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Obama Hammers Congress: Do Your Job

Swizz said:
How is telling Congress to do their job childish?
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The role of the President is to lead. Telling Republicans they can go for the ride, but have to sit in the back, and now basically telling Congress (not just GOP members) that they are behaving in a manner that even his pre-teen daughters would see as irresponsible is not leadership - it is just the opposite.
 
Swizz said:
Fair enough, I must have gotten my information wrong. I remember Cantor introducing the idea so I assumed it originated with him, I did not know that some Democrats pushed for it first. My mistake.
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Tis all good. They made a tactical error and got hammered for it.
 
snilloctjc said:
The role of the President is to lead. Telling Republicans they can go for the ride, but have to sit in the back, and now basically telling Congress (not just GOP members) that they are behaving in a manner that even his pre-teen daughters would see as irresponsible is not leadership - it is just the opposite.
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The role of the President is not to legislate. He HAS lead. As he said, immediately after the government shutdown was averted, he assigned Biden to work with Congress. Before Biden got to work, Obama met with House Democrats. He met with House Republicans. He met with Senate Democrats. He met with Senate Republicans. He had a golf outing with Boehner and Biden. He has had more than one meeting with McConnell and Reid and Boehner. To suggest that he is not doing anything is absurd. The president's point is that Cantor and others have suggested he needs to get more involved, which means he needs to micromanage Congress. He has brought ideas to the table; the two sides have largely agreed on (so I hear) about 2/3 of the intended deficit reduction. It's the final portion that remains a problem, and a big part of that is because Republicans have left one entire side of the equation (revenues) off the table entirely and are stubbornly refusing to budge. It's the minority acting as if they are the majority.

I'm sure Obama will have to get even more involved and have even more meetings. But to suggest that he has done nothing and should be sitting there drafting legislation with the Congress, is to misunderstand how the executive branch is intended to work.
 
Swizz said:
The role of the President is not to legislate. He HAS lead. As he said, immediately after the government shutdown was averted, he assigned Biden to work with Congress. Before Biden got to work, Obama met with House Democrats. He met with House Republicans. He met with Senate Democrats. He met with Senate Republicans. He had a golf outing with Boehner and Biden. He has had more than one meeting with McConnell and Reid and Boehner. To suggest that he is not doing anything is absurd. The president's point is that Cantor and others have suggested he needs to get more involved, which means he needs to micromanage Congress. He has brought ideas to the table; the two sides have largely agreed on (so I hear) about 2/3 of the intended deficit reduction. It's the final portion that remains a problem, and a big part of that is because Republicans have left one entire side of the equation (revenues) off the table entirely and are stubbornly refusing to budge. It's the minority acting as if they are the majority.

I'm sure Obama will have to get even more involved and have even more meetings. But to suggest that he has done nothing and should be sitting there drafting legislation with the Congress, is to misunderstand how the executive branch is intended to work.
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Never asked him to legislate - just lead. Sorry I have been lead and I have been managed, and I have been berated in my life. This President likes to berate - PUBLICLY. That is no way to enlist cooperation and support.
 
MrVicchio said:
Tis all good. They made a tactical error and got hammered for it.
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I agree, poor choice on the part of the Democrats and I agree with the GOP assertion that there should be corresponding cuts, as our debt has become a very real problem.

The issue I have is how stubbornly the Republicans in Congress have refused to budge on what they consider their sacred cows. It's easy to call Paul Ryan brave for cutting Medicare when Republicans have thought Medicare was socialism since day one. What would be a lot braver would be to also reduce the deficit using tools that Republicans typically would not consider - i.e., raising taxes, or increasing revenues in SOME way at least, in particular for the rich, as the Dems are calling for.

I am a pretty moderate person and I believe that whatever comes from this NEEDS to be balanced, there is no question about it. What I don't like to see is the GOP using this "my way or the highway" approach that has become increasingly common over the years...particularly when they only control one house of Congress.
 
I seem to remember our President saying to the GOP - You lost get over it
 
snilloctjc said:
Never asked him to legislate - just lead. Sorry I have been lead and I have been managed, and I have been berated in my life. This President likes to berate - PUBLICLY. That is no way to enlist cooperation and support.
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Well first of all, I just cited numerous examples of the president taking action on this issue, with both parties, and with both the House and the Senate.

And secondly, if berating the opponent publicly is no way to enlist cooperation, why are you not calling for less berating from Mitch McConnell and John Boehner? McConnell in particular has had rhetoric as tough or tougher than the stuff Obama said yesterday, since day one.
 
I'm not a fan of the Ryan plan. I'm a fan the "End SS Medicaide, Medicare and repeal Obamacare" plan.
 
Swizz said:
Well first of all, I just cited numerous examples of the president taking action on this issue, with both parties, and with both the House and the Senate.

And secondly, if berating the opponent publicly is no way to enlist cooperation, why are you not calling for less berating from Mitch McConnell and John Boehner? McConnell in particular has had rhetoric as tough or tougher than the stuff Obama said yesterday, since day one.
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You cited instances where he held meetings and talked, not taking action. Secondly, the thread is about the President, not the others. Besides they are taking action - they have submitted proposals for debate and eventually a vote and possibly implementation . Today the Pres. spokesman says he won't meet with them because they say no to taxes - isn't that the same as saying we want tax increases and if we don't get them we won't play? It goes both ways.

Ryan's plan by the way doesn't end medicare it changes the apporach to funding it - something that even the medicare trustees say MUST be done
 
snilloctjc said:
You cited instances where he held meetings and talked, not taking action. Secondly, the thread is about the President, not the others. Besides they are taking action - they have submitted proposals for debate and eventually a vote and possibly implementation . Today the Pres. spokesman says he won't meet with them because they say no to taxes - isn't that the same as saying we want tax increases and if we don't get them we won't play? It goes both ways.

Ryan's plan by the way doesn't end medicare it changes the apporach to funding it - something that even the medicare trustees say MUST be done
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1) When did I say anything about ending Medicare?
2) How is holding a meeting *not* taking action? What actions are you proposing the president take? Once again, he won't be the one legislating this...about the best he can do is broker a deal through meetings with leaders from both parties in Congress.
3) Thirdly, just because this thread is about the president, does not mean we cannot talk about any other people. You cannot have it both ways, you cannot get upset about Obama berating the other side but turn a blind eye to the fact that the other side had been berating him since far before yesterday. Expectations of both sides should be consistent, so if you're upset with Obama's lack of civility, or something, I would expect you to be equally irritated by the tone of McConnell, Boehner, Cantor, etc.
4) Fourth, frankly, I won't be inconsistent on this....I think it's sort of bull**** that Obama turned down the meeting with the Republicans. Then again, they have been playing hardball for a while now. They took revenues off the table entirely. They had their leader (Cantor) and others (Kyl too, right?) walk out of negotiations entirely. So they cannot just be allowed to act like stubborn children and throw a tantrum until the president gives into their demands. I am not saying that I like Obama stooping to their level; what I am saying is that sometimes when the other side is using certain tactics to get their way, it might not be a bad idea to turn the tables on them.
 
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Ockham said:
Well hey, can we ask the Democratic senators to also look at the following while they're at it?

The Dept. of Ed
The Dept. of Ag.
The Fed

I don't want to give them too much else they may choke.
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All programs mentioned are constitutional. That was easy.
 
Councilman said:
Obama is a joke when was he working to get meaningful legislation to reduce the debt?

It must have been on the golf course. No wait maybe that was what all the find raisers were for to contibute to the general fund. Maybe not.

To think you are going to tax your way to prosperity is just a damn dumb as Biden thinking that you can spend your way out of debt.

I hear the Dems claiming the Republicans won't compromise, while they are saying bottom line new taxes are a must.

Obama lacks any leadership skills at all.

The problem is not income to the Government it's Obama's spending with the help of the other two members of the Trifecta of Doom, Pelosi ,and Reid.
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Funny. But it demonstrates what the previous posters stated concerning the partisan bs that is happening. Secondly, when are we going stop giving corps and oil companies welfare by allowing them to get away with not paying taxes or paying little taxes. I am not talking about small business, I am talking about Exxon, the NFL, the NBA, etc. Please tell me how this is good for america? This deficit was caused by the GOP and Dems both. Get a pair and come up with solutions not shots at Obama.
 
You are missing the point...Obama is the Prez....OBAMA is whining about the lack of "Leadership" while providing none....

TBone said:
Funny. But it demonstrates what the previous posters stated concerning the partisan bs that is happening. Secondly, when are we going stop giving corps and oil companies welfare by allowing them to get away with not paying taxes or paying little taxes. I am not talking about small business, I am talking about Exxon, the NFL, the NBA, etc. Please tell me how this is good for america? This deficit was caused by the GOP and Dems both. Get a pair and come up with solutions not shots at Obama.
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danarhea said:
If Congress does not do it's job, Obama should just ignore Congress, and just print money and pay debts. Why, you ask? Isn't it Congress that holds the purse strings? Yes it is, but the 14th Amendment to the Constitution says....



This says that we must pay money we owe. It's the law. So ignore Congress, print more money, and pay the debts that we are required to pay by law. Let's then see what the Supreme Court says, because I am sure it will go there. And SCOTUS will have one hell of a conundrum. If they support the administration, then they violate the Constitution. If they go against the administration, then they violate the Constitution. It would be the only time in US history that one part of the Constitution violates another part of the Constitution, and this would be a Constitutional crisis. Better yet, Congress should just do it's job, and we can work out the details of this problem in the future.
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THANKS DANAHERA. THANK YOU THANK YOU.

Has congress presented legislation for the pres to sign? Nope, they cannot, so they blame Obama. When and where does it say he has to negotiate with the congress? Send some legislation and we can talk about who is not doing their job.

Congress stay in DC for the 4th of July. Ops they cannot, Exxon is sending them on Junkets.
 
katiegrrl0 said:
So what you are saying is debt is good as long as the money is going to programs you like. It is bad when it is going to programs you don't like. You can't have it both ways. So it was alright that Reagan Bush and Bush built up so much debt that Obama who i do not defend has no money to spend then you bitch at him when he raise the debt. Hmmmm go figure. I guess what it amounts to is debt is good if the Republican conservatives do it but not for anyone else. hehehehehehe you're funny.
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When the Democrats took over Congress in 2007 the Cumulative National Debt was $5.035 trillion dollars. When Obama tool over the White House in 2009 the Cumulative National Debt was $7.545 Trillion. As of 2011 the Cumulative National Debt was $10.498 Trillion dollars. The link from USA Today is below.

How U.S. national debt and federal deficits have grown
 
danarhea said:
If Congress does not do it's job, Obama should just ignore Congress, and just print money and pay debts. Why, you ask? Isn't it Congress that holds the purse strings? Yes it is, but the 14th Amendment to the Constitution says....

This says that we must pay money we owe. It's the law. So ignore Congress, print more money, and pay the debts that we are required to pay by law. Let's then see what the Supreme Court says, because I am sure it will go there. And SCOTUS will have one hell of a conundrum. If they support the administration, then they violate the Constitution. If they go against the administration, then they violate the Constitution. It would be the only time in US history that one part of the Constitution violates another part of the Constitution, and this would be a Constitutional crisis. Better yet, Congress should just do it's job, and we can work out the details of this problem in the future.
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That is one of the stupidest things I have heard in a long time. The 14th does not empower the President to print money or incur debt.
 
This is an idea put forth by one of his Interns...let them run with it....ths pig F***r is running hteir Praty into the ground just like Bush did ours.

RStringfield said:
That is one of the stupidest things I have heard in a long time. The 14th does not empower the President to print money or incur debt.
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Amazed said:
Read that on HuffPo yesterday didja?
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If you have nothing to add to the discussion, other than snide remarks, then GTFO of the thread.
 
RStringfield said:
That is one of the stupidest things I have heard in a long time. The 14th does not empower the President to print money or incur debt.
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But it DOES require us to honor ALL debt that we have incurred. If Congress violates that provision, then the president has a good case to do it himself. Call it the Executive branch acting on a national emergency.
 
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