Frustration time: Why are Democrats allowing this freakin' Debt Ceiling

debate to be controlled by Republicans who don't give a flying you-know-what about the debt ceiling or the out-of-control spending binge of Congress?

There are two issues people: 1. debt ceiling, pass the effing bill raising it or don't PERIOD.

2. Out of control spending. A balanced budget amendment only publicly states you have your head up your ass and you can't control your wild-ass spending. The amendment does not mean shit, especially to the GOP, it is grandstanding pure and simple.

If you care about america, tackle the Debt ceiling issue, then, after Obama signs it, go after your out of control spending. The president can't spend, you need to legislate the authorization, this whole economic sink-hole is Congress' fault, mainly GOP and they need to be reminded of this DAILY.

Its called Democracy and separation of powers, and you need all three branches of government to do something, but just one branch of government to shut everything down.

drunken binge-spending to the debt ceiling bill. They are playing politics with this. All they have to do is draft a debt-ceiling bill or don't. The rest is political theater and the Dems are letting Boner call the shots and direct the dance. Sickening.

...To just shut things down. You say Dems are letting Boehner call the shots. The Democrats don't have any say on this unless you go the 14th Amentment route. If Republicans decide that they do not want to raise the debt ceiling, it does not get raised. Period.

The problem is that the Democrats want to accomplish something, which is why they are behind the 8 ball.

If you have an insular party that is willing to give the rest of the U.S. the bird, and let the Nation slide into default, well then the U.S. is going to default.

Plus, Americans elected these right wing extremists to Congress in 2010 in overwhelming numbers. Did you think that they were campaigning to expand social security and Medicare?

What do you want the Democrats to do? Appeal to the common decency of Republicans. Heck, Americans blew up the switch board of Republicans, but Republicans are betting that we will all forget in a year. They don't see a downside, because if there is a default, we will blame the Democrats and President Obama.

Could Nancy Pelosi of done this to Bush when he asked to raise the debt limit? Yes, but for better or worse, I think many Democrats don't want the Nation to go into default with social security and Medicare checks put into jeopardy. Republicans don't really care.

The issue plain and simple is to pass a Debt Ceiling bill. Period. But the Fucking GOP decided to tie in cuts to social programs (another attempt to kill SS and Medicaid) which have noting to do about raising the Debt ceiling. The kill social programs intent of the GOP can be done AFTER a Debt Ceiling bill is completed with nothing attached.
Plain and simple. But the weak-kneed dems won't call the GOP out on this. That is what I am saying.
You have fallen into the trap as well. arguing from their point of view. sad

bills come to the floor so if he doesn't like something the Dems want he just doesn't bring it up for a vote. All spending bills MUST originate in the House so Reid can bring up all the diff. bills he wants and it won't matter. h only thing I can think of that could be done differently is for Obama to meet with Boner & McConnel and tell them flat out, i you push me to the wall, sure I;ll be forced to sign something I disagree with, but let me make it clear to you both...if that happens, there will be ABSOLUTELY NO FEDERAL SPENDING IN YOUR STATES! nO ROAD FUNDS, NO MEDICCARE FUNDS, NO AGRICULTURE FOR KY. ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!. When When YOUR constituents ask WHY, YOU can tell them it's because YOU got you way on ome different umbthing back n July!" I understand St. Ronnie used to do that, and it worked pretty well for HIM.

They don't control anything. They are totally out of control.

I think the Dems are doing ok right now. They are showing the Repubes for what they are. When they self-destruct then it will be easier for a few more sensible ones to side with the Dems to pass a simple debt ceiling bill without any additives.

counter statement by Democrats and every line from news outlets describe the Debt Ceiling and our exploding deficit as something that must be handled in one bill. It does not.

The Democrats let Boner and his evil hordes tie their out of control binge spending to the Debt Ceiling bill and not one Democrat will get on Tv or Radio and call them on it.
All that the House has to do (Senate can pass their own version) is draft a bill that raises the debt ceiling period.

Everything else is just a distraction to push the issue to the deadline so that the Democrats cave and give Boner what he wants... Social Security and Medicaid have FUCKING NOTHING to do with this issue and the GOP knows it, but Obama and the Dems keep trying to deal with Boner.

It is a dangerous game that was pulled straight from the GOP's butt and no one will call them on it.

If Obama really wants to "place his Presidency on the line..." call a news conference. State plainly and clearly that there are two issues here. One is the Debt Ceiling that needs to be raised now and the Republicans have decided to favor ruin over success.
He must challenge them to pass a Debt Ceiling bill and nothing else or he will veto it.

Then he needs to tell The Congress that they are responsible for the spending in this country and the GOP is responsible directly for the deep chasm this economy fell into and they can address their drunken binge-spending AFTER they raise the debt ceiling.

Obama has to call these people out plain and simple.

that is added to the Debt Ceiling bill.

He has not stood like a man and accused the GOP of manufacturing this "crisis" out of whole cloth. He has not demanded they send him a Debt Ceiling bill and only a Debt Ceiling bill to sign. When he does, maybe, just maybe the GOP will blink.

Until he grows a pair, I can't have much respect for his strong words and weakened backbone.

and though that is on Repub turf, I don't think that makes them 'in control' of anything but that topic.

And it isn't working for them.

But I agree that Dems are also not in control, and Obama will need marbles of steel to crush those who value their anti-government ideology over the welfare of their neighbors.

We'll see how it works out. Based on Obama's record, that might not be pretty.

Dems say they want/have to raise the debt ceiling, as has been routine for numerous prior administrations of both parties. Repubs, at least the “leadership” also say they want to raise the debt ceiling. Why, if the agreed upon goal is to raise the debt limit does each side keep attaching amendments the other side will not accept? Why drag the other crap into this? Reid & Pelosi should be submitting a clean debt raising bill every day, every hour after hour!

Obama thought he could sit down and play a nice game of chess and reason with Congress.

Had he used the bully pulpit 3 months ago and FOUGHT for CHANGE this would already be old news and we could be working on a jobs program.

I guess chess is a fun (profitable?) game to play though.

Vigorously investigating and prosecuting abuses under the Bush administration would have made Republican representatives a little more nervous about toeing the Party Line.

I'm not talking about big ticket items like war crimes, I mean the smaller stuff that would even get your average teabagger in a lather against it: Defense contractor fraud, especially in Iraq; theft, shoddy work, piling up wasteful expenses just to goose their take from a cost-plus contract, etc. All that on the taxpayer dime, mostly for jobs the Army used to do internally (for much cheaper).

That sort of thing can raise public awareness of the criminality under the Bushies, and would open the door for higher-level prosecutions. It would also produce a steady drumbeat associating Republicans with criminals to the people who need to hear that most. In turn, the Republicans in congress would be more inclined to distance themselves from that, which would weaken their voting discipline.


But that road was not taken. (In fact, it seems to have had its entry ramp bulldozed.)

That is why they changed the Democratic Party in the first place. They saw Reagan as very popular.

The moneyed interests want the US to become Chile ca. 1973.

The easiest way to get us to accept it is to shock us semi-regularly, but randomly at different strengths until we become numb and lay down and accept it.

So we had 9/11, Iraq and WMDs, threats from Iran, threats from Venezuela, shutting down the government, debt ceiling raises, weather catastrophes (partially of our own making, and those can't be engineered, they're just special treats for the conservative elites), PIIGS, housing "crises", random stock market tanks, oil shocks, etc. (The next one will be in 6 weeks when we don't have a budget for 2012 and we're in the next "crisis".)

And we either roll over and give up and allow the coup, or we don't. It's really our choice. There are options.