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Pissed Off At ALL Politicians

Posted 10 months ago|5 comments|403 views

Political Promises: A Reference Manual

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Politics , Promises , Failed policies , Economy , Debt Ceiling

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CornNerd
Morgan Hill, CA

Are you as tired as I am with the garbage coming out of your representatives mouth?

If it isn't that they are talking about how the other side of the aisle is failing and causing grief the sustained burden that each American is feeling today, then they turn around and do the same DAMN thing!!!

Case in point, refer to an item on the Drudge Report today (Saturday, 07/16/2011):

FLASHBACK: Every Dem Sen -- including Obama -- voted against raising debt limit in 2006...

U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes 109th Congress - 2nd Session

as compiled through Senate LIS by the Senate Bill Clerk under the direction of the Secretary of the Senate

Vote Summary

Question: On the Joint Resolution (H.J.Res.47 )
Vote Number: 54 Vote Date: March 16, 2006, 11:17 AM
Required For Majority: 1/2 Vote Result: Joint Resolution Passed
Vote Counts: YEAs 52
NAYs 48

We are at a crossroads in America that was actually predicted by Thomas Jefferson:

"When the representative body have lost the confidence of their constituents, when they have notoriously made sale of their most valuable rights, when they have assumed to themselves powers which the people never put into their hands, then indeed their continuing in office becomes dangerous." --Thomas Jefferson

Take a look at POLITICAL PROMISES: A REFERENCE MANUAL, it has some insights on the entire political process and things to watch out for.

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The Cypress Gang

10 months ago: No, Texas is pretty good with what our elected officals are doing.
Then again. Texas is not a government welfare state like California, Illinois or New York. Gimme, gimme, gimme....yours....

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Altruist
Eugene, OR

10 months ago: The 1st 5 pages of the book you recommend do not tell us much except that promises should be made.

That is most of the problem today. Grover Norquist got all but 13 Republicans to pledge never to raise any taxes for any reason, so they doubled the size of the military, and gave away huge cuts to the rich, but didn't want to pay for it, so they just borrowed and doubled the Debt.

If they hadn't taken that pledge and remained had fiscally responsible, we would still have a budget surplus like Clinton had. People should not promise things that are harmful, just because it is what people want to hear.

You are right our political system has become completely dysfunctional. The two party system can only result in Partisan gridlock when members are not willing to compromise and work for the good of the country. Lawmakers consider this a war and anything is fair in war, lying, cheating etc.

Obama and the Dems protested Bush's doubling of the military spending, the drug give away, and the huge tax cuts to the rich, while doubling the national Debt and being unwilling to pay for it with new revenue, but it was just a protest, they would not really have shut the government down because they are realists. The Tea party wing of the Republicans actually want to shut the government down and cause another great depression because they think it would result in Obama loosing the election.

Today much of what the politicians do is just to irritate the other side.

If we had at least three viable political parties and changed the rules just a bit, it would insure cooperation instead of competition, and it would insure that our lawmakers would actually do what the majority wanted, not just what the extremes wanted.

1st make every vote a simple majority vote on whether some issue needed to be acted on. If Yes, at least three proposals would be prepared to solve the problem, one from the left one from the right and one from the center.

Then lawmakers would use preference voting to vote for their ist choice (3 points) their second choice (2 points) and the proposal they didn't like (1 point). The proposal with the most points would win.

In most cases the centrist proposal would win but as lawmakers got used to this procedure they would cooperate to pick the best parts and best ideas to incorporate into their plan. They would end up with proposals that helped the nation not just the special interests.

It would also help to eliminate all money from the entire procedure. Now corporations are free to spend as much as they want to bribe (Lobby) lawmakers, and to advertise (Brainwash) with no disclosure required, so most policies benefit the rich and the corporations and the regular people don't have much say.

That is why although 80% of the people want tax increases on the rich - it ain't happening.
That is why although 2/3rds of the people want the military spending cut - it ain't happening.

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The Cypress Gang

10 months ago: Please Albert. Your writing it does not make it so. You want to create numbers then please have the guts to back them up with non-partisan links.

Did I read this correctly? "Obama and the Dems protested Bush's doubling of the military spending, the drug give away, and the huge tax cuts to the rich, while doubling the national Debt and being unwilling to pay for it with new revenue"

I have a question. If Bush doubled the national debt in 8 years. What did Obama and your democrats do in the first 2 years? Did it gone up or down? By what percentage? 8 years / 2 years? Hummmm?

You do know that you were in charge of the entire government until last January. Please post the increase or decrease percentages from 2008 to 2010.

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The Cypress Gang

10 months ago: While we are at it Albert? Can you explain how Obama and Holder added 10 million dollars into the stimulis package to purchase firearms to send to Mexico?

That seems like a "Shovel Ready" jobs package if your a Mexican grave digger.

Too bad that some of those taxpayer funded firearms have been linked to murders of at least 2 federal agents. Please explain that. Was it a cloaked attempt to get more gun restrictions?

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Altruist
Eugene, OR

10 months ago: Who is this Albert you keep referring to ? I am Altruist but answer to Al for short.

I consider most of the budget in the 1st two years to be entirely the reaction to the near depression that Bush caused. Then The Republicans coerced Obama into accepting the budget busting tax cuts to the rich in exchange for unemployment.

So half of his deficit is the tax cuts and the military and another quarter is in response to Bush's economic debacle. Most of the deficit is beyond Obama's control and would have been beyond the control of McCain had he been successful. http://www.cbpp.org/cms/index.cfm?fa=vie...

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