Posted on 07/30/2011 10:57:03 AM PDT by tobyhill
Senate Democrats started Saturday short of the 60 votes needed to advance Majority Leader Harry Reid’s plan to raise the debt ceiling, setting the stage for frantic hours of negotiations before the threat of default early next week.
Senior officials in both parties believe that Reid’s latest plan — which would allow President Barack Obama to raise the debt limit in two separate stages of $1.2 trillion each without congressional approval and slash up to $2.4 trillion over the next decade — appeared unlikely to break a filibuster early Sunday morning — a vote currently scheduled for 1 a.m. ET.
That means Reid will spend Saturday, wooing a handful of Republican senators and in talks with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell in the hopes of finding enough GOP support to break the logjam in the Senate.
It’s far from clear what will happen before Tuesday, when the Treasury warns the government will run out of money and begin to default on its bills, something that would roil the world’s economy.
If Reid gets enough votes to invoke cloture, the Senate could move toward final passage early Monday. If not, it’s very possible final action could slip until after Tuesday.
(Excerpt) Read more at politico.com ...
Shut the damn gub mint down.
Quit spending my money you criminals.
Senate Republicans would be benefit from a legitimate, polite reminder about the political disadvantages of betraying the constituency.
Tax hikes = Economic disaster.
We need a pro growth plan to fix this mess.
Well “woo” you Harry and the horse you rode in on.
Reid formulation - WHAT A CROCK!
It will be most annoying if any Republicans, let alone enough to help pass this scam, come on board.
I’m in a “Give me liberty or give me default” mood.
So B—mITCH is on this as well?? Figures!
If Reid gets enough votes to invoke cloture, the Senate could move toward final passage early Monday.Only if he gets unanimous consent to waive the 30 hours of post cloture debate time. Reid is the one who decided to postpone the cloture vote to Sunday, so he will share any blame that attaches to a up/down vote delayed until Tuesday.
43 senators sign a letter opposing the Reid bill, telling the Senate Leader:
The only possible justification for a $2.4 trillion increase in borrowing authority is to allow the President to avoid any accountability for these issues before his 2012 election
More from the letter:
We are writing to let you know that we will not vote for your $2.4 trillion debt limit amendment which, if enacted, would result in the single largest debt ceiling increase in the history of the United States. In addition to this unprecedented increase in borrowing authority, your amendment completely fails to address our current fiscal imbalance and lacks any serious effort to ensure that any subsequent spending cuts are enacted.
The plan you have proposed would not alter the spending trajectory that is putting our economy and national security at risk. In return for an unprecedented $2.4 trillion debt limit increase, your amendment reduces spending by less than $1 trillion over the next decade. Setting aside the $200 billion shortfall between the CBO scored savings and the $2.4 trillion debt limit increase, identified by the Congressional Budget Office, most of the proposal’s alleged savings are based on a false claim of credit for reductions in war-related spending that were already scheduled to occur. This amendment proposes no change to our military posture and, for that reason, these savings are the sort of widely ridiculed accounting gimmick that breeds cynicism about our ability to tackle our fiscal challenges. The only possible justification for a $2.4 trillion increase in borrowing authority is to allow the President to avoid any accountability for these issues before his 2012 election. It is by constantly putting off these tough decisions that we have found ourselves with a national debt nearly equal to the size of our gross domestic product. The time for action is now, we cannot wait until we accumulate another $2.4 trillion in debt.
For all of these reasons, we must oppose your unprecedented $2.4 trillion debt limit amendment. Given the nation’s enormous future spending challenges, it would be irresponsible to give the President this unprecedented additional borrowing authority without requiring the enactment of significant spending reductions and reforms. We urge you to abandon this reckless proposal and instead pursue a more responsible course of action that would rein in spending, reassure the financial markets, and help promote private sector job growth.
http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/273193/41-killing-kathryn-jean-lopez
Stinky Harry is going to use the GOOBERS to “save the planet” for Pelosi and then take all the credit for it.
If I were the Republican leadership in the Senate, if it looked like there was any chance of this passing with tax hikes I would add all kinds of taxes on democrat voting blocks (e.g. a 25-40% surcharge tax on all attorney shares of settlements above $200,000, a 10-20% surcharge tax on movies profits above $1,000,000. etc. etc.). When the democrats balk, which they will, call them hypocrites and say ‘I thought you said we needed more revenues and that it was patriotic to pay taxes.’.
They'll do a count before the vote. If it can get to 60, Snowe, Collins, McCain, Graham, Cochran, Murkowski, and a few others are not unlikely to support Reid's proposal at least through cloture. Then they vote against is as it passes simple majority, and claim they were against it.
If it can't get to 60, the aforementioned moderates might as well vote with the GOP for political cover.
I’m in the same mood.
And...am I the only one who thinks that Reid looks like the scarecrow from “The Wizard of Oz”? He has the same need, as well...
And now, to update the tagline...
The only issue will be what bribes you'll have to offer the RINOs.
Besides causing economic disaster, whatever tax hikes are in a bill originating in the Senate are unconstitutional. All bills relating to raising revenue must originate in the House.
Tax bills have to originate in the House. But I agree with you, the GOP should do what you suggest, independently of the debt ceiling debate. Windfall profits of publishing, movies, music, and broadcasting; as well as taking say half to 90% of all contingent fee agreements.
I guess we’ll be seeing how many RINO senators will get a primary cattle prod.
We’ll probably have to help the challengers from across state lines.
DINGY HARRY: OK then, show of hands...which redstate Democrat senators up for re-election next year want to go on record as raising taxes 15 months before the next election?
(crickets)
The letter needs to be printed in every newspaper across America and read intact on every new outlet.
Yeah... I know... what a dreamer.
Until the perverse mechanizations of the democrat socialist party are explained to “everyman” in terms that are meaningful, a critical mass of voter outrage will not be sufficient to overcome the treachery building to the next election.
I’ve thought comments about Obumo skipping the next election juvenile and unthinkable. After his latest musings about simply taking action on his own re:debt crisis and the gut wrenchingly stupid RINO proposal to allow this, I’ve been forced to revise my stance.
Obumo and his flying monkeys present a very real danger to the republic NOW in every conceivable fashion.
It will call for “tax triggers” which if signed by the House basically becomes “originating in the House”.
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