House agrees payroll tax deal as Republicans cave in to Obama

The Guardian ^ | Thursday 22 December 2011 | Ewen MacAskill

[MinorityRepublican]

House speaker John Boehner is set to sign an offer from Obama to accelerate negotiations.

Republicans in the House of Representatives have capitulated in the showdown over the payroll tax, handing Barack Obama an important victory going into election year.

Under pressure from other senior Republicans for blocking a bill that would extend tax cuts to millions of Americans, the House speaker, John Boehner, is backing away from his insistence that any deal must cover a full year.

A deal agreed by Republicans and Democrats in the Senate on Saturday covers two months, to allow further negotiations in January. It appears that Boehner will sign up to an offer from Obama to accelerate these negotiations.

The deal means that, after a year of humiliation at the hands of congressional Republicans who have repeatedly threatened to close down the federal government, Obama is close to a much-needed victory.

The decisive moment came when ther Republican leader in the Senate, Mitch McConnell, after days of silence, lined up behind Barack Obama and the Democrats.

Boehner was blocking passage of a bill that would extend tax breaks to 160 million Americans, a measure introduced by Obama last year to help stimulate the US economy. If the bill is not passed by 31 December, American taxpayers face cuts in their pay of an average of $40 every two weeks. About 1.3 million people stand to lose unemployment benefit.

[Enough is ENOUGH]

I hang up on the GOP myself when they call for contributions.

You don’t think they are going to give up control of the party without a struggle. Look what they did and are continuing doing in Madison, Wisconsin. I don’t see any difference between both establishment parties. One is on steroids 78 RPM’s, the other on 33 1/3 same direction.

See my post #179. We have to start at the bottom with the local Tea Party and fire them up.

[luvie]

I want him and all the ones that signed off on this travesty to lose their freakin’ jobs! ASAP

[upchuck]

Thanks.

[gargoyle]

...There's the other scenario. Guess those of us that are Libertarian will be to blame for BHO staying in office.

[gargoyle]

...There's the other scenario. Guess those of us that are Libertarian will be to blame for BHO staying in office.

[rabscuttle385]

Obama’s re-election is an acceptable loss if the Senate is retaken by conservatives. Note that I said conservatives and not Republicans.

[rabscuttle385]

DeMint voted for this fascist trash?

How disappointing.

FUJD!!!

[onyx]

I haven’t read the article or this thread, but your cartoon probably isn’t far fetched. Plus, you could sure be right about the Game Plan.

[Lil Flower]

But did he CRY about it? Ahh, Republicans.

[Always Independent]

Now BO will campaign saying he saved Pizza Night! I am the Pizza Man! I deliver!

[zeestephen]

---

“...it is a RAID ON THE SOCIAL SECURITY TRUST FUND!...PERIOD!

---

I wish.

The “Trust Fund” has already been spent.

Social Security “loans” excess funds to the U.S. Treasury.

The Treasury instantly spends those funds on current government expenses.

In return, Social Security gets special intra-government bonds that the Treasury promises to repay in the future.

If the government goes broke, Social Security goes broke.

Investor’s Business Daily had an excellent editorial today making your second point.

And on C-SPAN last night a Congressman I didn’t recognize also made your second point.

But, as you note, no GOP leadership is involved at all.

[Doe Eyes]

If the government goes broke, Social Security goes broke.

Not only would Social Security payments stop, but all government retirement payments including those to military retirees.

There are no trust funds.

[Safetgiver]

extend tax cuts to millions of Americans...When is a tax cut not a tax cut? Now.

[mazda77]

My point was that of a technical issue, that these bassturds are still playing ourselves against ourselves. The finer point is that nobody in an elected position, opposite of the Democrats, have been taking the “Republicans want to end Social Security” crap for so long that when given a chance to show this for what it is, they fold like a cheap suit. For no explicable reason do they have any capability to lead.

I was using the empty trust fund to explain the larger point and how they intend to implement it.

In a larger sense, I am so mad that blood will start to shoot from my eyes any day now, and tomorrow is Christmas Eve.

[Two Thirds Vote Aye]

Boehner needs to be primaried!

Absolutely! I have been saying this even before he became Speaker. Ohio GOP'ers - please find a conservative to primary Boehner.

[zeestephen]

Re: Blood shooting from your eyes...

Yes.

I, too, have reached a state of despair with the GOP leadership.

Suspect in principle, and politically inept.

I’ve been a Consensus Conservative for forty years.

The outcome?

Slow motion political suicide and the economic destruction of my country.

[Truth29]

"My point was that of a technical issue, that these bassturds are still playing ourselves against ourselves. The finer point is that nobody in an elected position, opposite of the Democrats, have been taking the “Republicans want to end Social Security” crap for so long that when given a chance to show this for what it is, they fold like a cheap suit. For no explicable reason do they have any capability to lead."

I alternate between thinking that Republicans congenitally cannot communicate and that the GOP has been so thoroughly compromised by enemy agents that leaders like Boehner, McConnell and McCain really are working for the other side.

[Pravious]

“You know, Boehner made the right decision. It was stupid to get a one year deal at this point. The PR was killing the Republicans...it was killing them. He did this to stop the bleeding. “

I don’t disagree with you. What I’m saying is... didn’t they see this coming? Didn’t they have a clue the Democrats would use this as propaganda and claim Republicans want to starve poor people, etc.? How stupid ARE they? They shouldn’t have put themselves in a position where, no matter WHAT they did, the RATS would spin it and win the PR battle.

[perez24]

What was so special about 2 months? Why couldn’t it have been 3 months or 4 months or whatever?

I ask this because I don’t know, not because I would have supported a different timeframe.

[LibLieSlayer]

Sandy... Merry Christmas to you and yours. Don't buy their propaganda... wait and see what the bill actually says and does. I promise you that you and no other Conservative will like it. If they change any wording in the bill... reid will have to call the Senate back into session as the changes will have to be approved by the Senate and House committee to reconcile and the entire Senate will have to vote on it... unless they just ignore the Constitution and do whatever they want to do... which is probably what they will do because both leadership teams from both parties are corrupt and spit on the Constitution whenever they have the opportunity. Also... it is impossible for businesses and the government to implement the software changes for two months. It will cost billions and estimated loss of revenue to Socialist Security is around 10 Billion. These FICA insurance premiums... they are not taxes... are the only source of funds for social security... so we will borrow more dollars from the chicoms to finance that which we do not have. Rush explained all of this is detail.

LLS