You will not believe what they have come up with.

[FLAprogressive]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/23/super-congress-debt-ceiling_n_907887.html?ncid=edlinkusaolp00000009

WASHINGTON -- Debt ceiling negotiators think they've hit on a solution to address the debt ceiling impasse and the public's unwillingness to let go of benefits such as Medicare and Social Security that have been earned over a lifetime of work: Create a new Congress.

This "Super Congress," composed of members of both chambers and both parties, isn't mentioned anywhere in the Constitution, but would be granted extraordinary new powers. Under a plan put forth by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and his counterpart Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), legislation to lift the debt ceiling would be accompanied by the creation of a 12-member panel made up of 12 lawmakers -- six from each chamber and six from each party.

Legislation approved by the Super Congress -- which some on Capitol Hill are calling the "super committee" -- would then be fast-tracked through both chambers, where it couldn't be amended by simple, regular lawmakers, who'd have the ability only to cast an up or down vote. With the weight of both leaderships behind it, a product originated by the Super Congress would have a strong chance of moving through the little Congress and quickly becoming law. A Super Congress would be less accountable than the system that exists today, and would find it easier to strip the public of popular benefits. Negotiators are currently considering cutting the mortgage deduction and tax credits for retirement savings, for instance, extremely popular policies that would be difficult to slice up using the traditional legislative process.

---------

Shock doctrine power grab, right here. Confuse and scare people, push something through at the last minute, say "IT HAD TO BE DONE!!" and the pols enjoy the fruits of their labor.

If this idea goes through, how many people here will be saying "Thank God it Passed!!!!"

[Ruby the Liberal]

1. Is this a joke?

[FLAprogressive]

3. Sadly, it doesn't appear to be.

[iwishiwas]

5. I was just going to post the same.

[Sportsguy]

76. I Thought The Very Same Thing

Damn.

[jtrockville]

107. Yes? The joke's on us?

[DesertDiamond]

124. Didn't they just do something similar in Michigan, where they passed a law that a hired city planner

or some such can take over and usurp the elected government at times of economic stress? They are trying to completely destroy democracy, pure and simple.

[Blecht]

2. fucking insane

It's times like these that I wish I didn't follow politics. It'd be a lot less stressful to be ignorant about all this.

[WCGreen]

43. I am cursed by my political curiosity....

[Lorien]

58. You and me both. nt

[Angry Dragon]

4. Sounds as if they are creating Treason

[caseymoz]

109. Yes, that's a good idea. Let's call the new super-Congress that.

We'll have Congress and we'll have Treason.

[Parker CA]

6. So this appears to be the dirty detail of the McConnell/Reid plan that has been quite vague

up until this point.

How this new super congress could potentially be used and abused in the future is quite frightening.

[FLAprogressive]

9. This is the plan....create chaos and cram it through at the last minute. Just like TARP.

[Parker CA]

14. And at the same time provide for completely untethered power by this small group on any issue

they deem appropriate. This is just sickening. And both parties are supporting this madness!? Goes to show that they just seek power and not a single other thing. The fewer the obstacles in achieving their grabs the better.

[Union Thug]

31. Spot On...

Another tack towards authoritarian rule...

[SusanaMontana41]

97. How can this be constitutional? n/t

[russspeakeasy]

127. Goddamn gutless bastards.....

[MouseFitzgerald]

7. This cant be real

[FLAprogressive]

10. It ain't in the HuffPost Comedy section or "The Onion".

[Davis_X_Machina]

8. Goldman's law...

....needs to be as famous as Godwin's.

Goldman's Law.

[immoderate]

11. This is based on the "Concentration of Morons" Theory

Pack a critical mass of morons, into an appropriate chamber, in the right proportions -- and BRILLIANCE is generated. Never fails.

--imm

[Recursion]

12. Congress has a history of using select committees to force resolutions on contentious issues

And it's perfectly within both chambers' Constitutional powers to adjust their rules to do so (both chambers have absolute discretion over their rules). BRAC is an example of this.

[kenny blankenship]

13. Suddenly "Death Panels" don't sound so crazy.

These people are capable of just about anything. Except they don't want to be seen as responsible for doing it.

[Beartracks]

155. The "Death Panels" charge could only come from people who...

... would have no problem setting up such a mechanism themselves.

--------------------------------

[OHdem10]

15. If they are incapable of doing their jobs, we can replace them

with a REAL NEW CONGRESS. Not some super something
created to cover their behinds.

Those Democrats had better be careful and not let
the Republicans vamboozle them.

Hey, did anyone catch David Brooks last night on PBS.

He said and I dropped my jaw---They need to get something
passed. If the Republicans get control of all 3 branches
they will not do anything about Medicare. (In other words
Democrats you are passing something this year so that
the Republicans can really screw up the Social Safety
Net and run out to the Press every 5 minutes and say this
is what President Obama and the Democrats passed.)

I find it most interesting. They have to have Obama
to put the Democrats Imprimatur on it . I have said
this all along. However, it is most creative to have
the Democrats and Obama pass the cuts this year so their
butts are covered in the coming year.

Watch out Democrats. This bunch do not understand economics
but they are as crafty as heck.


I found that

[CleanGreenFuture]

16. It's Christmas Eve all over again.

[Dept of Beer]

17. I need a second source for this. This plays like farce.

This super congress sounds like a House of Lords.

Are they hitting Boner's private reserve when they should be working?

[NightWatcher]

18. Sounds like a Star Chamber that would have huge dominion over the "little Congress"

The "little Congress" would be usurped and have no ability to debate fine points, change bad legislation, or even filibuster horrible legislation.

Plus, who picks said Super Congress now and in the future? To whom would they be accountable? Would Super Congress meet and deal behind closed doors?


Don't let the slide this through on a Sunday at 1:30 AM.

[Poll_Blind]

21. My god you read my mind. It IS a Star Chamber.

PB

[CleanGreenFuture]

19. WTF is a SUPER CONGRESS??? Is this America?

[Poll_Blind]

20. I read the whole article. This is a naked attempt to firewall legislators outside of a Star Chamber

There is no reason the debt ceiling cannot be passed without this madness. And make no goddamn doubt about it, this is madness.

PB

[handmade34]

22. +1

[Ed Suspicious]

26. General Question. Not directed at you poll_blind...

at least not necessarily.

What the hell can we do to stop this kind of madness. They've been concentrating power for a decade now. The vote seems to do nothing. There are only so many Bernie Sanders. They got rid of Feingold and Weiner. How can we stop treason short of revolution. I really want to know.

[Davis_X_Machina]

35. They got rid of Feingold and Weiner....

...no, actually the voters of Wisconsin got rid of Feingold, and Weiner got rid of Weiner.

The only thing that can get rid of a Congressman is the ballot, or a 2/3rds vote on a motion to expel.

There is no 'they'. There is only 'us'.

Whether we're up to the task of self-government is the question.

[canoeist52]

70. There's a third thing..

Another thing that can get rid of a Congressman is a little software inserted into voting machines.

[inna]

112. " There is no 'they'. There is only 'us'. "

War is Peace. Up is Down. And I'm a tooth fairy.

[thecrow]

140. .....sharpening my pitchfork....

....firing up my lantern....

And where do the teabaggers fit into this?

[lonestarnot]

23. I feel the fucking riots coming on.

[Dept of Beer]

27. This would not be representational government.

And who is to say that you wouldn't get three bluedogs and three teabags in that star chamber calling the shots?

[AlabamaLibrul]

63. "Who is to say"??? That has been the entire point of the "Gang of Six" bullshit. n/t

[CleanGreenFuture]

29. From Americans? 99% of Americans are goddamned cowards

and most of them don't even know about all this because they don't care and don't pay attention.

[BiggJawn]

81. You do?

What, is Cable Teeeeeee-Veeeeeee and the Xbox network going to be shut down?

[Marr]

138. I hear American Idol coming on.

[neverforget]

24. other than being blatantly Unconstitutional, it really sucks. You fuckers

in Congress were elected to do a job and you took an oath to uphold the Constitution, now fucking do it. If you can't, then leave you fucking cowards.

[Davis_X_Machina]

34. It's Constitutional...

...until you can isolate a provision that violates Article One.

Parliamentary bodies have wide discretion in how to conduct their business, and make their own rules.

This is another House-Senate select committee —- which committees have existed since Noah shut the door on the Ark -- whose report, given the form of legislation, is to be acted on in each House under rules limiting amendment and debate -- which restrictive rules also already exist, e.g. the budget reconciliation process, or the base closing process.

There’s not a fly on it from an Article One standpoint.

And you can always veto its results, because no action of Congress re its own rules is binding on the executive.

[russspeakeasy]

128. 100% correct neverforget...

[Parker CA]

25. Most important paragraph from the piece relating to current deal making...

House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) has made a Super Congress a central part of his last-minute proposal, multiple news reports and people familiar with his plan say. A picture of Boehner's proposal began to come into focus Saturday evening: The debt ceiling would be raised for a short-term period and coupled with an equal dollar figure of cuts, somewhere in the vicinity of a trillion dollars over ten years. A second increase in the debt ceiling would be tied to the creation of a Super Congress that would be required to find a minimum amount of spending cuts. Because the the elevated panel would need at least one Democratic vote, it would be presumably include at least some revenue, though, if it's anything like the deals on the table today, would likely be heavily slanted toward spending cuts. Or, as Obama said of the deal he was offering Republicans before Boehner walked out, "If it was unbalanced, it was unbalanced in the direction of not enough revenue."

[AverageJoe90]

28. I really do hope this ISN'T permanent.

The more power is available, the greater potential for corruption, not to mention it probably wouldn't be permittable according to the Constitution. I don't like it at all.

[kelly1mm]

40. It is a joint select committee. It is constitutional. nt

[COLGATE4]

82. The Italians have a saying: "Nothing is so permanent as something

that is temporary". I think they're right.

[Raksha]

30. This is completely insane...not to mention unconstitutional as all hell.

[snagglepuss]

32. Unbelievable. Just when you think it can't get worse. nt

[applegrove]

33. Sounds like the GOP are desperate to get rid of the teabaggers in their midst.

Or at least make them less powerful. You have to laugh sometimes, if only to stop your crying. LOL!

[Poll_Blind]

37. You cannot circumvent elected officials, regardless of how odius you find them.

That way is the path to the Crown and I have no desire move a single step along it.

PB

[Davis_X_Machina]

44. You don't circumvent them..

...you just don't name them to the committee.

There are 435 Reps. 400 of them aren't on Judiciary. Are they all circumvented when it comes to H.R. 83, the "Bullying Prevention and Intervention Act of 2011"

[white_wolf]

36. When I saw the words "Super Congress" I was sure this was from the Onion.

Seriously, I'm in shock.

[Poll_Blind]

38. Tell me about it. It's sobering and shocking.

And out of left field about as much as anything you could imagine.

PB

[Davis_X_Machina]

39. Call it a 'Joint Select Committee on Expenditure and Revenue Review'...

...and everyone goes to bed an hour ago.

[Poll_Blind]

41. You know what, you're right. Boehner's idea isn't so unreasonable after all.

:sarcasm:

:eyes:

PB

[Davis_X_Machina]

47. You want to have something...

...short of actual legislation to wave at the bond market tomorrow.

This'll do.

[kelly1mm]

52. Actually it is Senator Reid (you know, Democratic Majority Leader Reid) and

Senator McConnell that proposed this at the insistence of Bohner. Where is Pelosi on this????

[Dept of Beer]

46. I don't believe that it will fly...regardless of your assuring words.

[Davis_X_Machina]

48. See what comes out of the Rules Committee, and then..

...the action of the whole House.

It looks to me like something short of actual legislation to wave at the bond market.

[Pacifist Patriot]

79. I have to be uber-careful when reading my Tweets.

I played a game in the car yesterday with my husband and in-laws reading them Tweet history from The Onion, The Guardian, BBC Breaking, MSNBC and CNN breaking. They got about a third right as to what was real and what was satire. How sad is that.

[aquart]

42. Not on their bloody, fucking, totalitarian lives.

[CleanGreenFuture]

49. Or else what?

[Politicalboi]

45. Maybe Obama made Boner

President and Boner let it slip the other day. This is insane. Obama should just use the 14th Amendment. Let the cards fall.

[kelly1mm]

50. From the artice, it looks like there is buy in by Reid, Bohner,and McConnell. What about Pelosi?

Although she is not really necessary in that the minority party in the House can't really stop anything, unlike in the Senate, if she buys in it could get interesting.

While I generally like the idea of the legislative branch standing up to the executive branch, unlike the last 40 or so years of the unitary executive model, it really leaves the President out there on a limb.

[Davis_X_Machina]

51. Boehner's building a safe room...

...where Cantor and co can't get him. He hand-picks six non-crazies, they go on the committee and something gets done.

This is a white flag -- an open admission he can't deliver, or even trust, his own caucus, and something to blame if the results aren't to his caucus' liking.

And something to wave at the bond markets short of actual legislation.

He's fighting to save his gavel... this is the last act of a desperate man -- or the first act of Henry the Fifth.

[kelly1mm]

53. Whatever comes out of the star chamber/select committee/drinking club

or whatever we end up calling it still has to get voted on straight up or down. The tea party will still need to be fed.

[Davis_X_Machina]

54. They're not there when the pie is baked...

...only when it's served. You worry about that then.

The tea party I don't think is gaining strength. Time is not on the TP's side. This is another non-dilatory dilatory device, like McConnell-Boehner Plan B was.

I think they're looking at the collapse of tea party activity compared to last year and figured out that they can ride this out, so long as there's no explosions. Hence the need to dolce, dolce the bond market.

[kelly1mm]

57. We can only hope! However, if the tea party reps know they are on the way

out anyway in 2012, why not go out in a blaze of glory? I agree the tea party is losing strength - it is harder to actually govern than to just throw rhetorical rocks at opponents.

[DebJ]

152. But the Repubs can't vote up on anything except morality. n/t

[Fuddnik]

96. I've got something to wave at the bond markets tomorrow.

I don't think anybody involved believes the bond market guys are that gullible.

[Odin2005]

55. This is insanity. This is madness.

[AlabamaLibrul]

56. I'm not allowed to say the other, so I'll just say Fuck Mitch McConnell

:)

[kelly1mm]

59. What? You are not allowed to say "Fuck Harry Reid"? nt

[AlabamaLibrul]

62. Disrespectful nicknames, crude insults, or right-wing smears against Democrats

Democratic Underground welcomes a wide range of people from the left half of the political spectrum, and our members are welcome to post messages either criticizing or defending Democrats. We permit any substantive criticism of President Obama and Democrats -- even harsh criticism that may not seem constructive -- provided it comes from a liberal perspective. However, we do not permit the following: Referring to Democrats using disrespectful nicknames (eg: Calling President Obama "Barry"); Crude insults against Democrats (eg: "Fuck Harry Reid"); Insults, attacks, or baseless partisan smears against Democrats that one is likely to find on right-wing blogs or talk radio (eg: Secret Muslim, No birth certificate).

I don't like to crudely insult Dems, therefore, fuck Mitch McConnell.

[kelly1mm]

65. Du'ers say "Fuck xxxx" all the time to Blue Dog Democrats. Thus, I don't think that is a violation.

However, I see your point. I guess it is harder to accept when a 'friend' stabs you in the back (hence all the OP's concerning the President's actions here on DU) rather than an enemy you expect to do so.

[Safetykitten]

60. In my wildest dreams I would of never thought it would come to this. This is the result of

a weak and completely inefectual President.

How he can stand by on this one is beyond all belief.

[Blue_In_AK]

61. This reminds me of the deal in Michigan

where the guy can come in and take over a city, discounting everyone's elected officials. They're playing it out on a grand scale, aren't they?

Shock Doctrine.

[woo me with science]

64. This is war, folks.

They are coming for us. This is not Boehner against Obama. This is the banks against all of us, and they have the government now.

[girl gone mad]

67. What do you mean "now"?

[woo me with science]

68. I mean things are escalating.

I believe they are putting into motion plans that have been in place for a long time.

Witness the plans for a new "super congress" to facilitate theft.

[LetTimmySmoke]

66. A new congress?

That's the best idea a GOP Congressional majority has come up with in 40 years!

[Name removed]

69. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[IDemo]

71. Oh come on. It's not like there isn't precedent for this:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politburo_of_the_Central_Committee_of_the_Communist_Party_of_the_Soviet_Union

[DCBob]

72. The reason this is necessary is because of hard-core ideologues (RW & LW) who wont allow compromise.

imo.

[theaocp]

77. False equivalency.

:thumbsdown:

[Scuba]

73. Yes, let's disenfranchise most of the voters and reinforce the two-party system. Swell.

sarcasm thingy.

[Change Happens]

74. BUT, I HATE BIG GOVERNMENT!!!! WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

[myrna minx]

75. Is this a joke???

[hobbit709]

78. Every day the idiots manage to enlarge my view of the possible.

[Pacifist Patriot]

80. Wow, just wow.

[rug]

83. Gesetz zur Behebung der Not von Volk und Reich

[Overseas]

84. Disgusting. Hope it can be stopped.

[blkmusclmachine]

85. Now I think we know what's really behind the Patriot Act & all those other goodies:

They knew where they wanted to go legislatively 10 yeras out after 9/11, and who'd be "the Enemy."

[Skidmore]

86. VOTE THEM OUT! Dammit.

Congress needs to be totally cleaned out and there needs to be a concerted effort to not rely upon millionaires who can fund their own campaigns to be our candidates. Clean house. I was saying this way back before the 2008 election.

The left sat here and whined, booted a president, but didn't complete the job of getting in a new congress supportive of the people. They let the RW cobble that together with the debacle known as teabaggers.

Damn, I'm disgusted. We did a half-assed job. Sat on our tushes and didn't follow through after the election movement foreward. That is why I get so frustrated with the handwringers here.

[Cannikin]

87. Well, start hitting all the Tea Party sites and asking them if this is what they had in mind

for our constitution. I'm very curious to hear what they are going to say.

[Chan790]

89. I went to FR looking for response...

they seem to be unaware of it...there are no relevant results for a site search of "Supercongress" or " super Congress".

They don't care apparently. So much for their deep concern for the Constitution and their belief we're forcing them into a dictatorship.

[Cannikin]

92. I "liked" the Tea Party page on FB to see if it was there. It was not, so I posted the link

with the caption "constitution? We don't need no stinking constitution!".

[riderinthestorm]

88. Debt ceiling crisis = the opportunity for shock doctrine policies to be enacted.

It's here folks. Finally here. Does anyone still believe we have a 2 party system anymore in this country? Both sides are definitely complicit in the race to finish off the American experiment.

:(

[Shandris]

90. This isn't from the Onion?

Holy fucking shit, someone find Jar Jar Binks and tell him this is a BAD FUCKING IDEA! Did none of these people even SEE Revenge of the Sith?!

[glinda]

91. The Country has fallen off the cliff into the abyss.

[Solly Mack]

93. A Super Gang of 12 with ultimate power. Fuck that.

[ZombieHorde]

94. Hahahahaha! nt

[Ignis]

95. RIP Democracy, 2011.

[WinkyDink]

120. Oh, no. That was December, 2000.

[Ignis]

156. That's a fair point. Conceded.

[Slit Skirt]

98. If this thing passes how many people will be......

out in the streets?

[DemocracyInaction]

99. Ummm Observation

If you have a equally split panel, then aren't you taking away the idea of MAJORITY AND MINORITY! This means you could elect a zillion Dems and have 10 repukes in the whole damn congress and they would be just as powerful. For Christ's sake Obama, he's playing you like a dumb fiddle........

[DebJ]

153. Excellent point. Sounds like Repubs think they'll lose 2012

[Dj13Francis]

100. If its an idea from Mitch McConnell

You gotta know its a bad idea.

I fuckin' hate that fuck. Fuck him. And fuck his little dog too.

[blkmusclmachine]

101. Vile. Undemocratic. And scary as shit.

Just image what a Pres. Rick Perry or Michelle Bachmann would do with this. :nuke:

[usrname]

102. The mortgage deduction

I personally would like to see the mortgage deduction phased out over the course of 30 years. The mortgage deduction doesn't benefit anyone other than real estate agents and home builders, but now that it's been in existence for these many decades, even those guys aren't really benefitting. Without the mortgage deduction, housing prices would be lower, but if we phase in the removal of the deduction over 30 years, the effect of lowering the housing prices would be minimal. The final effect, however, will be homes that are truly affordable, as opposed to being inflated to someone's tax bracket. Those who earn more, actually, will get homes that aren't overpriced, while those who earn little won't be negatively affected (since their tax was nominal already, so not much could be deducted).

[robinlynne]

103. oh hell no.

[Jakes Progress]

104. Our elected officials - Dem and rep - are not your friends.

They are working for people that are taking away your country.

[orbitalman]

105. K & R

[JDPriestly]

106. Call Congress and don't let up.

[anarch]

108. if this happens, we're going to need a "Super President"

so he can "Super Veto" the "Super Bills" that this "Super Congress" creates.

I don't even know what to say.

[BlueJac]

110. Fuck the GANGBANGERS.............

law breaking fucking assholes. Stealing our money and giving it to their gang members. This is beyond belief, but can happen in a sleep walking America.

[Harriety]

111. This is awful! How do they expect us to swallow this crap?

[summerschild]

113. SHOCK DOCTRINE WARNING!

Default is looking better every day.

Us commoners will be screwed either way.

[snappyturtle]

119. Unfortunately, you may be right. Welcome to DU! (I think). nt

[kayakjohnny]

114. When you google this story, you ONLY get this one story. From ONLY this one reporter.

You get NOTHING else on the whole internet where this story is mentioned.

At all.

Other than from this ONE reporter.

[WheelWalker]

115. Reminds me of a Politburo. nt

[pam4water]

116. What the hell are they thinking? n/t

[marions ghost]

117. Is HuffPo breaking this?

Maybe we will find out more about it tomorrow from other sources?

Super Congress...what?...how do we pop that fantasy balloon?

[WinkyDink]

118. Sounds like TREASON.

[wundermaus]

121. There goes what's left of our government...

Of, By, and For the People... the Rule of Law... as checks and balances circles the drain of passive acceptance... and down it goes!

Shock doctrine in action, boys and girls... this time it's not in some distant third world country, it's in OUR back yard!

So What Are We Going To Do About It?

(((Crickets)))

Absolutely Nothing?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S4Mu-kCsUiU

[snappyturtle]

122. This scares the ever loving hell out of me! It's just my gut instinct but

it isn't the path the Constitution set up to conduct the country's business. I am also infuriated beyond belief that a group of elected officials have allowed the problem of the debt ceiling to come to such a 'solution'.

We must register our disagreement not that it will do any good but..............we must do it, none-the-less. I will start with Reid.

[guruoo]

123. "We've tried persuasion. We've tried negotiations. We've tried elections. Nothing has worked.."

"The Constitution must be amended to keep the government in check. We've tried persuasion.
We've tried negotiations. We're tried elections. Nothing has worked." -Sen Mitch McConnell (R-KY)

http://www.dirigoblue.com/diary/3387/sen-mitch-mcconnell-rky-we-must-rewrite-the-constitution-because-elections-havent-worked

[99th_Monkey]

125. I cannot imagine this ever actually PASSING in the Senate, can you? nt

[valerief]

132. Today? Yes. They're all bought and paid for, and those who aren't are being threatened. nt

[russspeakeasy]

126. Gutless..Gutless...Gutless.

Are you o. k. with this Mr. President ? I need an answer before the next election..

[julian09]

129. Who picks the twelve, will they supersede the leadership

will they override committee chairs. Will they be experts on every conceivable phase of government?

[valerief]

131. The Congressional Emergency Manager, I imagine. You know, like the ONE PERSON (not sure if it has

to be human) who calls ALL THE SHOTS for an ENTIRE CITY.

[valerief]

130. This country fuckin' sucks. nt

[Marr]

133. In the US, when big business wants something, they get it.

The Constitution is barely a speed bump.

[YellowRubberDuckie]

134. I posted this yesterday.

It is terrifying. Also, note: "On March 23, 1933, the Reichstag passed the Enabling Act, which gave dictatorial authority to Hitler's cabinet for four years. Armed with full powers, Hitler moved to eliminate all possible centers of opposition. His policy is known as Gleichschaltung, which translates literally as coordination. In this context, however, it meant more precisely subordination, that is, subordinating all independent institutions to the authority of Hitler and the Nazi Party."

[Samantha]

135. They would staff the Super Congress with people planning not

to run the next election cycle, and/or those who know they are moving on to bigger and better things, those retiring -- in order words persons against whom the populace could not claim an electoral retaliation for cutting or structuring challenging entitlements. We have seen this movie before.

Sam

[Marr]

136. This really negates any excuses for the President not invoking the 14th ammendment.

If Congress' best solution is to set up an unconstitutional House of Lords, I see no reason for shying away from a solution that is merely constitutionally questionable.

[hairyHans]

137. A much quicker and more certain solution!

 Why do Americans not insist(RALLY, RANT & RAGE) that the
first cuts to ANY taxpayer-supported wages/benefits are those
of ALL the politicians... President, congressmen,senators,
upper political civil servants!  
 If this were to happens you would have NO problem coming up
with PRAGMATIC not rhetorical solutions. 
 WHY do AMERICANS NOT JOIN TOGETHER EN MASSE AND INSIST
" POLITICIANS FIRST!" . 
 Don't forget: they put themselves first on EVERYTHING ELSE: 
Best benefits, best expense accounts, best health care, best
working environment .... all at taxpayers' expense.`
  
Will you allow them, by dithering, to further reduce your
common American's well-being?
 

[DirkGently]

139. Where is this stuff coming from? Not polls. Not economists. Not Earth-based reasoning. WHO is

pushing this insane agenda? This is a gigantic power and money grab, and it has nothing to do with the things the people pushing it say it does. It's very simple: Raise the debt ceiling. There is no "debt crisis." There is no deficit crisis. Social Security and Medicare are not endangering the nation.

And, if the deficit were such a big crisis, we have plenty of wars and corporate tax breaks just sitting there, waiting to fill the coffers. The Bush tax cuts alone would do a lot of it.

WHERE is this push coming from?

[sarcasmo]

141. Politicians creating more Government, I just can't believe it.

[Clear Blue Sky]

142. SCOTUS will strike it down.

[paparush]

143. Ah..now we're getting to the real reason for this manufactured debt ceiling crisis.

This cannot be allowed to happen.

[KeyserSoze87]

144. To the Tea Party and all the members of the GOP who have given allegiance to it...

This is it. This is the last straw. Now you have gone too far. I am now at my wit’s end. Never in my entire life have I ever felt such a strong hatred for one single group of people. You are all disgusting, vile, and self-centered wastes of oxygen. There are no words in the English language that can describe how selfish, heartless, cruel, and greedy you all are. Ever since having a landslide victory in Congress back in November 2010, you have broken your promise to get this battered country back to work, and have instead focused on attacking everything that our grandparents and great-grandparents have fought for, and laying off public workers at any given opportunity.

And now, you’re threatening to bring our entire country into a financial panic if you don’t get what you want. Well, I have a newsflash: Our country and our entire political system does not revolve around you. You claim that you’re the real Americans in this nation and that you represent the majority, and yet you fail to notice that the rest of this country is tired of listening to your nonsense. How DARE you people dress like our Founding Fathers during your pathetic rallies, and how DARE you call yourselves “patriots.” If you are intentionally sabotaging an entire country’s economy for political gains, you are NOT a “patriot.” You are a TRAITOR, and an enemy to our republic and its people. You have now become the very thing you vowed to destroy shortly after 9/11. I used to believe that there was some good in everyone, but apparently I was wrong. You are pure evil right down to the core. Ever since you started your movement against Obama, you have spread hatred, violence, and bigotry across this country, and you will continue to consume and destroy everything in your path until you have complete power over our entire society. You people do not represent a “grassroots” movement; you represent an attempt to give total power to corporations and the wealthy, and to turn all of us into serfs.

The American people are living in a very scary point in our nation’s history. What’s truly alarming about what they’re currently facing is that it has happened in the past in other nations, and has led to absolutely terrifying results. In Germany following World War I, another political movement, not unlike the one you’ve created, came into power. They promised to bring the country out of its economic troubles, and to fight for the rights of its people. Instead, they took advantage of all the anger amongst the citizens, and they turned the entire country into a one-party, fascist dictatorship that would bring the entire world to the brink of destruction. And I’m sure you know which political movement I’m talking about. Right now, your movement is taking America down a path quite similar to the one Germany took in the 1920s and 1930s.

But no matter what you do, you won’t be fooling me. I know perfectly well that this artificial debt crisis is a scheme you’re using to gain complete control of Congress, and to have a President Romney, thus completing America??s transformation from a democracy to a fascist corporate empire. Well guess what? I’ll vote for that sleazy, lying Gordon Gekko reject when Hell freezes over. What you people don’t know is that you’ve created an uprising of liberals, moderates, and working people across this country (as shown in Wisconsin and other states), and it will get so large that you’ll be unable to stop it. You may win this battle, but you will not win this war. I know that eventually the American people will be able to look past your lies, and your political movement will collapse after it’s defeated by a political tsunami of our own making. And when that day comes, the era of income inequality and Reaganomics will be over, and a new age of progressivism and economic prosperity will begin.

[NorthCarolina]

145. Over 140 posts and our resident cheerleader force for the administration is conspicuously absent

from this thread. Formulating their plan of attack no doubt. I wonder what path it will take. I can hardly wait to see what smokescreen they come up with.

[OwnedByFerrets]

146. Dictatorship by committee

[ozone_man]

148. +1

[Plucketeer]

147. ALL we have left to change ANYthing

is our votes. We have NO OTHER means by which we can bring about change. We romantically voted for change last election, and indeed we're getting it - it's just for the worse. Small change at best - DOMA and DADT and the like. Certainly a big deal for those who benefit, but for the rest of us - shit.

Only our tiny, flimsy votes bear any effectiveness anymore, and so many either can't be bothered or squander them with ill-advised casting. If that weren't meager enough, look at the vote suppression tactics being instituted against the Dem vote. Maybe it's time to go sharpen the tines on my Made In China pitchfork.

[bertman]

149. Aren't we PROUD that our Democratic Senate Majority Leader approves of this?

Reid is a worthless Corporate tool. If this doesn't show the non-believers here that the Democratic party leaders are trying to subvert our democracy, then I don't know what will.

REC.

[SpankMe]

150. They hate Obama, plain and simple

I got this from a thread on another website. Not sure if it's true, but it seems plausible:

Here's how many Senate Republicans voted to raise the debt ceiling each time it came up for a vote since 1997:

1997: 55
2002: 31
2003: 50
2004: 50
2006: 51
2007: 26
2008: 34
2008: 33
2009: 2
2009: 1
2010: 0

Oh man! What changed in 2009!?

Sure, this is all about restoring fiscal sanity.

[geckosfeet]

151. No frickin way.

[FreakinDJ]

154. You're Right - I don't believe it

So now the "Hyperventilating News Reporters" have migrated over to Huffpo

Didn't Arianna sell the Huffpo not to long ago