If President Obama senses that the Republicans really are going to make us default, he should...

...go on TV in prime time and spend about 30 minutes explaining, in words most Americans can easily understand, what that means. Just an outline of how we have borrowed in the past, why we borrow, who is responsible for the purse strings, etc. And what it's going to mean for our country if we default. He then needs to say something to the effect of "And if you have a credit card or a mortgage or anything in which your payments rely on interest rates, as a result of a default, along with all of the other consequences that I just described to you, your interest rates will be going up."

Let Boehner give a rebuttal about how this is all a make believe scare tactic. Let him.

There are other, more visceral, political threats I'd like him to make using the bully pulpit, but I can't see how he wouldn't be willing to do something more or less like what I describe above.

I just read that fucker McConnel's comment about there being No real deficit deal until Obama is gone. He can just sit and spin. Every single one of these Repukes has thousands of constituents whose lives could be destroyed by us defaulting and I'd like to see the President use the bully pulpit to inform them of that.

PB

This is a little under 7 minutes: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFvrL_nqx2c

I'd even throw in for some Perot-style "Charts & Graphs", if they would help. The nation needs to be educated, if only a little, very quickly on exactly what this is going to mean for them, personally. Once they get the non-abstract "this is how it's going to affect you, a month from now" part, I can imagine very few of them will be willing to self-immolate.

I hope, anyway.

PB

So truly wants the country to default.

offers to cut Medicare by 12%, offers to cut Social Security, come down to Stopping Obama's re-election still 'single most important' goal.

Mr. President, if you lay down with dogs, you get up with fleas.

Come back to representing the elderly, disabled, middle class, and poor. Republicans are not negotiating in good faith.

...break a lot of things.

There is a Round Two™ to this debacle, coming in January to April: We will hit the debt ceiling.

We'll find out soon enough.

PB

Thats the way I'm reading what he said.

McConnell suggested later in his remarks that the debt ceiling will still be raised, but without a broader deal on long-term deficit reduction.

"The president has presented us with three choices: smoke and mirrors, tax hikes, or default. Republicans choose none of the above. I had hoped to do good, but I refuse to do harm. So Republicans will choose a path that actually reflects the will of the people, which is to do the responsible thing and ensure that the government doesn't default on its obligations," he said.

Mr. Obama says he will not sign a short-term deal, saying, "This the United States of America and, you know, we don't manage our affairs in three-month increments."

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20078766-503544.html

...won't.

FOX will have a breaking story on Bachmann waving at a crowd. It would be great if we could force them to pay attention to what is truly happening in this country without the FOX spin. That Constitution thing keeps getting in the way, though.