John Boehner walks away from debt talks

[Recursion]

Source: CBS

House Speaker John Boehner has walked away from negotiations with President Obama over a deal to raise the debt limit.

"In the end, we couldn't connect. Not because of different personalities, but because of different visions for our country," Boehner said in a letter to colleagues. He said Mr. Obama " is emphatic that taxes have to be raised" and "adamant that we cannot make fundamental changes to our entitlement programs."

"For these reasons, I have decided to end discussions with the White House and begin conversations with the leaders of the Senate in an effort to find a path forward," he said.

House Republican leadership aides told CBS News that Boehner will work with the Senate leadership in an attempt to reach a deal that meets the GOP's two central requirements: That spending cuts are equal to or greater than debt limit increase and that there are no new taxes.

Read more: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20082240-503544.html

---

You know what I love? When DU loses its collective mind based on unsourced rumors without waiting to see what's actually happening...

[ejpoeta]

1. the fact of the matter is, that unless you are willing to increase revenues (increase taxes or

eliminate the bush tax cuts) then you are not in any way serious about decreasing the debt. Period. That is the facts. And another fact is that unless you are talking about cutting the defense budget you are not serious about cutting the deficit. Period.

[alfredo]

4. All they want is to force the end of the new deal.

[IthinkThereforeIAM]

52. I have said that for years...

... that the GOP is paid for by "Powers That Be", that want to reverse The New Deal, and it goes back to their grandpappy's preaching them that hate while out teaching them to fish on the family private fishing pond, in grandpappy's booklined library which reeks of cigar and pipe smoke, you get the visual? I personally know people my age (40 something) whose dad and granddad have/had the same views, "no government anything is needed, if someone needs help, then those who didn't have to pay income taxes or be regulated will voluntarily and lovingly help them out"! :eyes:

[alfredo]

69. And Naomi Klein is right that the rich Republicans are

using the shock doctrine against us. They want to cause a crisis so deep that we will accept, or will be powerless against, their power grab.

[IthinkThereforeIAM]

53. Self Delete...

...repeat of my previous post, got some of slow response on my connection, so nevermind. Thank you.

[socialist_n_TN]

8. There you go. In a nutshell............

Plus+++++++++++++++

[leveymg]

44. What a bonehead. He just took the mantel of attacking SS/Medicare back onto the GOP

This shifts the PR advantage back to the Dems, of they could ever capitalize and score on such a huge blunder.

[Beartracks]

66. +1 -- Corp. tax welfare is an ACTUAL entitlement program. n/t

=====================================

[Raksha]

71. Thank you!!! That pretty much sums it up, doesn't it?

Re "...unless you are willing to increase revenues (increase taxes or eliminate the bush tax cuts) then you are not in any way serious about decreasing the debt. Period. That is the facts. And another fact is that unless you are talking about cutting the defense budget you are not serious about cutting the deficit. Period."

[MadMaddie]

77. I told my Republican coworkers this and I got a blank stare back

They said well the military is keeping us safe....I said if that is true why is the military being forced to take engines for aircraft they don't want? but...but...the military should get any money they ask for....

I then responded Republicans are not serious about cutting anything.....

[snappyturtle]

2. I disagree. We only know what we hear from the lips of the 'leaders'.

What I've heard lately would not in any way lead me to this point today. That's not anyone's (DU"S) impatience in w-a-i-t-i-n-g to see what's actually happening. I'm tired of guessing and the President is FINALLY spelling it out. imho

[alfredo]

3. Knowingly harming the nation for personal gain is treason. Fuck the GOP

[robinlynne]

5. Good luck with that Boner.

[cascadiance]

6. And Boehner sounds like he's equally emphatic to support crooks taking over our government!

There needs to be justice applied to crooks when they do such things!!

Don't know if we can wait until 2012, but until then, those in charge need to guard the hen house from this sort of thievery and other crimes that these gangsters of six want to continue to wage against us.

[chalky]

7. "Mr. Obama is....adamant that we cannot make fundamental changes to our entitlement programs."

Huh.

[Recursion]

10. It seems pretty clear to me

Mr. Obama is adamant that we cannot make fundamental changes to our entitlement programs.

[Lordquinton]

32. It seems clear to me

that Mr. Bohner is clear that Mr. Obama is adamant that we cannot make fundamental changes to our entitlement programs. A truly reliable source.

It's not that I believe he's going to make cuts, it's that we need to make it clear that even thinking about making cuts is in no way acceptable. Waiting and seeing is what led us to this mess in the first place. There are no "I told you so" there is only "Good, don't let it happen"

[Recursion]

36. Calling Medicare cost controls "cuts" is demagoguery whatever side it comes from (nt)

[leveymg]

48. Calling Medicare COLA cuts "cost controls" is simply Orwellian double-speak. Typical wonkism, we're

all tired of the apologists for the Third Way. This is a progressive board - adapt or perish.

The national Democratic leadership's biggest strength at this point is that our collective enemies are truly idiot drunk used car salesmen with bad tans. That isn't much reason to rejoice.

[cliffordu]

68. LOL.

Fail.

[mdmc]

73. he

yet rejoice we shall..

[Recursion]

75. There's no such thing as a Medicare COLA (nt)

[bahrbearian]

49. It is cuts when you make a savings and pocket the savings,

Keep the money in Medicare and strengthen it. It should not be on the table for deficits.

[awoke_in_2003]

11. I hope Bonehead is telling the truth...

democrats should be adamant about that.

[Firebrand Gary]

9. The House is beholden to one document THE CONSTITUTION, Fuck Norquist's Pledge!!!

We must get them out of congress.

[still_one]

12. boehner is a lazy ass and didn't want to work this weekend /nt

[MissDeeds]

20. He didn't want to miss happy hour

[Recursion]

21. Boehner is desperate for a deal but can't control his caucus

It's appalling to watch from the perspective of the Hill...

[Botany]

13. "They" don't give a crap about the debt this is just a tool ...

.... to hurt the President, Democrats, and the middle class & poor people in America
in order to help the rich and powerful.


Bill Clinton left a surplus and bush spent us into the shitter so the republicans could blame all those
middle class entitlements for the debt and now they demand that those entitlements be cut so as to protect
tax cuts to millionaires and oil companies. Now is the time to stand up and tell the republicans to eat shit
and die but Obama can't do that because he knows that if the SSI checks stop millions of Americans will be
hurt. The real terrorists are the republicans.

[Name removed]

14. Deleted message

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

[Recursion]

19. I've followed Congress for a while and I've never seen a Speaker this weak

He's completely unable to discipline his caucus -- probably because his Majority Leader and Whip have had knives in his back since he took up the gavel.

[creeksneakers2]

15. Boehner might be going toward the gang of six monster

Obama was offering Boehner a better deal than Reid has, so I'm sure what Boehner is thinking. Perhaps they'll try to work something with the gang of six monster by simultaneously calling it a tax cut and a tax increase, like the gang of six has been doing.

[Recursion]

17. The gang of six deal was the least bad thing I've seen so far

It has as a basis a repeal of the Bush tax cuts and a permanent application of the "doctor fix" -- the tax cuts are as compared to pre-Bush levels, and the Medicare cuts are as compared to a much higher baseline than now.

[creeksneakers2]

26. Its a huge tax cut for the rich

It does the opposite of what its supposed to do, cutting the deficit. If there is any additional revenue to come from it its all coming from the wider part of the pyramid.

[Recursion]

27. No, it's a huge tax cut compared to 2000 levels

It's a higher rate than today, and removes a lot of deductions.

[creeksneakers2]

34. The current top rate is 35%

Gang of six would cut it to 29%. It would also cut the corporate tax rate from 35% to 23%. They say they'll take away deductions but don't specify a single one for the rich. They would cut deductions ordinary people use: charitible, 401K, mortgage interest, and employer provided health care. On top of those tax cuts for the rich they want something called a "competitive territorial tax system" which in plain English means that multinationals would no longer owe one cent of US taxes on earnings abroad. The idea also favors cutting the American rate to compete with nations with lower tax rates.

CBO hasn't scored anything and I don't believe that after all that revenues would increase, unless they plan to really sock it to the wider part of the pyramid. And if there is any movement toward limiting any deductions the wealthy use there is already an army of lobbyists there to stop it.

[JDPriestly]

47. But members of Congress are relived from having to take

responsibility for their votes on Social Security and Medicaid and Medicare and other programs for the poor and elderly.

I strongly oppose a Gang of Six deal.

Members of Congress should have to answer for their votes on these specific issues in the next election.

Otherwise, the people will have no voice in what is happening although the decisions made by Congress will have serious repercussions for Americans.

The Gang of Six idea is a secret deal that avoids the democratic process. I absolutely oppose it.

[KamaAina]

16. So Harry Reid's going to be in the loop this time?

Or did Orange Julius just mean the repuke leaders* of the Senate? :eyes:

[Recursion]

18. I think he actually just said McConnell

This should get interesting...

[dennis4868]

22. Obama is a chess player...

CHECKMATE! Obama has now made the republican party look selfish and uninterested in solving problems and unserious about anything....his chess game plan has worked and will give the dems the House back in 2012!

[Recursion]

24. That's a damn high-stakes game, then

That depends on Boehner coming crawling to Pelosi. Again. But God, that would be delicious...

[JDPriestly]

50. Nonsense. Obama has set a precedent for cutting

programs for the poor and elderly.

That is a terrible thing to do.

In my view Obama has failed big time.

First he should have obtained the lifting of the debt ceiling when Democrats were in the majority.

Second, he should have held an open town hall and received questions from the public on it.

This process was one of the sneakiest abuses of the presidential power I have seen. The elite in Congress sat in the vulture's perch.

I think Obama was quite weak on the important issues here.

He should have pointed over and over to the misery that the Republicans and Tea-Baggers want to inflict on the country and how cuts in vital programs for the poor and elderly will resound through the economy and hurt everyone, not just the poor and elderly.

What kinds of sacrifices did this plan foresee for the military?

How many overseas bases would they have closed?

[bluedigger]

23. And Boehner thinks the Senate is going to cooperate why?

And by "cooperate", I mean "capitulate".:shrug:

[Sen. Walter Sobchak]

25. There wouldn't be a DU without...

incredulous poutrage at unsubstantiated media reports. Now just sit back and watch as people continue to cite the discredited media reports for weeks on end.

[mike_c]

28. more theater, signifying nothing....

eom

[rdking647]

29. i think mcdonnels plan

will end up being the one that passes and boner will end up losing his speakers gavel over his stupidity

[Recursion]

31. I agree Cantor has just made Boehner untenable as speaker

We're witnessing a langmessernacht with the economy as collateral damage.

[jzodda]

30. This whole thing is crazy

Were it not for the terrible consequences of default I would be very amused by all this stuff.

[Hubert Flottz]

33. You just can't reason with a guy with DTs...

[yardwork]

35. Good. I don't want Obama or the Democrats to compromise on this.

[julian09]

40. same ole "no tax increases" DEMAND

why is this expected to improve prospects of approval in the HOUSE of retards?

[liberal N proud]

37. They have revealed the true republican ideology

Foster an environment friendly only to the wealthy of the nation at the cost of the rest.

[Amonester]

72. Yep. Gotta favor the JOB CREATORS! HA! How many jobs did they destroy

since 2007, after YEARS of TAX CUTS under bu$h and repuke congress??

MILLIONS?

"JOB CREATORS" in China, India, South-Korea, Mexico, maybe!

[DreamSmoker]

38. Screw Boehner and the GOP

A fundamental difference in all of us is that the GOP wants it their way or the Highway period..
Its been this way on every single issue that hits Congress for so many years now..
Even at the expense of Americans and this Countries future collapsing...
I believe these folks are Traders to America and its people... They sold us all out in the name of Business and Profits...
And if i here one more time how these Guys are out for small Businesses.. PLEASE GIVE ME A BREAK...
During Clinton's time we payed some of the highest tax rates in American History.. If anyone was unemployed it was by choice as Jobs were plentiful then... Payed down a 6 trillion dollar dept in just two terms and ended up with the very first federal Government Surplus..
That put America in a Place just the very opposite of today.. With a Employees Job Market and a economy that was dept free and secure..


Most of those Huge Corporations who the GOP is fighting for have no problem with Job creation anywhere else..
Not here in the U.S.

And those small Businesses that are even left cannot get loans or grow because the Banks got all our cash we spend at these lost Businesses...
So if Americans are broke and unemployed... Nothing these Repukes do or offer will fix anything.... Just helps those who now pay their campaign bills..

[GOPBasher]

39. Can someone tell me what is happening now? Default? Something else?

I'm sorry, but I couldn't find the answer to this question in any of the three articles I just read on this. I didn't want to start a new thread for this, but I'm hoping someone can fill me in here. Are we going to default now? Or is President Obama going to accept McConnel's offer of sole control of debt limit and sole responsibility (the only adult in the room scenario)? Is there another option? I'm really, really hoping we don't default.

[Recursion]

41. McConnell's punt is the only way forward I can see

But who knows what the weekend holds? My staffer friends still don't know if there will be an extraordinary tomorrow or not.

[GOPBasher]

42. Thanks. That would be a better option than default. n/t

[SaveAmerica]

43. Oooh, so surprised by this development (sarcasm!) HE'S A DOMESTIC TERRORIST!!

[JDPriestly]

45. So now, we have to fight for tax hikes for the rich.

Still, any "compromise" on Social Security, Medicare Medicaid and food stamps will crush the poor and elderly.

We cannot allow that to happen.

The poor and the elderly are those least likely to survive if their incomes are cut.

[McCamy Taylor]

46. This is not the Obama we keep hearing about at DU.

[BlueIdaho]

51. The Boner had to walk away...

He could never deliver a majority of House republicans to any sort of deal. He is one of the weakest Speakers in recent history.

Pour another drink Johnny boy, history is passing you by.

[alp227]

54. Bye! Could this be actually good news for Obama? n/t

[unkachuck]

55. "...end discussions with the White House and begin conversations with the leaders of the Senate..."

....is boner saying the Prez is irrelevant to debt-ceiling legislation? That the Prez doesn't matter because he'll sign any legislation pukes place on his desk if it makes it through the Senate?

....fuck this bogus self-imposed debt-limit bullshit....where are all those Republican 'tax-break' jobs? Put people to work and you'll have the revenue.

[and-justice-for-all]

56. GOP requirements are not even in the top ten

or at least should not be. The PEOPLES needs should come first and I hope that is what Obama is doing, thinking of our needs first and foremost.

In the end, Obama would not bow-down and give the Teahadist GOP shit bags what they want, so boner walks away with dust.

[rucky]

57. It never gets old. n/t

[ShadowLiberal]

58. Boehner's a bad liar, he's now claiming Obama walked away from the deal, not him

The deal breaks down, and Boehner runs straight to the media to complain about Obama and stuff he did during negotiations (specifically moving the goal posts, something he himself has done plenty of times this congress with other must pass legislation).

Does Obama run to the media to complain? No.

Boehner then claims that Obama walked away from a deal instead of him once he sees the media reporting it as himself walking away from a deal. Umm, really? People who are feeling sore enough to go to the media and complain sure look a lot more likely to walk away from a deal then the guy who isn't complaining to the media.

[JAnthony]

60. What a farce Boehner is! Lying is no big deal for him, Obama wants him back at 11 am Saturday

and people who watch Fox News think Obama walked out?

What idiots!!

Oh but we knew that!

[JAnthony]

59. This news proves one thing, and one thing only

Republicans are inferior mentally.

They need to be phased out by simple evolution.

People who defend rich people from paying a dollar in taxes.........


Evolution will take care of this within 50 years......but then we have to deal with tomorrow, not 50 years from now.

[Monk06]

61. I think Obama knew all along nothing he would agree to would be agreed to by the Nutbags

That's why he could afford to give away the store.


The Teabaggers don't want the store. They want the
town and country.

They are the crew of the Galaxy Quest, "Never give up
never surrender." Trouble is Galaxy Quest was a satire
of a fictional television series.

Tea Baggers think Galaxy Quest is a political movie.

[Swede Atlanta]

62. We face a serious prolonged decline....

The tea baggers do not care about people. They only care about their ideology that is funded by the monied interests in this country. For them if they bring the economy down they win because they believe this will bring Palin or Bachmann or Perry to the White House. I guess none of them have an elderly parent or someone in their family that has fallen on hard times. Time for the revolution to begin. They threatened a revolution after Obama was elected. I suggest now is the time to reload and aim........... We must take our country back from the children.

[texshelters]

63. Republicans clearly

want to bring down the economy and only idiots who support them believe otherwise.

Obama tried to meet them more than half way, and they balked. Let's hope he treats them like Jack McCoy would and go for the maximum.

Peace,
Tex Shelters

[Swede Atlanta]

64. If..........

If the default occurs I suggest.....

Salaries and benefits, including medical, to the Administration, Congress and the federal courts are stopped. They will be allowed to apply for unemployment benefits and get their own fucking health insurance. Their pension program is terminated. They now pay into Social Security as their only retirement program. The pensions are eliminated.

For those that are sucking at the public teat...the former Congress critters....their plans are terminated. They get whatever people whose employers have gone belly up and go under PPCG? No more medical. They can get it on the free market that is so grand for seniors.

[TatonkaJames]

65. You're a politician, you have no principals, so here's what you do

rip up the Norquist Agreement as a patriotic leader and act like a man. It isn't "a law."
You just want to protect your sponsors interests and your off shore accounts they pour money into.
Go play another round of golf you hack.

[Twostones]

67. Obama's fist mistake......

was to think there would be meaningful negotiations with the fascist neocon Republicons. He should have learned that in the primary. Republicons will never negotiate. They use extortion and Fear to get their way. They hold the poor,the elderly, the unemployed, the sick and the children hostage to get their fascist agenda fulfilled.

[Robbins]

70. Well

It appears I was wrong to take any stock In any of these reports.If Obama was giving up the store Bohener wouldn't have end talks.
It appears Obama did want some tax Increases on the rich and wasn't prepared to gut Entitlements like Republicans want.

[Kablooie]

74. That's why I've decided not to judge until the decision has formalized.

Obama may be giving everything away or he may be using strategy and politics with no intention of doing so.

We won't know until it all plays out.

[Name removed]

76. Deleted message

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