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“Raising the debt ceiling does not authorize more spending. It simply allows the country to pay for spending that Congress has already committed to.” ~ POTUS :: :: By: Larry Walker II ::Wow, that was enlightening. I really had no idea. Now I get it. He must be talking about last year, when Congress voted unanimously in favor of the president’s budget, then walked it over to the Senate, which also unanimously approved. That’s when Congress committed to another trillion dollars of deficit spending, right? Too bad that never happened. In reality, the president’s budget failed to attain a...

Here's audio of then-senator Barack Obama calling a vote to raise the debt ceiling "a sad state of affairs": The one time the debt ceiling was up for a vote when Obama was in the Senate, he voted against it.

Pres. Obama Dodges a question from Major Garrett of CBS news on his own voting against raising the debt ceiling when he was a Senator (January 14, 2013).

How bad is the USA’s debt problem (as we approach the dreaded debt ceiling debate)? Federal government debt held by the public surged starting in Q2 2008. But since Q2 2008, government debt held by the public surged 113%. But real GDP growth over 4+ years was a measly 2.6%. That’s not annual real GDP growth, but real GDP growth over 4+ years! Most people don’t talk about government debt held by the public. Instead, they focus on Total Public Debt, the one that stands at $16,432,692,129,510.84 While not as dramatic as Federal debt held by the public, it is...

President Obama intends to take a confrontational approach with Republicans in future economic battles by using the same campaign-style events the White House saw as effective in the “fiscal-cliff” fight. Many in Obama’s party believe that he got the upper hand in the recent deal to avoid the mixture of across-the-board tax hikes and spending cuts, and that the aggressive approach helped build his public case. Sources close to Obama say he can fend off Republicans for several reasons: his successful reelection; polling suggesting public support for many of his positions; and division among Republicans on Capitol Hill. Jen Psaki,...

Democratic Illinois Rep. Danny K. Davis told The Daily Caller that President Obama should have the power to raise the nation’s debt ceiling without congressional approval, citing the example of President Abraham Lincoln issuing the Emancipation Proclamation as a good use of presidential authority. “Sometimes when we’ve gotten great answers is when presidents have had enough authority to take some actions,” Davis told TheDC on Capitol Hill Friday. “I mean, remember that we just celebrate the 150th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation, and if Abraham Lincoln had not had the power, authority and the will to make that decision, we...

President Obama hailed the sweeping bipartisan tax deal Tuesday night as "one step in a broader effort" to strengthen the nation's economy, saying it prevented a middle-class tax hike that could have sent the economy back into recession. The president, taking a victory lap after fulfilling a campaign promise to raise taxes on the wealthy, spoke less than an hour after the House approved the tax deal, 257-167, in a rare New Year's Day vote. “A simple premise of my campaign for president was to change the tax code that was too skewed toward the wealthy at the expense of...

When you go up against another group, whether in business or war, you need to know what the other group’s objectives are. What do they really want? In criminal law, this is called motive. If you understand the goal or the motive, then everything else will make sense. What is Barack Obama’s ultimate goal in the fiscal cliff crisis? Barack Obama has laid out several demands. He wants no spending cuts. He wants massive tax increases on the wealthy, which in liberal speak is anyone with a job. But there is one goal he has that trumps them all. What...

In case there is still anyone out there that continues to believe that the 2008 campaign lines that Barack Obama gave about changing the way Washington works, stopping “politics as usual,” and providing more transparency in government are true, then get a load of this. On Wednesday, Obama demonstrated just how partisan and how much of a power grabber he is. He indicated that if he were not given unlimited powers to raise the debt ceiling, apart from Congressional approval, that he might just veto his own tax hike proposal should it come to his desk. As Obama addressed corporate...

Obama: “If Congress in any way suggests that they’re going to tie negotiations to debt ceiling votes ... I will not play that game.” Boener: “Now the revenues we are putting on the table are coming from guess who? The Rich. Now there are ways to limit deductions, close loopholes and have the same people pay more of their money to the Federal Government without raising tax rates, which we believe will harm our economy” Video Link

he United States Department of Treasury will reach the the statutory limit it is allowed to borrow money before election day, according to a new study by Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio., former director of the U.S. Office of Management and Budget. “Following the contentious debt ceiling last August, President Obama promised that he would take action to address the country’s fiscal crisis. He has failed to do that," Portman said. "In fact, his new budget increases spending and projects that Washington will be hitting the debt ceiling again in mid-October – burning through a $2.1 trillion debt limit increase in...

The Obama administration delayed asking Congress to raise the U.S. debt ceiling by $1.2 trillion after congressional leaders objected to the time frame. The White House said the delay won't affect the nation's creditworthiness, The Washington Post reported.Under the request the administration originally planned to submit Friday, Congress would have had 15 days to disapprove the request or else the debt ceiling automatically would have been raised from $15.2 trillion to $16.4 trillion.Congressional leaders, however, objected to the timeline, saying it would have been difficult for lawmakers to vote on the measure. The House doesn't return until Jan. 17 and...

The cat fell from a ceiling tile in the customs room.A Bay Area cat lost for two months since it went missing from a baggage center at John F. Kennedy Airport has been found safe. American Airlines reports that the feline, known as Jack the Cat, was found in a customs room and was taken to a veterinarian. A family friend of the owner told NBC that the cat was discovered after it fell from a ceiling tile. Karen Pascoe was flying with Jack and her other cat, Barry, to San Francisco that week to start a new job in...

The story is that as Mark Twain and novelist William Dean Howells stepped outside one morning, a downpour began and Howells asked Twain, “Do you think it will stop?” Twain answered, “It always has.” The debt-ceiling impasse has, as things generally do, ended, and a post-mortem validates conservatives’ portrayal of Barack Obama and their dismay about the dangers and incompetence of liberalism’s legacy, the regulatory state.

While many are complaining about the recent debt-ceiling deal, is it really the issue? Sure, statists say that the Republicans steered us toward crisis with their initial unwillingness to compromise, while traditionalists complain that the GOP folded and “let us down again.” Our problems, however, lie not in our politicians but in ourselves. Just so you know, my solution to our spending woes would be to once again limit the central government to only that which our Constitution dictates it may do, which would cause its budget to immediately shrink by at least two-thirds — and probably far more. Of...

The United States lost its top-notch AAA credit rating from Standard & Poor's on Friday in an unprecedented reversal of fortune for the world's largest economy. S&P cut the long-term US credit rating by one notch to AA-plus on concerns about the government's budget deficits and rising debt burden. The move is likely to raise borrowing costs eventually for the US government, companies and consumers. "The downgrade reflects our opinion that the fiscal consolidation plan that Congress and the Administration recently agreed to falls short of what, in our view, would be necessary to stabilize the government's medium-term debt dynamics,"...

Why the Tea Party-friendly Republicans of the U.S. House own this epic humiliation On Friday night, after a swirl of rumors and conflicting news reports that will be grist for the Washington pundit mill for years to come, Standards & Poor downgraded the credit rating of the United States.

Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords returned to Washington, D.C. Monday, seven months after her tragic attack to cast her vote in favor of raising the debt ceiling. Her timing couldn't be better to unveil the absolutely relentless hypocrisy of left-wing media and politics. The vicious attack on Giffords sparked a whirlwind of criticism over the violent rhetoric of the right in which the media castigated the tea party for its tone. Sarah Palin was criticized relentlessly over a map depicting crosshairs over vulnerable democrats, similar to the DNC's use of targets on Republicans. Most heinously, Giffords' attacker, Jared Loughner, was assumed by...

The most distressing outcome of the deficit hysteria gripping Washington may be what Barack Obama has revealed about himself. It was disconcerting to watch the president slip-slide so easily into voicing the fallacious economic arguments of the right. It was shocking when he betrayed core principles of the Democratic Party, portraying himself as high-minded and brave because he defied his loyal constituents. Supporters may hope this rightward shift was only a matter of political tactics, but I think Obama has at last revealed his sincere convictions. If he wins a second term, he will be free to strike a truly...

Final House Roll Call Vote on the Debt Ceiling Extension (S.510 placed in the body of an existing House bill)FINAL VOTE RESULTS FOR ROLL CALL 690(Republicans in roman; Democrats in italic; Independents underlined)       S 365      RECORDED VOTE      1-Aug-2011      7:09 PM      QUESTION:  On Passage      BILL TITLE: To make a technical amendment to the Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002 Ayes Noes PRES NV Republican 174 66     Democratic 95 95   3 Independent         TOTALS 269 161   3 ---- AYES    269 --- AdamsAderholtAlexanderAltmireAndrewsAustriaBachusBarlettaBarrowBartlettBarton (TX)Bass (CA)Bass (NH)BenishekBergBerkleyBermanBiggertBilbrayBilirakisBishop (GA)Bishop (NY)BlackBlackburnBoehnerBonnerBono MackBorenBoustanyBrady (PA)Brady (TX)BuchananBucshonBurgessCalvertCampCampbellCansecoCantorCapitoCappsCarnahanCarneyCarterCassidyCastor (FL)ChabotChandlerCicillineClayClyburnCobleCoffman (CO)ColeConawayConnolly (VA)CooperCostaCostelloCourtneyCrawfordCrenshawCritzCuellarCulbersonDavis (CA)Davis (IL)DenhamDentDeutchDiaz-BalartDicksDingellDoggettDoldDonnelly (IN)DreierDuffyDuncan (TN)EllmersEmersonEshooFarentholdFattahFincherFitzpatrickFloresFortenberryFoxxFrelinghuysen GalleglyGaramendiGardnerGerlachGibbsGibsonGiffordsGoodlatteGosarGrangerGraves (MO)Green, GeneGriffin (AR)GrimmGuintaGuthrieGutierrezHanabusaHannaHarperHastings (WA)HayworthHeckHeinrichHensarlingHergerHerrera BeutlerHigginsHimesHinojosaHironoHochulHoldenHoyerHuizenga...