Kerry Discloses Democrats’ Sticking Point In Debt Talks (TPM)

Kerry Discloses Democrats’ Sticking Point In Debt Talks

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) isn't saying why both sides aren't any closer to a debt deal after a day filled with feverish negotiations Saturday, but Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) spelled it out during a floor speech Saturday night.

The sticking point for Dems, Kerry said, involves detailed negotiations over an enforcement mechanism that would require Congress to act on entitlement and tax reform by a date certain or faces the consequences. Democrats want to ensure that such a trigger does not simply mandate severe spending cuts, but also includes tax increases -- the so-called "shared pain" Democrats have cited lately.

So far, the "or else" has focused on a trigger that would slash spending across the board -- including for entitlement programs like Medicare, a near-sacred program for Democrats, as well as to defense spending, which Republicans historically have sought to protect. (snip)

more: http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/07/kerry-discloses-democrats-sticking-point-in-debt-talks.php?ref=dcblt

See also

Debt Plan Spending-Cut ‘Trigger’ Has Failed in Past (Bloomberg)
July 29, 2011, 11:48 AM EDT

(snip)

Even if the parties can reach agreement to avoid a possible default on Aug. 2, Congresses have repeatedly ignored or overridden automatic cuts dictated in previous legislative agreements.

For that reason, budget and credit rating experts are skeptical of the device, and they are even more critical of the call in both the House and the Senate for identifying future cuts through a newly created bipartisan committee -- another Washington mainstay that can’t guarantee any real impact.

‘Congress Can Undo’

“Anything Congress does, Congress can undo,” said Bob Bixby, executive director of the Concord Coalition, an Arlington, Virginia-based group that advocates for balanced budgets. “They can’t really bind themselves. You really have to have a political will to make these things work or they won’t.”

more: http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-07-29/debt-plan-spending-cut-trigger-has-failed-in-past.html


(bold mine- thought that was interesting)

Consequences, LOL, you are dealing with terrorist now, so pass it, let the blame all fall on the GOP and then deal with their bull shit later and tell them no later when it doesn't put the future of our nation at risk.


There has to be more than that.

Reid and Pelosi meeting together now. Reportedly, details of the triggers are still a sticking point for Dems.

http://www.bigeye.com/cuttingourbenefits.htm

"Groups like the Concord Coalition have been telling the country that Social Security is a Ponzi scheme that will inevitably collapse once the baby boomers retire."