Posted on 12/24/2011 10:04:36 AM PST by sickoflibs
This latest reversal (and surrender) by Boehner in the house isnt a surprise to me. It has been clear to me that while Obama is planning and executing a re-election strategy that depends on making you congressional Republicans look incompetent at best and evil-minded at worst, you seem to plod aimlessly along with absolutely no plan just assuming you will win automatically while helping Obamas re-election campaign. How can you Republicans turn this around and put Democrats and Obama on the defensive?
First, accept that you cant sell the idea that the FICA/SS tax cuts must be paid for now. Republicans have spent too many years claiming that tax cuts are free, that they always pay for themselves for a reversal as dramatic as that. The more important thing is that you stop looking stupid and turn the tables back on Obama so you can start reversing his socialist policies in 2013. Here is how you can do it on this issue.
If you want to beat Obama at his own game you have to out-gun him as he is doing to you now. Since he wants a 1 year extension of the FICA/SS tax holiday (just up to his re- election) then you propose a 2 or even 3 year extension of them past his election, heck, and maybe even 5 years extension but with a simple condition. Everyone who gets this tax cut, which is everyone that pays FICA taxes, now gets an option, or as the left likes to say a choice. The choice is either:
1) That he doesnt have to pay these taxes as Obama proposes, getting the tax break, or instead
2) He can opt to still pay them but the government puts them (the amount of the cut only) in a private retirement savings /investment account under his name that he owns. And to encourage workers to select this option not only will the worker pay no income taxes on this income up front (unlike with the FICA tax), but he also wont have to pay income taxes or capital gains taxes on it after 65 when he draws it much like a ROTH IRA.
Yes, this is a revival of the G.W.Bush SS private savings account idea except this idea is politically advantageous for Republicans because it cost nothing to SS or the deficit because you will just give in AGAIN on the FICA tax cut extension any way when Obama demands it, and it doesnt help Obamas re-election because the money will be used after the election for retirement.
In fact his liberal base will demand that he oppose this option because they are terrified of SS being undermined by these tax cuts and then you (Boehner and McConnell) along with the gutless RINOs in Senate can endlessly ask Obama on TV why he opposes tax cuts for the middle class for a change, and put him on the defensive.
Like I have been saying all year, results are what counts to me NOT your symbolic votes that never see law or convince more voters to oppose Obama. And so far I dont see much in the way of results.
Reference material :
Democrats and the Social Security Trust Fund Lie Exposed today
and
A Liberal Democrat explains the why the Social Security Trust Fund is safe
B U M P
I hope I am wrong, but....
Thanks for playing devil’s advocate on this thread.
One key thing missing from many of the thoughts and ideas in the Republican echo chamber is how arguments will hold up in practice outside the echo chamber when put into real debate in front of voters/viewers moderated by the sometimes hostile MSM.
silly SOL...the built-in and readily obvious boogey man is the 'media'...the libs can play hardball and the establishment rin-o-p can flail around with their hair on fire and claim that their ideas were torpedoed by those mean msm guys, when they *know* damn good and well that theyre gettin their cut of the loot...
what i cant understand is why the few decent people in DC arent able to grab a microphone and call out their treasonous brethren ??? prolly still holdin onto the Reagan 11th commandment and/or in fear of losing their foothold on the overthrow that they think they can muster...
Well I have noticed that many of those preaching the ‘Never be critical of any Republicans’ commandment are usually critical of, no vicious to, Republicans that they don't like themselves .
I avoid any commandments regarding those prostitutes in DC that use the words ‘never’ or ‘always’ because those that use them are usually full of crap.
Dumb and Dumber: "Those are IOUs, sir. They are just as good as money!"
Behind The Real Size of the Bailout; A guide to the abbreviations, acronyms, and obscure programs that make up the $14 trillion federal bailout of Wall Street
SOURCE motherjones.com
Mon Dec. 21, 2009 12:23 PM PST
The price tag for the Wall Street bailout is often put at $700 billionthe size of the Troubled Assets Relief Program. But TARP is just the best known program in an array of more than 30 overseen by Treasury Department and Federal Reserve that have paid out or put aside money to bail out financial firms and inject money into the markets.
To get a sense of the size of the real $14 trillion bailout, see our chart at web site. Below, a guide to the pieces of the puzzle:
Treasury Department bailout programs
(Remember that Obama's Treasury Dept was controlled by his then-COS Rahm Emanuel---a G/S lobbyist in the WH)
Money Market Mutual Fund: In September 2008, the Treasury announced that it would insure the holdings of publicly offered money market mutual funds. According to the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (SIGTARP), these guarantees could have potentially cost the federal government more than $3 trillion [PDF].
Public-Private Investment Fund: This joint Treasury-Federal Reserve program bought toxic assets from banks and brokeragesas much as $5 billion of assets per firm. According to SIGTARP, the government's potential exposure from the PPIF is between $500 million and $1 trillion [PDF].
TARP: As part of the Troubled Asset Relief Program, the Treasury has made loans to or investments more than 750 banks and financial institutions. $650 billion has been paid out (not including HAMP; see below). As of December 21, 2009, $117.5 billion of that has been repaid.
Government-sponsored enterprise (GSE) stock purchase: The Treasury has bought $200 million in preferred stock from Fannie Mae and another $200 million from Freddie Mac [PDF] to show that they "will remain viable entities critical to the functioning of the housing and mortgage markets."
GSE mortgage-backed securities purchase: Under the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008, the Treasury may buy mortgage-backed securities from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. According to SIGTARP, these purchases could cost as much as $314 billion ---SNIP---.
LONG READ---go to web site to read more and checkout the shocking charts.
SOURCE http://motherjones.com/politics/2009/12/behind-real-size-bailout
BTTT
Thanks :)
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