1 Because tax cuts always cause deficits.

They really do not think much of us, do they?

2

"Most people who manage the balance sheet, except the Dims, are not fools."

FTFY

3

Kinda disappointed that none of the cob loggers or moron(ettes) mentioned that today is Reagan's birthday..

...great anecdote from NRO that shows not only was he a great man, but a good one as well..

He was classier than the Keynsian Kenyan by orders of magnitude

4 Colts 36, Saints 30.  If the Colts can't contain Reggie Bush on special teams, the Saints can win but other than that I think the Colts will eventually take the lead and hold it without a serious challenge from the Saints down the stretch.

5 Sorry for the misplaced prediction, wrong thread.

6

Hiring new people these days is a waste of money. Businesses will just get more work out of the people they have already hired, or fire them and, if needs be, rehire others at drastically lower wages.

The looming taxes will kill us economically.

Good thinking, Barry.

7 The "Bush Era" tax cuts expire at the end of this year.  How can they continue and even GROW the deficit.?... Or is this the chart that is supposed to prove why the tax cuts SHOULD expire?

8 Spend, baby, spend.  Spend our way to prosperity (with other's money).

9 Garbage loaf smothered in bullshit gravy.

10

Speak of the Devil... Steyn on Obama's unsustainable cocksuckertude and a roundup of its inherent contradictions. And, no, he doesn't use the neologism "cocksuckertude". [Hat tip five feet of fury]

11

Northern va, our power went out at 1 am and we just got it back. The house was starting to get cold. Couldn't go anywhere because of being buried in snow. hundreds of thousands without power and stuck at home.

So while I was incommunicado, Obama do anything stupid? The snow is actually good because congress will not be able to meet for a week.

12

"Anecdotally, my own company started reading the tea leaves in the early summer of 2008, and we adjusted our plan accordingly."

Ditto for my company, and most biz owners I know have done the same. They have no intentions of risking adding new employees only to have to lay them off immediately  b/c  who knows what is comning down the pipe from the lunancy in DC.

13 How stupid of me. If I want to get rich I should just raise my rates to $1,000,000/hr. I'd just have to work a couple of weeks and I'd be set for the rest of my life.

14 Typical leftist garbage, assuming that if tax rates go from 35% to 40%, the government will take in 40/35ths as much money. Because no one would ever stop working just as hard/ as much, or stop taking as much risk, just because taxes went up a big chunk. Right?

15

Barky is a fucking idiot....the only reason a business owner hires new people is because he has more work than the current crew can handle..

..the only way to create this excess work is to create demand...consumer spending is 70% of our economy...

..so how do we stimulate consumere demand??..by letting people keep more of their money...not a rebate...but a tax cut

Obama and the Jackass party are basically flushing money down the toilet..oh..and taking care of their union and bankster buddies

16
So while I was incommunicado, Obama do anything stupid?

Posted by: dagny at February 06, 2010 04:53 PM (KUtjx)

Well yes, he believes he made it snow to counter the global baloney nonsense from uncaring conservatives who only believe in Duty, Honor, and Country, and not abortion, government ownership of health care, and cradle to grave entitlements. 

17
Nam Grant, are you lurking?

18

"How stupid of me. If I want to get rich I should just raise my rates to $1,000,000/hr."

Let's do lunch.  I have a place for you.

19 Wondering if M'chelle put sleeves on today.

20 Fish, he was just over on the open thread

21 What's wrong with this picture?

What's right with this picture would be an easier start point -
- The years run incrementally from left to right on the x-axis.


That's all I got.

22 I am fully confident our Republican president will utter not one word of blame or self-pity when s/he takes office in January 2013. The question is, can we reverse this mess? People are saying it's structural and permanent. I'm fucking terrified.

23 Gotta love the lefty apologist in the comments at the IB piece and his rather selective memory (like that Gramm-Leach-Billey was a "Republican" bill in spite of the fact that it passed the House and Senate with 87% support, was pushed hard by Summers and Rubin and signed by Billy J Clinton - the rest follows similarly). Here's the thing, even if you believe this chart that hardly absolves Barry of about anything. I mean, he and the Democrats could have ended the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan any time they wanted. Ditto canceling the Bush tax cuts. I suppose if we traced this all the way back we could pin much of the "economic downturn" line - which mysteriously doesn't seem to get any smaller in spite of Barry's miracle "recovery" (shouldn't that eventually go to zero if there is an actual, real recovery?) - back to the bursting of Clinton's Dot.Com bubble. But why let such things get in the way of a good piece of propaganda, eh?

24 It's because we couldn't afford to pay for the tax cuts! Srsly, isn't that what Gibbsy said? We had wars we weren't paying for and tax cuts we weren't paying for.

I think of all the crazy economic shit liberals believe, "paying for tax cuts" pisses me off the most. That's just utter stupidity right there.

25 Why the hell are the Bush tax cuts in there at all?  Why don't we include the Reagan tax cuts or the Kennedy tax cuts?

They are done (yes, I know they expire this year, but still, if you count them now you can't count them against the budget till 2019 or as improving the budget when they expire).

Why not include the housing bubble, the tech bubble, the oil bubble, WWII, Korea, Vietnam, and every time Al Gore farts?

26 By the way, using the same formula Bush did NOT have a surplus (even a surplus on paper.)

27 Everything is fixable, if you want it fixed.

First we have a little house cleaning, then we need to restore truth honor and your word. No more lies, cheating and stealing.

28

All those deficits during the evil Booouuush years were caused by tax cuts for the rich and evil blood for oil wars.

Never mind the fact that government rvenue INCREASED after the tax cuts.

Never mind that idiot Obama spent more money and had a large deficit after 3 months than the entire Bush year.  Never mind that the communists were in full charge of congress and spending during the last 2 Bush years.

Of course due to our irrelevant press the peons will never know that.

29 OT (kinda) re the snow storm that hit DC:

First, there was a small fender bender on the White House south lawn. Then a tree branch, overcome with snow, cracked and fell on a motorcade vehicle with press inside when the president was coming back from a speech at the Democratic National CommitteeÂ’s winter meeting in town.

That was God right there.

30 The economy and unemployment will not improve until the communists are out of power. No small buisiness will hire until they can tell if they are going to be driven into bankruptcy by the goons.

31 Yeah you can tell some partisan hack invented these numbers. The tax cuts didn't increase the deficit, they were actually reducing it. TARP and bailouts and the "stimulus" package is what caused them. But who knows, maybe the lie will take hold if they lie it enough. God knows there's a lot of really gullible people out there, that's how Obama got elected to begin with.

32 How Much of the Deficit Did Obama Inherit?
None, because you can't inherit a deficit.

Now the debt is a different story, but Obama is likely to double it in his four years, so it isn't something he wants to talk about..

33

Tax cuts don't require elected officials and government bureaucrats to administer the granting of funds to their special interest buddies. Therein lies the problem. Gotta protect their phoney-baloney jobs at the expense of our county's best interest.

 

IT'S FOR THE CHILDRENS!!!

34 The CBPP points out that the economic downturn was not the fault of the current administration, and that was certainly initially true.

Actually, this is another thing that annoys me. The Democrats - including Obama - took congress in 2006. So yes, they do, at least, share the blame for the downturn.

Just because most Obama voters don't know this is no reason to continue the charade...

35

That was God right there.
Only if it hurt a State Department security official not obeying traffic laws, hurting his knee and requiring an emergency room visit.

36 Only if it hurt a State Department security official not obeying traffic laws, hurting his knee and requiring an emergency room visit.

If only. I like to think it was a warming to the press. Too bad it wasn't the whole tree.

37 Remember in that Dem debate when Charlie Gibson pointed out to King Barry that tax increases actually reduced the tax receipts to the government. Barry stipulated the point and said even if they decrease revenues, "it needs to be done in the name of FAIRNESS"

By the way, to the vast majority of people, "Fairness is whatever benefits me and fucks you."

38 Deficits calculated using the tried and true methods developed by the climatologists.

39 What a load of codswallop!

40 Heya, Dang! Sorry, I disappeared to watch Blazing Saddles on AMC (with all the cool words bleeped out) and to walk the dogs in the lull between storms. I like the rain. It came down pretty hard around 3 am or so. Now it's just cloudy.

41 whoops. wrong thread.

42 If only. I like to think it was a warming to the press. Too bad it wasn't the whole tree.

Or a lightning bolt.

43 Hey! I'm still here!

44 I thought TARP was a 1 time thing... it was supposed to be a one time influx of ~700 billion and that was it? and the banks have repaid most of it; GM and FM/FM not so much?

45 I've just about had it with Tiny Earl.  I've tried 10 ways to Sunday to post this tiny url linky.  Go to I Own the World to see trouble in (the workers') paradise.

46 LifeTrek @ 25 "Why the hell are the Bush tax cuts in there at all?  "

Theory 1/ 
If it doesn't have the word "Bush" in it, somebody might momentarily forget who to blame for Barry's problems.  He's only been freaking PRESIDENT with majorities in both houses for a little over a freaking YEAR, after all, poor guy.  What could he possibly have done about any of this?
Theory 2/
They just do it out of force of habit.  They've been pretending that those tax cuts, which provably increased federal revenues, are a Cost Item, for so long and so loud, that by now it's just a damn automatic reflex for them.  They literally can't help it.

"Why don't we include the Reagan tax cuts or the Kennedy tax cuts?"

DAMN that Warren G. Harding!  His ruinous tax cuts may have obliterated his recession, but AT WHAT COST ?????????????? _{pant pant pant} 

47 #22 arhooley wrote at February 06, 2010 05:19 PM "The question is, can we reverse this mess? People are saying it's structural and permanent. I'm fucking terrified."

It's irreversible. The vast marjority of the Federal Budget is court mandated "entitlements." Spending freezes don't touch them. Meanwhile, Congress can't repeal this spending it didn't enact.

Even as Anthropogenic Global Warming has collapsed in Three Stooges Hilarity the Federal Government is still using it to abuse companies. Courts have legally mandated that carbon dioxide is a pollutant due to false Global Warming. Once again, Congress can do nothing to change this.

You're right to be terrified.

48 JFH @ 7 "The "Bush Era" tax cuts expire at the end of this year.  How can they continue and even GROW the deficit.?... Or is this the chart that is supposed to prove why the tax cuts SHOULD expire?"

You know, you sure ask a lot of questions.

49

Why does the "Economic Downturn" add to the deficit? Sure it lowers tax revenue and such, but these geniuses can tell how much will be lost 10 years from now? Amazing! Also the wars still costing the same for the next 10 years? Good to know, eh?

This graph is made of lies, pure & evil lies!

50 Is Greece Our Future? by Victor Davis Hansen

  "I lived in Greece for more than two years, and one of my best memories is of a small hotelier at a seaside resort. He checked you in; he cooked; he did the landscaping at night; he did all the maintenance during the day. I asked him why he didn't hire more help, since his hotel wasn't all that small and he seemed to be going 24/7. What followed was a harangue about the cost of hiring a permanent worker in Greece, the difficulty of ever firing him if he proved worthless, and why he preferred to do everything himself rather than fill out all sorts of forms and hire unmotivated but tenured employees.

 Besides, he said, almost everyone was on some sort of pension, disability, or government benefit, and was unwilling to work, so his choices were either illegal immigrants or broke foreign students. Then he launched into a blast against socialism, and explained how he was forced to become an expert tax dodger, how he would barter for all the transactions he could, and why he hated the government. He finished by sighing that in Greece, the people spend their time either devising ways to get government money or scheming to avoid the tax collectors — or, preferably, both."


http://corner.nationalreview.com/post/ ?q=ZWI4N2M4ZjNhMjY4NjE3NTE3NzBmNjVhNjQ2ZThmY2Q=

51 Mr Taylor @ 31 "The tax cuts didn't increase the deficit, they were actually reducing it. TARP and bailouts and the "stimulus" package is what caused them."

No no no!  It was Bush, BUSH, BUUUUUUSH, and HIS irresponsible spending that ballooned this deficit!  That's why we need to do five times as much of the exact same thing, you see, to fix it! 

52 Why Government Fails

  "If you've ever wondered why almost everything government does is a total screwup, the answer is actually very simple.

  If a business satisfies its customers, it gets more customers and more money. If a business fails to satisfy its customers, the customers go elsewhere and it loses money.

  If a government agency satisfies its 'customers', it gets less money as funds are diverted elsewhere. If a government agency fails to satisfy its 'customers', it whines about how it's underfunded and gets more money.

  Put quite simply, government agencies have a strong incentive to fail, while business has a strong incentive to succeed. Business rewards success, whereas government rewards failure. Government's motivation is totally backwards.

  Imagine you ran a business where you adjusted employees' pay each year based on a performance appraisal. Those employees who did better than expected would have their pay cut because they clearly didn't need an incentive to work hard. Those employees who did worse than expected would have their pay increased to give them an incentive to work harder.

  The whole idea is clearly absurd; anyone can see that if you paid people more for doing a bad job, that pretty soon all the employees would be doing as little work as possible in order to increase their pay. Doing a good job is difficult, but any fool can do a bad job.

  So next time a failing school, police force or whatever is demanding more money to solve its problems, remember: if you reward failure... you just get more failure."


http://wackoworldchronicles.blogspot.com/
2007/05/why-government-fails.html

53 7 The "Bush Era" tax cuts expire at the end of this year.  How can they continue and even GROW the deficit.?... Or is this the chart that is supposed to prove why the tax cuts SHOULD expire?

Posted by: JFH at February 06, 2010 04:46 PM (DkCuG)

Good question.  Maybe they were using the same kind of foolproof forecasting methods that made this chart.

54 Reminiscing about the good old days is always fun. Here is a little article I wrote about a link to Pelosi's webpage from 2003:

Washington, D.C. -- House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi released the following statement today on the Bureau of Labor Statistics' announcement that 470,000 people abandoned their job searches in July and that 3.2 million private sector jobs have been lost since President Bush took office:

Update: -- House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi released the following statement today on the Bureau of Labor Statistics' announcement that among the marginally attached, there were 1.1 million discouraged workers in January, up from 734,000 a year earlier. (The data are not seasonally adjusted.) Discouraged workers are persons not currently looking for work because they believe no jobs are available for them. The remaining 1.5 million people marginally attached to the labor force had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey for reasons such as school attendance or family responsibilities.

“The fact is that President Bush’s misguided economic policies have failed to create jobs. Since President Bush took office, the country has lost 3.2 million jobs, the worst record since President Hoover. And today we learned that in July nearly half a million people gave up looking for a job.

Updated: The fact is that President Obama's msguided economic policies have failed to create jobs. Since President Obama took office, the country has lost 4.1 million jobs, the worst record since President Hoover. And today we learned that true unemployment is over 17% and in January an additional 365,000 people gave up looking for a job.

“Job losses are taking a real toll on the financial security of American families. While Democrats are fighting for opportunity, jobs, and economic security for working families, Republicans continue to focus on helping those who need help the least.

Updated: Job losses are taking a real toll on the financial security of American families. While Republicans are fighting for opportunity, jobs, and economic security for working families, Democrats continue to focus on cap and trade, cardcheck, obamacare and saving their seats after Scott Brown won the "Kennedy seat".

“According to today’s survey, while the national unemployment rate dropped slightly, it still stands at a near record high. In addition, the unemployment rate for African Americans was still over 11 percent in July, and the unemployment rate for Hispanics was 8.2 percent in July.

Updated: According to todayÂ’s survey, while the national unemployment rate dropped slightly, it still stands at a near record high. In January, unemployment rates for most major worker groups--adult men (10.0 percent), teenagers (26.4 percent), blacks (16.5 percent), and Hispanics (12.6 percent)--showed little change.

“It is time for President Bush and the Republicans to get to work for all Americans, not just the elite few.”

It is time for President Obama and the Democrats to get to work for all Americans, not just the elite few.

55 Balance sheet?

Never heard of it.

56 They never stop lying, do they?

57 This chart is BS. first of all, the bush "tax cuts" were also accompanied by the largest ever IRS revenues. oh why is that you say? oh, because when you reward production that is what you get! And, furthermore, when you penalize production you get NON PRODUCTION - which is why the obambam admin is scratching thier heads over the loss of projected tax revenues this year.

gee, do ya think that maybeeeee...just maaayyybbeeee the rich will just stop working so hard, and sit back and wait til the moron is out of office?

58 They never stop lying, do they?

When all you have is a hammer ...

59 Most people who manage the balance sheet are not fools.

And yet the ones that don't manage the balance sheet profess to know the trick to get things going again.

60 The economic downturn shall be now and forevermore, the fault of the previous administration. Amen.

61 The "Bush tax cuts" expire December 31 this year; how can they be increasing the deficit after that?

62 The dems will use Clinton's idea and make the expiring tax cuts retro-active to right now.  You think taking control of the House next January after the November elections will be a good thing.  There will be a month and a half for the lame duck dems to get their revenge on the "fucking retards" who failed to vote for them.

63

I would be shocked, shocked, if "Afghanistan and Iraq" turned out to be "Afghanistan, Iraq, and Having a Military".

 

64     * On March 14, 2008, then Sen. Obama voted in favor of the 2009 budget which authorized $3.1 trillion in federal outlays along with a projected $400 billion deficit. The 51-44 vote that morning was strongly along party lines with only two Republicans saying "Yes."
    * When the final conference report was presented to the House on June 5, not one Republican voted for it.
    * This means the 2009 budget was almost exclusively approved by Democrats, with "Yeas" coming from Obama, his Vice President Joe Biden, his Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, and his Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
    * On October 1, 2008, Obama, Biden, and Clinton voted in favor of the $700 billion Troubled Assets Relief Program designed to prevent teetering financial institutions from completely destroying the economy.
    * In February, 2009, a $787 billion stimulus bill was passed with just three Republican votes, and later signed by Obama.
    * Weeks later, Congress approved and Obama signed $410 billion of additional spending.

Add it all up, and Obama approved every penny spent in fiscal 2009 either via his votes in the Senate or his signature as President.

65 It will be interesting to see what happens to federal revenues after the Bush era tax cuts expire. If they drop, you can bet no one in Obamaland will connect that fact to the current deficit.

66 It is pretty amazing that they even put numbers out about the budget.  It's obvious that they don't know how much they are going to spend and they don't know how much they are going to have.  They have no concept of solving problems without spending money.

The COBRA subsidy raised the cost of health care for example.  Many people could have short term health insurance plans at one fourth the cost and have plenty of coverage.  But the government is throwing money at health insurance plans that only make insurance companies rich.

67 health insurance quotes ppl life insurance quotes =)

68 train tickets,
dental insurance quotes,
train tickets,