“Let the game show begin! Oh, wait… This isn’t Let’s Make A Deal?”
In New Hampshire the existing field of seven Republicans had different missions going into the 120-minute rhetorical tussle. There was a bothersome hectic air about the show. Being TV, host John King was constantly stressing time, time, time, as if there weren’t 14 months until the convention and 512 days until the 2012 election.
[…]
For Rick Santorum, Herman Cain, Tim Pawlenty and Michele Bachmann, it was a chance to introduce themselves to a national TV audience, or at least those Americans choosing to watch a low-rated cable news channel on a summer evening when they’ll have interminable opportunities to watch/read/listen more later, when others like Jon Huntsman may join in.Bachmann took the opportunity to basically announce her candidacy. […] Pawlenty, who’s new to this league, looked sincere but less comfortable than he will down the road. Ron Paul was, well, Ron Paul. […] Fact is, the entire Republican field has moved in his direction in some areas like the overpowering size of the federal government now.
Newt Gingrich, trying to relaunch his stumbling campaign, was sharp, pointed and surprisingly brief for a former speaker; it served him well. […] Romney’s ridden this circuit before and looked the most poised and presidential, even plopped in center stage.
[…]
One striking sense from this initial encounter is how distinctly more conservative is the tone this time over 2007-08, especially in matters fiscal.Although a new Gallup Poll reveals that Republicans are more interested this time in picking a winner than in finding an ideal ideological soulmate.
Here’s an article fact-checking the debaters’ statements.
Say Pedro: Do you prefer single or double ply toilet paper when using the toilet?
Pedro: Meh! I doesn’t even car if I wipes my ass.
Well, thank you Pedro for keeping us informed on your personal likes and dislikes.
#64 LL
Now that’s a whole different kettle of fish. You didn’t say anything about EU HQ’s. You said if we raise taxes companies will move somewhere else.
#65 jbenson2:
But if Texas Republicans have done so well managing their government that we should emulate them, why did they need to do anything at all? Why is there a shortfall? Why is their government “so big?” My understanding is that the biggest chunks of their budget are education and law enforcement. Is slashing those things good for the state? Weren’t you just advocating the eliminating of Federal “meddling” in education and letting states pay their own way?
#70 Teadud
Well, I’m glad you’re getting out of the house.
Got any facts?
#71 Well the rich mans “barrel” has been getting more and more full for the last several decades. How come things aren’t great for everyone?
The rising tide lifts all boats analogy is taking on water.
#12 Some of the money managers think the US is in worse condition that Greece which is otherwise considered to be in the worst financial condition of any nation on Earth.
The problem is that we have unfunded obligations that vastly exceed anything we can take in even if we go to 100% taxes on the well to do. In fact I don’t think it would even allow us to cover what we are spending this year. Some of you claimed nobody suggested a tax rate that high but since even that couldn’t raise enough money to balance the budget and would obviously put everyone out of business is that saying much?
Question: How many Demarcates voted to support Obama’s last budget? The answer is zero. When a President can’t get even one vote for his budget out of his own party it suggests to me that you have to be insane not to know that it was totally bogus or so far out in LaLa land as not to have been worth sending to Congress.
When a President sends that sort of budget to Congress it is time to get a New President.
#75 TeaDud:
That’s a different argument. You claim that taxing the rich is “taking water out of one side of the barrel” Your position is that taxing the wealthy hurts everyone, and conversely allowing them to make their riches benefits every one? Am I stating your side fairly?
If letting “the rich get richer” benefits everyone, wheres the benefit?
I also do not advocate redistributing all the wealth, whether made in the 18th, 19th or 20th century. But the rich do have a responsibility to give back to the country/society that provided the environment conducive to the creation of their wealth.
#73, Now that’s a whole different kettle of fish. You didn’t say anything about EU HQ’s. You said if we raise taxes companies will move somewhere else.
Correct. And they are. My examples may have been wrong, but the statement is not.
Look it up if you think you can find proof I’m wrong. Otherwise, the statement stands.
#76 deowll
Greece’s debt to GDP ratio is 142.8% The US’s is 58.9 % Its not even close.
Does that mean we don’t need to fix stuff? of course not. 50% isn’t laudable either. I’m not even advocating that nothing be cut. But I cant in good conscience slash government programs that benefit everyone in exchange for *even more* tax cuts.
Trim the fat, Pay the bills. The solution needs to address both sides, revenue and spending. Anyone who tells you different is selling something.
#73, Why is there a shortfall?
Lack of income results in reduced consumer spending results in less sales tax revenue.
We are a consumerist economy. When the economy depends on people buying from the impulse buy rack at Wal-Mart, you have problems.
Why is their government “so big?”
Same reason any government gets too big. Too much money coming in.
My understanding is that the biggest chunks of their budget are education and law enforcement
Nope:
41% Education
33% Healthcare
6% Law Enforcement (extremely low)
Weren’t you just advocating the eliminating of Federal “meddling” in education and letting states pay their own way?
Texas ranks 50th in the nation in per capita government spending.
Texas’ budget shortfall averaged about 11%.
Compare that to the US Federal Budget shortfall of 45%.
If Texas can do it, why can’t the federal government?
#80–LL==your OWN facts show Texas can’t do it. 11% deficit when balanced is required. Now, just for a start, is running the entire USA more or less difficult than running a waste of space like Texas, outside of Austin?
#78 LL:
Ha ha ha. You just don’t see comedy like that any more. My data is wrong, but take me at face value anyway. Ho ho!
I say again: Why doesn’t *every* company move to Montenegro? The answer: tax rate is not the primary factor in the location of business. It can be *a* factor. But the idea that all the businesses will move out if we raise the tax rate even a little is silly. Its not borne out by facts.
#44 Bobbo
“some fancy Swiss alternative which is afterall just France with a lot of historical spin.”
I have no idea what you mean by that and I strongly suspect that you don’t either.
As it stands, it represents a depth of ignorance about history, geography, politics, language, national identity and independence (to name but a few) that is almost breathtaking in its magnitude.
#80 LL:
My bad. Wrong about LE, right about education.
How are these cuts affecting the the next generation of Texans? Not helping I’d wager.
If the lowest spending state in the nation cant get the job done without an 11% deficit, maybe spending is not the only factor?
#83–awh Freddy==wazz up? Are you French, or Swiss or a phile of either?
Switzerland is well known for being culturally a mix of French, German and Italian with a little left over for chocolate, watches, and criminal banking conspiracies.
If you wake up in Western Low Lands of Switzerland you cannot tell you are not in France.
Unless you disagree with ANY of the above, enjoy the absurd.
Hey Pedro–I haven’t paid attention but I don’t think I’ve responded or called on Alfie this entire thread. No, my Stupid Low Level Light came on after posting to you.
Ain’t that a shame?
Awh Shoot! I missed it. Freddy: I know you are German. They are the one that proudly proclaim they have no sense of humor at all. I should have made the connection immediately.
Speaking of which, I saw a list of ethnic roots for America. the largest group was German–well ahead of all the others. Seems like it should be Spanish/Mexican? Maybe it was “European Roots?”
Interesting how we deny our German heritage. I have seen lots on Irish, and Italian Immigration. Less on the French and Nordic Types. Almost none on the German outside of they all changed their names during WW1?
Some say, its that fact ((what was there, a schnitzel blight?)) alone that allowed us to beat Hitler in WW2, beat the Ruskies to the Moon and so forth.
Now Frederick==don’t go postal on me.
#82, You need to read everything and not just want you want to see. Read my earlier posts. I agreed with you that taxes weren’t the only reason they were moving. Sheesh.
#85, How are these cuts affecting the the next generation of Texans? Not helping I’d wager.
How Texas handles its school districts is really interesting. When I got involved with the local board here, I couldn’t believe how lopsided the state distributions were. The money that gets sent around to the school districts is locked. Some districts get more, some less. The ones that get more don’t necessarily need it (and they actually admitted as much). The cuts ended up affecting them more than the other ones. So, there may have been cuts to the program but the cuts were more to make the districts “more even” per student.
If the lowest spending state in the nation cant get the job done without an 11% deficit, maybe spending is not the only factor?
Just because we are the lowest doesn’t mean we still aren’t spending too much.
We actually had a surplus a few years back and put $9B in the rainy day fund. That covered some of the shortfall but not all of it.
#86 Bobbo
“If you wake up in Western Low Lands of Switzerland you cannot tell you are not in France.”
Because of the purely superficial observation that you hear French spoken? That could also apply to Belgium, Luxembourg and large chunks of North Africa.
On the other hand, at the very latest at breakfast time, it cannot have escaped even your befuddled brain that you had to pay in Swiss francs and not Euros. It is this fact above all that is most relevant to the economic discussion above.
Texas is an interesting case. Up until 2006 budgets and deficits weren’t a big problem – some deficits, some surpluses with a rainy day fund. Rick Perry slashed corporate taxes to lure companies to Texas rather than pay down the debt when times were good and commodity revenues high.
This caused a $9 billion deficit shortfall which ballooned to $27 billion during the recession (job losses). Obviously from a doctrinaire point of view he can’t go back to the old style of balancing budgets and organic growth. The companies he attracted are generally pretty mobile (welcome to the new economy) so a good chunk of them will leave over the next 3-5 years. This evidenced by a decline in population growth over the last year.
Texas’ challenge is now how to keep people from leaving, especially educated workers who have families. During the last year the population growth has pulled back, even below 2001-2004 numbers.
Commodities (oil, farming, ranching) will continue to do well (exports are up mainly on oil) but they don’t have a strategy, or a track record, for new business growth.
I get the cuts, they have to do it but basically the message is don’t be old or have children in Texas for the next 5 years. What I find fault in is creating a budget crisis in 1996 for short term gain rather than managing debt when it was prudent. Rick Perry is guilty of “wishful thinking” forecasting and budgeting.
#84, The reason I didn’t care for the republican debate was exactly the same reason I don’t care about democrat debate: They’re both trying to bamboozle people like you into believing there’s a difference.
Agreed. And most people find it astounding that you can slam democrats and not be a republican.
#91, Rick Perry slashed corporate taxes
Um, that is the media sound bite but that didn’t happen.
What he did was implement a “franchise fee” that taxed companies based on gross income (I own a company so I know this). It turns out the difference between that an income tax is pretty slim. But you can’t call it an income tax because those are against the law in Texas.
He didn’t lower taxes. He raised them.
He also tried to force parents to vaccinate their girls against VD and the Trans-Texas Corridor is a boondoggle of ultimate proportions.
I hope he doesn’t run for President. He would suck votes away from somebody who would need them.
LibertyLover is dead on right. The R/D debates are just road shows for the base.
#88 Bobbo
“Awh Shoot! I missed it. Freddy: I know you are German.”
Good try – but so wrong. Try again. 🙂
By the way, it’s not a matter of a lack of sense of humor. It’s rather that snarky comments about matters affecting (sometimes extreme) national sensitivities I don’t find particularly funny.
And no, I am neither French nor Swiss. Go figure.
#91, This evidenced by a decline in population growth over the last year.
I can’t find any information on this. Do you have a link? All I can find is that it was 25,373,947 in 2010 and projected to be 25,883,999 in 2011.
Freddy–you sank in my estimation, but have risen Phoenix like from the ashes. So, you are a mutt like myself or really not a “Fred?” Probably a rich dude too if you can’t see anything past money, but maybe that means you are poor.
Sherlock Holmes I ain’t.
“National Sensitivities” huh? Well, if you aren’t German, and aren’t French, that only leaves Italian or Real Swiss? I don’t detect any accent so you must be Swiss? Do you live near Shania Twain? Now that would be something worth getting in a tizzy over–her leaving for Las Vegas that is. Ha, ha.
Oops–not Swiss either, but still no accent. Jeeze Freddy are you a Talented Mr Ripley. A displaced American having murdered your benefactor and now trying to blend in by being an ultra nationalist? Weird.
What in the world is the personal gratification in being sensitive about nationality? Must be some story there?
I must protest once again the god awful stupidity of claiming the D’s and R’s are “the same.”
Jesus H Christ on a pogo stick: just because both parties are corrupt, self dealing, lying sacks of shit does not make them “the same.”
You idiots are great at COMPARING or in CONTRASTING, but too pitiful few of you do BOTH!!! What have you guys got against THINKING for a change?
Silly Hoomans.
I won the debate, by not watching it and NOT polluting my mind with their empty rhetoric.
I thank cable and SAT for not being able to watch this. I dont even get CSPAN…
I cut the cord YEARS ago and went to BROADCAST TV..
Who here knows that in MOST major metro areas, you PROBABLY have access to 20+ FREE channels, for about $100 in hardware?
so what if bachmann was elected and her god stopped talking to her?
i doubt she could make a decision on her own
would the koch bros call her, would she look for wisdom in taxed enough already dude’s dvorak/blog musings?
come on GOP is find some one who is better than the worst president ever “W” to run or you haven’t got a chance.
has eisenhower been reincarnated yet?
#97 Bobbo
“What in the world is the personal gratification in being sensitive about nationality?”
Consideration for other people, perhaps? Or is that too idealistic for you?
Not American, not rich, not poor. The reference to the Swiss franc I would have thought was obvious. It is a currency of “flight” in troubled times (similar function to that of gold) and both the dollar and the euro are very troubled at the moment. Also many companies would prefer to avoid some of the sillier regulations of the European Union.
LETS get them on REAL TV..
Smarter then a 5th grader..