot in the dark but it looks like I nailed it. See you racists are so angry that an African American man is in YOUR White House that you are blinded to the fact that he's a center right president. Ha.
LOL. Would you prefer I called him - TraitorBama? or Spendthriftbama?
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Traitorbama makes you sound dumber. I'd stick with the latter if you have to. I mean you could just call the man President Obama and stop with the childish name/insult thing but I guess that would be asking too much.
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Traitorbama makes you sound dumber. I'd stick with the latter if you have to. I mean you could just call the man President Obama and stop with the childish name/insult thing but I guess that would be asking too much.
How about we just refer to him as "Historical mistake"?
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Ha! We'll see in 5 years!
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So he's allowed to call Obama voters idiots and say that we should all drop dead but I can't say the same thing back? Because I haven't "paid my dues" by spamming the politics board with stolen copywrited material?
Was joking about paying dues. Sort of. :) Just try and stick to the issues rather than attacking people who post on the board. Check the rules thread.
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When Obama came to office the debt was 10 trillion it is now 15. 5 Trillion in 3 years.
When Bush came to office the debt was 4 trillion. He left office with it 10 - 6 trillion over 8 years.
Are you that incompetent to not be able to do simple math?
When Obama came to office, do you think that the cost of war would just stop??? Not only that, the housing and auto industry market was already beginning to collapse.
These are inherited debts that were still growing so you can't blame someone solely because he was on the losing end of the game of "musical chairs" you idiot.
All politicians...Dem or GOP are responsible for the debt.
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When Obama came to office, do you think that the cost of war would just stop??? Not only that, the housing and auto industry market was already beginning to collapse.
These are inherited debts that were still growing so you can't blame someone solely because he was on the losing end of the game of "musical chairs" you idiot.
All politicians...Dem or GOP are responsible for the debt.
Sure, both sides are responsible. But that's the point of this thread, isn't it? It's time to finally elect someone who is fiscally conservative: Ron Paul.
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Sure, both sides are responsible. But that's the point of this thread, isn't it? It's time to finally elect someone who is fiscally conservative: Ron Paul.
Ron Paul couldn't do shit. Fact is that Congress as a whole makes the laws and unless both sides work together, nothing will get done. The president does not have the power actually.
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Whhaaaa. Now that a black man is in office I suddenly care about fiscal responsibility. Whaaah. And even though the debt would plummet if the Bush tax cuts were repealed I think that's socialism.
That sums it up, right?
Piss off idiot. It always goes back to race with some of you jerks. Obama is shit and it has nothing to do with being half balck.
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No? Seems to hit a button for you. When someone refers to a black man as "Ghettobama" it obviously has something to do with race.
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Ron Paul couldn't do shit. Fact is that Congress as a whole makes the laws and unless both sides work together, nothing will get done. The president does not have the power actually.
Speaking of shit and not being able to do much......hi Vince.
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Sure, both sides are responsible. But that's the point of this thread, isn't it? It's time to finally elect someone who is fiscally conservative: Ron Paul.
NOOOOO!!!
the point of this thread is to blame bush for obamas spending, get with it!!!
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Ron Paul couldn't do shit. Fact is that Congress as a whole makes the laws and unless both sides work together, nothing will get done. The president does not have the power actually.
Ron Paul would have the power of the veto. In essence, if Congress wanted to pass a budget not to Ron Paul's liking, they'd have to get 2/3rds agreement. Now imagine that for a second: either way, there will be a compromise, but either it will be Ron Paul's compromise of less military spending along with less domestic spending or it will be a Congressional Democrat/Republican compromise of less military spending and less domestic spending. In other words, just having a President Ron Paul would be a push in the right direction. Of course he won't be able to implement his full plan, but nobody is arguing that. The point is having someone in there who is consistent and principled for fiscal conservativism and civil liberties will prevent 90% of the bullshit that goes through Congress on a regular basis.
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The US Debt Ceiling Theater Is Back: Think The Issue Is On Autopilot? Think Again
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 01/11/2012 -
http://www.zerohedge.com
As Zero Hedge reported first, the US is once again, in just 5 short months (see chart), back at the debt ceiling, with just $25 million in new debt issuance dry powder, or in other words, no space of more debt absent resorting to the same "technique" last seen in late July when the Treasury plundered from government retirement accounts in order to accommodate new debt, such as yesterday's issuance of 3 Year bonds, and today's 10 Year bonds. And as The Hill reported yesterday, Obama is expected to request that Congress allow the incremental and final $1.2 trillion debt expansion (of the $2.1 trillion total) within a few days. So it is all on autopilot right? Wrong. As Bank of America explains below, it is very likely that the US will not have a debt ceiling hike for at least a few weeks, meaning that while a debt hike will ultimately come, it will very soon be all the song in dance, potentially overtaking the GOP drama, coupled with the pillaging of government retirement accounts yet again and likely leading to more rating agency action as the US debt fiasco is once again brought front and center. And the last thing the market needs is to experience the August 2011 collapse which brought it to 2011 lows and sent it gyrating for 400 DJIA points daily, in essence breaking the market as noted previously. And the worst news is that even with $1.2 trillion in new debt capacity, the total amount is guaranteed to not last through 2013, and should tax withholdings dip as trends are already indicating on adverse year over year comps, the $1.2 trillion in new debt may be exhausted as soon as September, which at this point may be the only thing that derails an Obama reelection if indeed he is running against "Wall Street."
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Ron Paul would have the power of the veto. In essence, if Congress wanted to pass a budget not to Ron Paul's liking, they'd have to get 2/3rds agreement. Now imagine that for a second: either way, there will be a compromise, but either it will be Ron Paul's compromise of less military spending along with less domestic spending or it will be a Congressional Democrat/Republican compromise of less military spending and less domestic spending. In other words, just having a President Ron Paul would be a push in the right direction. Of course he won't be able to implement his full plan, but nobody is arguing that. The point is having someone in there who is consistent and principled for fiscal conservativism and civil liberties will prevent 90% of the bullshit that goes through Congress on a regular basis.
repubs who cry "Ron paul will destroy the military" often don't realize this.
he'd have to have 2/3 of congress wither with him, or he doesn't get his way on it.
But hey, repubs can say "Well, Mitt got his 20 delegates, he's almost to 1200, let's just call the race now!"
Let them enjoy the collapse, bankruptcy, etc. We can all sit in mud huts and argue about whose fault it was.
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How The U.S. National Debt Could Drain Your Savings
Money Morning ^ | 1-11-2011 | David Zeiler
How the U.S. National Debt Could Drain Your Savings
January 9, 2012
By David Zeiler, Associate Editor, Money Morning
Now that Congress has allowed the U.S. national debt to grow bigger than the American economy, it won't be long until the American public suffers the consequences by losing most of its savings to inflation.
Figures for last year show the national debt officially exceeded 100% of the nation's gross domestic product (GDP). According to government figures, the national debt stood at $15.23 trillion at the close of 2011, compared to a GDP of $15.18 trillion.
"The 100% mark means that your entire debt is as big as everything you're producing in your country," Steve Bell of the Bipartisan Policy Center, told USA Today. "Clearly, that can't continue."
Government overspending has grown the federal debt at an alarming rate. As recently as 2010, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) had projected this milestone would not be reached until 2020.
"Congress is doing everything it can to make sure the national debt grows," said Money Morning Capital Waves Strategist Shah Gilani. "Republicans want more tax breaks for the rich while they appease the middle class by considering extending the payroll tax cuts and unemployment benefits. The Democrats want to hire voters as government employees, a la Greece, to not only expand their base, but prove that big government can indeed be friendly. It's sickening."
According to projections in the latest budget submitted by U.S. President Barack Obama, the federal debt will soar to $26 trillion over the next 10 years. At that pace, the economy would need to grow at a 6% pace to stay even. The historical average for the annual GDP growth since 1948 is only 3.25%.
Unless Congress acts - and its recent track record of bickering while doing nothing to shrink annual budget deficits is not encouraging - this crushing debt will soon start inflicting serious pain on the American public.
Headed the Way of Italy and Spain
Although Congress could choose to tax its way out of debt, it would need to go far beyond the millionaires the Democrats want to tax. Fear of voter backlash will dissuade lawmakers from imposing the sort of taxes on the general public that could make a dent in the U.S. national debt.
Instead, Gilani sees the United States following the path of such troubled Eurozone countries as Italy and Spain.
"Greece, and more precisely Italy and Spain, are our ghosts of the future past," Gilani said. "The Fed will print more money. That's what they do. They work for the banks."
When countries print money to pay off debt, it typically leads to inflation. In such a scenario, the middle class loses big time as their savings lose value.
"The government's strategy appears to be some kind of "repression,' where you keep rates low and figure out a way of forcing domestic investors to take government bonds at very low interest rates," said Money Morning Global Investing Strategist Martin Hutchinson, noting that British bonds lost 90% of their value from 1945 to 1975.
"Repression's main effect is to solve government's problem at the expense of the middle class -- it's effectively a very nasty extra tax," Hutchinson said.
The Lessons of Weimar Germany
One extreme case of damaging inflation took place in the German Weimar Republic of 1920-1923. By 1921, prices were already 15-times what they had been in 1914 at the beginning of World War I.
What followed was a period of "hyperinflation" that in 1914 left the German mark worth only one-trillionth of its value.
"The Weimar hyperinflation wiped out the entire savings of the German middle class," Hutchinson said, noting that current U.S. policies of low interest rates, low taxes, deficit spending and an expansion of the money supply have mirrored those of the Weimar Republic.
"U.S. authorities probably won't pursue expansionary monetary policies with quite the dogged Germanic persistence that caused the mark to fall to one trillionth of its former value," Hutchinson said, "but the turnaround needed to stop a Weimar repetition will be very unpleasant, so there will undoubtedly be considerable denial and fudging of the figures as inflation begins to take off."
Although Congress can still prevent a national debt-induced disaster that would destroy much of the savings of the middle class, time is running out.
"Congress has until 2013 to start doing something, maybe through the first or second quarter of 2013 at most," said Gilani. "After that, if the world is growing and the U.S. is back on a growth trajectory, commodities will spike and inflation will start its inexorable, ineluctable rise."
Protect Yourself
There are several things investors can do to protect themselves from inflation. Hutchinson recommends:
Investing in Gold: Gold is still the best hedge against inflation. The SPDR Gold Trust ETF (NYSE: GLD) is a good option. Alternatively, you could go for a solid gold mining company such as Yamana Gold Inc. (NYSE: AUY). These tend to move somewhat independently of the gold price, but also become more valuable through earnings as the period of high gold prices lengthens. Investing in Silver: Try to work silver into your portfolio, as well - specifically the iShares Silver Trust (NYSE: SLV).
Investing in Asia: A third option is to invest in Asian stocks - especially South Korea and Singapore. Two strong prospects are the iShares MSCI Singapore Index Fund (NYSE: EWS) and the iShares MSCI Korea Index Fund (NYSE: EWY).
Fleeing the Dollar: With damage sure to be inflicted on the U.S. dollar, the Rydex Currency Shares Swiss Franc Trust (NYSE: FXF) also is a good choice. It tracks the performance of the Swiss franc and has an expense ratio of only 0.4%.