in 2001 total fed spending was 1.8T, in 2008 it was 2.98T.

Im not the best at math but it looks like a 65% increase to me. (which is horrible) And we INCREASED that?

http://www.usgovernmentspending.com/#usgs302a

[Edited on August 31, 2011 at 9:24 AM. Reason : .]

8/31/2011 9:24:28 AM

So O's plan is YET ANOTHER program that puts taxpayers at risk to keep people in homes they cant afford. How many times have we tried this one now? WTF

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/08/31/us-usa-obama-housing-idUSTRE77T6DV20110831

8/31/2011 9:25:44 AM

Quote :

"pryderi, your graph is kinda wrong. fiscal year 2009 was Obama. He signed the 2009 budget and the stimulus all in his first month as president. As such, the run-up to 2009 should be blue, not red."

not only that, but it's using "estimates" for 2011 and onwards, and we know those are bullshit lowball numbers. Moreover, NOT reducing spending from Bush is hardly commendable, either, especially from a man who blames Bush's policies for everything. If Bush's policies are bad, then certainly continuing his spending policies would be a bad thing as well

8/31/2011 9:56:03 AM

http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/179007-obama-to-address-joint-session-

Quote :

"Obama schedules jobs address to coincide with GOP 2012 debate President Obama has requested a joint session of Congress next week to deliver his jobs speech directly to lawmakers. In a letter to congressional leaders requesting the Sept. 7 slot, the president said he will urge Congress to put aside politics and focus on creating jobs during the 8 p.m. speech. “As I have traveled across our country this summer and spoken with our fellow Americans, I have heard a consistent message: Washington needs to put aside politics and start making decisions based on what is best for our country and not what is best for each of our parties in order to grow the economy and create jobs,” Obama wrote. “We must answer this call.” The speech will fall on the same night Texas Gov. Rick Perry makes his debut on the 2012 GOP debate stage. The Republican presidential field is set to take part in a debate, also scheduled to begin at 8 p.m., at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, Calif. "

I see your politics and raise you even MORE politics!!!!!!!!!!

What a fucking colossal failure.

8/31/2011 3:34:31 PM

Good, glad to see him finally playing dirty. His opposition has been doing since the day he took office. Fuck Rick Perry and the 2012 GOP field.

8/31/2011 3:45:12 PM

^^ ;_;

8/31/2011 4:19:51 PM

Wait, is Rick Perry a member of Congress? Who cares? Wait, nm, some of the other Republicans are....still lol.

[Edited on August 31, 2011 at 4:20 PM. Reason : .]

8/31/2011 4:19:52 PM

Coincidence or not it's fucking hilarious. If for nothing else then to hear conservatives cry and moan. +1

8/31/2011 5:21:31 PM

I am glad he is finally going to create jobs and grow the economy, I am just not sure why he waited so long, but if he said he is gonna do it and have a big speech Im convinced this will work. +1

8/31/2011 6:27:55 PM

Traditionally, jobs have come from the President and Congress. That's just how it works. I'm tired of all these Republicans standing in the way of Democrats that are trying to pass legislation which will provide good jobs for the millions of unemployed.

8/31/2011 7:04:48 PM

Quote :

"I am glad he is finally going to create jobs and grow the economy, I am just not sure why he waited so long, but if he said he is gonna do it and have a big speech Im convinced this will work."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZfWbIcoU9iI

"not gonna rest"

8/31/2011 7:30:43 PM

^ wait he has been trying to create jobs? Then what the fuck is he gonna say in this speech? Now I'm confused.

8/31/2011 7:59:08 PM

same crap he keeps saying. Prob use a new focus group tested line though. win the future, pivot on jobs...type crap.

8/31/2011 8:50:18 PM

Quote :

"Good, glad to see him finally playing dirty."

Wait, wut?

8/31/2011 8:52:30 PM

It would be hilarious if he held it at that time anyways in spite of Boehner's whining and if the repubs don't show up then the president should call them out in front of the American people and show their empty seats and use it to articulate how the right doesn't care about job creation. Whether that's true or not is irrelevant as it will create a strong visual.

8/31/2011 8:55:22 PM

I think the Federal Reserve and the White House are gonna try and throw a one two punch of QE3 and some large krugman style infrastructure plan, and a carpet bombing of tax credits etc. I'm not saying we don't need it. The economy has flatlined after the first qe stops and things are getting nasty in the euro credit markets. QE or whatever, will be announced @ the sept meeting, so expect at least a test of the market lows or past them before the meeting, as to provide cause for rescue. They will buy the bonds to fund this. Who else will? Wall street is pleading for this, all but 2 fed members approve additional stimulus. Does the street get what they want in America? Think Red China and Russia like the trashing of the debt they hold? The ponzi scheme will continue untill another option emerges. This is the plan, they are trying to stop a 30 yr credit bubble. The problem is they are using the currency to take the brunt of it and keep the status Que on the street. Will it work? Baised on everything this team has put together in the last decade I' have to say no. Print till the end and hope it's a buck shy of what it takes to crash the whole thing. This is what we are going with.

8/31/2011 10:19:38 PM

Quote :

"[obama's] finally playing dirty."

8/31/2011 10:33:09 PM

Quote :

"pryderi, your graph is kinda wrong. fiscal year 2009 was Obama. He signed the 2009 budget and the stimulus all in his first month as president. As such, the run-up to 2009 should be blue, not red. "

Quote :

"fiscal year - The fiscal year is the accounting period for the federal government which begins on October 1 and ends on September 30."

http://www.senate.gov/reference/glossary_term/fiscal_year.htm

Quote :

"The United States federal budget for fiscal year 2009 was a spending request by President George W. Bush to fund government operations for October 2008-September 2009."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2009_United_States_federal_budget

LoneSnark, you're kinda wrong.

8/31/2011 11:22:12 PM

yeah, requesting a separate forum during a clearly scheduled event for his eventual competitor: -5. lame. good politics, but lame credibility

8/31/2011 11:26:22 PM

I am sure the President of the United States has better things to do than fret about when the republicans are holding their dog and pony show...

9/1/2011 12:12:34 AM

^apparently not:

http://www.cnn.com/2011/POLITICS/08/31/obama.congress.address/index.html


Moving it back a day because of "security sweeps."



I think he should just walk up to rick perry in the middle of his speech, kanye west style, and just take over. then, when he's done, drop the microphone and walk off the stage.

[Edited on September 1, 2011 at 12:45 AM. Reason : ]

9/1/2011 12:37:44 AM

I'll admit, I lol'd

9/1/2011 8:07:57 AM

pussy!

9/1/2011 8:40:35 AM

I think the undying support of BO is hilarious itt. Open your eyes and try to take an objective view of his leadership of the economy. He has been a complete and utter failure. He rammed through an $800B stimulus that did jack shit besides increase the debt. Everyone told him the tax credits in the stimulus never work (see 2001 and 2005?). Instead of giving the stimulus a reasonable amount of time to make sure it was effective, he used scare tactics to ram it through and now unemployment is higher now than it was then.

He has shown a complete lack of leadership during the budget negotiations. He failed by not going on national tv and saying "here is my plan to reduce the deficit." He doesnt have one. Even if some of the Rep plans (Ryan's) are extreme, at least they are putting something up there and we know where they stand.

There is a reason 65% of the country disapproves of his handling of the economy. this guy was completely unqualified for this job.
http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2011/09/01/new-cnn-poll-65-give-obama-thumbs-down-on-economy/?hpt=hp_t1

[Edited on September 1, 2011 at 9:05 AM. Reason : .]

9/1/2011 9:04:30 AM

Quote :

"I'm tired of all these Republicans standing in the way of Democrats that are trying to pass legislation which will provide good jobs for the millions of unemployed."

9/1/2011 9:44:45 AM

FRUSTRATED

Quote :

"President Barack Obama's reelection campaign sent an email to campaign supporters under his name Wednesday with the subject line "frustrated" — critiquing Congress for failing to focus on the critical issues facing the country. "

Last I checked, a leader should not be passive aggressive.

http://www.businessinsider.com/obama-says-he-is-frustrated-with-congress-in-email-to-campaign-supporters-2011-8

9/1/2011 10:06:36 AM

mofopack, following politics since 2008.

9/1/2011 10:37:34 AM

Quote :

"Last I checked, a leader should not be passive aggressive."

Agreed. This is a genuine failure of leadership, but given the state of things in the United States, you shouldn't be surprised.

9/1/2011 11:21:58 AM

Look like we were caught up in the media making a mountain out of a mole hill again. In retrospect, this was a fairly routine request by the President to address a join session of congress on a specific date, the speaker asked him if he could push it back 24 hours, and the President said "sure, why not". The media made it sound like it was Jack Bauer negotiating with a terrorist or something.

9/1/2011 11:24:13 AM

Quote :

"I am sure the President of the United States has better things to do than fret about when the republicans are holding their dog and pony show..."

no, not really. being a fucking prick and doing your shit during an already established political event is just plain petty and lame.

Quote :

"President Barack Obama's reelection campaign sent an email to campaign supporters under his name Wednesday with the subject line "frustrated" — critiquing Congress for failing to focus on the critical issues facing the country."

you mean, like focusing on healthcare and illegal aliens when our economy was going down the shitter? riiiiiiiiiiiight.

Quote :

"In retrospect, this was a fairly routine request by the President to address a join session of congress on a specific date,"

a specific date that he had every reason to know was already fucking taken. It's not like the 'pubs had been trying to figure out a date and just came up with it right as Obama sent out the memo. This shit has been plastered all over CNN for at least a week. If Obama and his aides can't be bothered to check a basic calendar, then how in the fuck can they run the country?

9/1/2011 12:19:44 PM

haha. check a calender. he was going to do it on the 9th, but disney on ice is in town.

he's the leader of the free world, but he can't address congress because they're too busy throwing a bachelorette party. whatevs

[Edited on September 1, 2011 at 12:47 PM. Reason : ]

9/1/2011 12:46:09 PM

^^Taken by what exactly? We're talking about a Presidential debate 15 months in advance of the election, in a country that cares more about voting for the winner of American Idol than voting for the President. If the public doesn't give a damn about it, why should the President? If anything, preempting the NFL kickoff would be a far worse grievance towards the American public than preempting another pissing match between a bunch of buffoons.

[Edited on September 1, 2011 at 12:49 PM. Reason : ^^]

9/1/2011 12:49:09 PM

I would like to give Obama an ultimatum: grow some balls or I wont be voting for you in 2012. Bush really changed the job description of president to include "my way or the highway" and like it or not there is no going back. You can't go to the strategy of compromise and separation of powers and expect to push a progressive agenda, Obama.

I stress the word "like"

The truth is I will definitely not be supporting any of the Republican camp and I don't see Obama growing balls anytime soon so unfortunately the only thing I have to look forward to in 2012 is "hope and change more of the same bullshit"

9/1/2011 1:18:05 PM

Quote :

"he's the leader of the free world"

People should stop using this phrase. We incarcerate more people in the United States per capita than any other country, many for victimless crimes. We are not the freest country. We are not the best country. We are not even the richest country. Our citizens are treated like shit, and foreigners are treated even worse.

9/1/2011 1:39:21 PM

Quote :

"he's the leader of the free world, but he can't address congress because they're too busy throwing a bachelorette party. whatevs"

he's the leader of the free world, but he can't be bothered to be fucking polite and notice "shit, these guys are holding a big political thing on day X, maybe I shouldn't 'ask' to hold my 'speech' on the same day at the same time". Instead, he just wanted to be a douche and try to make the 'pubs look bad when he is the one actually being a douche. Are you seriously telling me he couldn't have known there was a highly publicized primary debate going on that night? Be honest here... As the President, a politician, mind you, how much should he know about politics and the political calendar? It's not like he was interrupting the Bolder Fresher tour or a Palin book-signing.

Quote :

"If the public doesn't give a damn about it, why should the President?"

So, the President, a politician, shouldn't care about the political process. Got it.

9/1/2011 8:09:24 PM

^^amen

Quote :

"no, not really. being a fucking prick and doing your shit during an already established political event is just plain petty and lame. "

plus its a better strategy for him to let people watch and see how crazy perry is and hope that he gets owned by paul in the debate.

9/1/2011 8:39:46 PM

aaronburro, I am throwing down the gauntlet.



If President Obama loses in 2012, I am willing to be perma-banned from tww if you agree to be perma-banned if Obama wins.

This offer is void if President Obama is unable to run prior to the election.

9/2/2011 2:03:33 AM

Obama directs EPA to withdraw controversial proposed regulation on smog standards

Quote :

"WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama is sacking a controversial proposed regulation tightening government smog standards, bowing to the demands of congressional Republicans and some business leaders. In a statement Friday, Obama said he had ordered Environmental Protection Agency administrator Lisa Jackson to withdraw the proposal, in part because of the importance of reducing regulatory burdens and uncertainty for businesses at a time of rampant uncertainty about an unsteady economy. The announcement came shortly after a new government report on private sector employment report showed that businesses essentially added no new jobs last month -- and that the jobless rate remained stuck at a historically high 9.1 percent. The withdrawal of the proposed EPA rule comes two days after the White House identified seven such regulations that it said would cost private business at least $1 billion each. The proposed smog standard was estimated to cost anywhere between $19 billion and $90 billion, depending on how strict it would be. The smog standard was among the Obama administration regulations that House Republicans said this week they would try to block this fall. The move is sure to raise the ire of environmentalists, a core Obama constituency. In his statement, Obama said he was still committed to protecting public health and the environment. "I will continue to stand with the hardworking men and women at the EPA as they strive every day to hold polluters accountable and protect our families from harmful pollution," he said."

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Obama-halts-controversial-EPA-apf-1745827859.html

Wow, I knew that eventually he'd throw my people under the bus. Looks like that day has arrived. What makes this truly sad is that this isn't even about climate change but rather plain and simple clean air. Now if someone pulls up these smog rules and shows that this was a cover for limiting CO2 then I will agree that this should be shelved for now, but how could anyone be against putting less nasty and dangerous toxins in the air?

9/2/2011 11:22:27 AM

so dont vote for him-

simple.

9/2/2011 11:40:55 AM

http://money.cnn.com/2011/09/02/news/companies/banks_mortgage_lawsuit/index.htm?iid=HP_LN

Quote :

"The Federal Housing Finance Agency, which oversees Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, is planning to file lawsuits against dozens of U.S. banks in the coming days, according to the New York Times and Wall Street Journal."

About goddamn time. Now if only the Bush administration had pushed for this in 2007, we wouldn't even be in this mess.

^As for not voting for him, look, I'll be the first to admit that Obama hasn't been as aggressive in pushing for progressive policies as I would have liked. However, I absolutely cannot stomach the things I know would happen if a GOP President were to be elected. Health care reform would be repealed instead of getting a public option added like it needs. Dodd-Frank would be repealed instead of strengthened. Separation of church and state would be completely destroyed(and with that goes gay's right to marriage and women's right to abortions). Any chance of the Bush tax cuts ever expiring would be gone. I could go on, but that's already enough to convince me to vote for him again, especially if it's Rick Perry on the other side of the ballot.

Not to mention that foreign policy wise, he's done just about everything I wanted. We're getting the fuck out of Iraq and Afghanistan (albeit slower than I would have liked). Osama Bin Laden is 20 leagues under the sea. He's been the only President in recent history to openly criticize Israel and call for an agreement along the lines of 1967. We haven't started a war with Iran. I'm not ecstatic by any means, but at the very least the man has softened our image of being a bunch of inbred hicks who take what we want, when we want and don't care about the consequences.

[Edited on September 2, 2011 at 1:33 PM. Reason : :]

9/2/2011 1:14:36 PM

you give the GOP candidates an awful lot of credit.

you seem to think they will "do" an awful lot while your president cant "do" shit.

why did you elect such an ineffectual loser?

otherwise i basically agree with everything you've said, but im the type of person that is simply interested in seeing what somebody else can do.

obamas chance has passed-

as long as i dont get drafted into ww3 im good.

9/2/2011 1:32:13 PM

I'm not giving the GOP any credit. The bottom line is liberal/progressive lawmakers are a bunch of spineless pussies, period. The GOP side may be fucking crazy, but they have shown far more ability to get their destructive policies passed than the Democrats. At this point, I view Obama as the boy with his finger stuck in the dam, and if he pulls out we're all going to drown.

[Edited on September 2, 2011 at 2:02 PM. Reason : :]

9/2/2011 2:01:03 PM

well since you KNOW how ineffectual obama is maybe you should quit being a pussy and work to get a different democrat nominee.

or vote republican as an experiment in uncertainty.

thats the only reason obama got elected anyway- the misconception that things couldnt get any worse.

i tell you this time, "things cant get any worse!"

[Edited on September 2, 2011 at 2:31 PM. Reason : and yes democrats are weak politicians once they acquire power]

9/2/2011 2:31:22 PM

Quote :

"Wow, I knew that eventually he'd throw my people under the bus. Looks like that day has arrived. What makes this truly sad is that this isn't even about climate change but rather plain and simple clean air. Now if someone pulls up these smog rules and shows that this was a cover for limiting CO2 then I will agree that this should be shelved for now, but how could anyone be against putting less nasty and dangerous toxins in the air?"

I could certainly be down with handling actual smog issues, as it seems quite logical. We don't want to become like fucking China, after all.

Quote :

"About goddamn time. Now if only the Bush administration had pushed for this in 2007, we wouldn't even be in this mess."

how the fuck do you figure? Do you think all of the problems in the housing market happened in 2007 and beyond? really?

Quote :

"Health care reform would be repealed instead of getting a public option added like it needs. "

Funny that you fear repeal, because that's exactly what needs to happen if you actually want to fix the system. Public option just makes it 100 times worse. Need proof? Look at Massachusetts.

Quote :

"Separation of church and state would be completely destroyed(and with that goes gay's right to marriage and women's right to abortions)."

yep, we're all gonna be required to go to church every fucking day and bow down to little baby Jesus and kiss his feet.

Quote :

"Not to mention that foreign policy wise, he's done just about everything I wanted."

You mean, you actually supported Dubya's foreign policy? Because Obama has been almost a carbon copy of Bush.

9/2/2011 3:57:39 PM

Oh look, the village idiot made his way in here to derail the conversation with some more out of context quote bubble spam. How about you take theDuke866's advice, stop being a fucking pussy, and actually explain your position (on anything) instead of just haphazardly posting vitriol and talking points without any real substance.

[Edited on September 2, 2011 at 4:19 PM. Reason : :]

9/2/2011 4:16:12 PM

If you support Obama's foreign policy, there's nothing at all to say. He surges troop levels in Afghanistan, then announces a draw down of the troops, and that's "getting the fuck out"?

I know you've probably been cheer leading the Democratic party for a while, so I don't expect you to stop now, but in all seriousness, you need to have an internal dialogue about what you're supporting here. Is Obama better than McCain would have been? Probably. Is he better than most of the GOP would be on foreign policy? I think so. Should you support what we're doing overseas right now just because Obama is in charge? Absolutely not.

People are dying. These are real, human lives that are being devastated. Why not just strongly oppose that? It doesn't mean you're voting for a Republican, but if more Obama supporters would voice their opposition, maybe it would force his hand. As of now, Obama knows that he will get those loyal Democratic votes because there isn't a better option.

9/2/2011 4:30:10 PM

Obama supporters aren't the problem. We've voiced our opinion loudly enough. The problem is the opposition that calls him a socialist, uses terms like "cut and run", engages in outright warfare against science, and basically fear mongers their base into voting against their own interests.

9/2/2011 4:46:14 PM

Alright, so it's 100% the "other side"'s fault.

I'm just as opposed to the neo-conservatives as you are, but c'mon...both parties have overwhelmingly supported the war effort. I'm a little baffled at your inability to recognize that, or at least your failure admit it. SWAT isn't going to kick in your door for breaking ranks with the Democratic party establishment.

9/2/2011 4:57:58 PM

Quote :

"Oh look, the village idiot made his way in here to derail the conversation with some more out of context quote bubble spam. How about you take theDuke866's advice, stop being a fucking pussy, and actually explain your position (on anything) instead of just haphazardly posting vitriol and talking points without any real substance. "

oh look, Shrike resorts to ad hominem AGAIN. do you have anything to actually say, or are you just going to get your panties in a wad and start copy-pasting again?

and, "out of context"? I POSTED PRACTICALLY YOUR WHOLE FUCKING POST. genius. please, tell me more about how we are going to be forced to go to church every day because "separation of church and state will be destroyed". The only way it could be "out of context" is if you were just saying that shit to be hysterical and massively overstate what is happening.

[Edited on September 2, 2011 at 5:13 PM. Reason : ]

9/2/2011 5:11:23 PM

aaronburro, shut up while shrike & destroyer (l33t) duke it out.

theyre actually having a fairly decent dialogue for once.

i want to see the outcome and youre flailing about in the background.

9/2/2011 6:32:51 PM