What does a trillion dollars look like ?

While the budget battle drags on and we watch as politicians throw our money around like chips in a poker game. Most Americans have a hard time visualizing exactly the incredible amounts of money that our government takes in and wastes.

The folks at http://usdebt.kleptocracy.us/ have put up a great visual to give us some sense of what a couple of trillion dollars looks like. It is great way to explain both the debt crisis and the huge sums of money being discussed in Washington.

A Visualization of the U.S. Debt

Boehner's Credibility Shot With Second Weak Proposal

Boehner tells Republicans "Get Your Ass in Line"; This is the Best Deal Republicans Can Get?

Maybe not, Obama's, Geithner's, and Bernanke's statements about default simply are not credible. Nor are threats of cutoffs to military pay or Social Security. Contrary to popular belief, the US would not default. Troops would still be paid. Medicare and Medicaid would not stop, unless of course Obama and Geithner decided not to pay them.

Not raising debt limit could be a blessing

Republicans put off vote on debt limit

There is easily a month or more to work out a better deal. There are many programs we can easily do away with that should not be funded at all, if they really tried.

Obama's proposals are as fake as his recovery, and unemployment figures, the democrats are playing a game. They have refused to deal with the budget for over 2 1/2 years, and have still not made any credible proposals, the game is to sit back and criticize, complain, and and say NO DEAL on anything that takes a serious shot at reducing spending. Obama's strategy is childish, scold the republicans into making a deal that his voting base will like.

All things considered, especially since Boehner's credibility is gone in his latest weak proposal, the best thing for Congress to do would be to NOT hike the debt ceiling and work out a credible plan over the next month.

Republicans have a golden opportunity to attempt to extract some major concessions in return for tiny tax concessions. Instead,with Bohner's plan they are going to settle for nothing.

Obama should lead, follow, or get out of the way.

With five days remaining before the government is forced to drastically cut services to avoid a default, Republicans have a bill that can't pass the Senate, and Democrats have a bill that House Republicans hate, this is what hope and change looks like, polarization and class-warfare.

You can't lead from behind. The president has not even put anything is writing. All we get from Obama are platitudes, promises, and threats, along with what he will not go along with. This has been a critical debate concerning our country's budget, and our future. Obama and the democrats have been completely absent and hiding in the bushes. Leaders must take risks, not just watch the polls and go along with whatever will get them re-elected. We have a total lack of leadership and a FAILURE of the the exectutive to do his job. When Obama tells us we must share the sacrifice, what is he sacrificing ? NOTHING !

Boehner should be given credit for trying, he has stuck to the principles that got him elected, smaller govt, less spending. In the end he will get more than the dems wanted to give up, and it is a step in the right direction, but a long way from anything substantial to turn the tide against the beast that is devouring our
wealth, and freedom.

The CBO likes Boehner's plan,they haven't mentioned Obama's plan yet, Oh, wait a minute, he has no plan !

According to the CBO, Boehner's plan is good. It's cuts now exceed the amount by which his plan would initially raise the debt ceiling. Their analysis concludes that his proposal would cut and cap spending by $917 billion over ten years It would also cut $22 billion in spending over the next year, and reduce discretionary expenditures each year thereafter. Boehner's new plan also requires Congress to propose at least another $1.8 trillion in spending cuts." So of course, Harry Reid has said it is DOA before he sees it, and is vowing to vote it down, and just in case it should get past the Senate, Obama is vowing to veto it.

Dear Mr. Speaker:

As you requested, the Congressional Budget Office has estimated the impact on the
deficit of the Budget Control Act of 2011, as posted on the Web site of the Committee on Rules on July 25, 2011.

...

In total, if appropriations in the next 10 years are equal to the caps on discretionary spending and the maximum amount of funding is provided for the program integrity initiatives, CBO estimates that the legislation would reduce budget deficits by about $850 billion between 2012 and 2021 relative to CBO’s March 2011 baseline adjusted for subsequent appropriation action.

As requested, CBO has also calculated the net budgetary impact if discretionary savings are measured relative to its January baseline projections. Relative to that baseline, CBO estimates that the legislation would reduce budget deficits by about $1.1 trillion between 2012 and 2021.

At least it's a plan.

So there it is, Boehner has proposed a $850 billion reduction over 10 years, a minuscule $85 billion a year on a deficit of $1.4 trillion. It is far worse than it looks because it is heavily back-loaded.

Unfortunately I think that Boehner's plan which is the best so far, is a joke. He has proposed a $850 billion reduction over 10 years, a measly $85 billion a year on a deficit of $1.4 trillion, and it's heavily back loaded. but at least it is a plan.

But it's not surprising that various Tea-Party members will not vote for it.
If we pass Obama's plan we get to see what's in it, again.

Obama's press secretary when pressed on the issue finally admitted what we already knew. Obama has no plan, or at least he doesn't want to put it to paper, so it doesn't become politically charged, in other words, we have to pass it to see what's in it again.

Obama's Head Fake on the Debt Plan

Mark Steyn

Obama announced a 4 trillion dollar deficit plan. His media barking dogs ran off to file their pieces praising Obama and calling him ""the only adult in the room", the problem is, there is no plan. The only plan that Obama has put on paper was his February budget that increased spending, and doubled the debt.

The Democratic Senate has shown no interest in producing a budget for two-and-a-half years. Sen. Reid can't even be bothered pretending he's interested in spending reductions. His only interest is to carry on spending without limits. Obama's budget plan ? Obama rolls out his teleprompter and his aides write some really big numbers on it, he reads them, and that passes for leadership.

The time has come for a balanced budget amendment

Republicans captured Congress in the 1994 midterm election by campaigning on the need for a balanced budget amendment when the federal deficit was only $203 billion.The Congressional Budget Office reported last Thursday that the federal deficit reached $1.2 trillion after only the first 10 months of the fiscal year.

The fact we are having this heated debate is evidence that we have reached critical mass with a massive intrusive Federal government that taxes us to death, and has a blank check to borrow whatever the difference is between what it spends, and what it takes in. Common sense should tell us this is a recipe for disaster, and in fact that disaster has already begun to play out.

When we had these budget compromises in the 1980s and 1990s, spending was reduced, taxes were raised, and the crisis was kicked down the road, but only for a short period of time. Over time, the tax increases always remain, but the spending begins to increase almost as soon as the deals are finished. A constitutional amendment is the medicine for Washington's spending ailment.

We have witnessed an unprecedented spending binge from this administration. Even in the face of a failing economy, rising unemployment, and a growing mountain of debt for our children and grandchildren, this administration still demands a blank check to waste money on failed welfare programs, a failed economic stimulus program, a health care bill that keeps driving up costs, and no one understands, and continues to shove it's disastrous green energy initiatives down our throats. Instead of a serious discussion about our budget, Obama gives us talking points, and threatens us if we fail to raise the debt limit for his reckless irresponsible administration.

The whole idea of the Debt Ceiling is for the Government to explain it's spending, and for the American people to ask what are we getting for our money ? In the case of the Obama administration we are getting unprecedented spending levels for welfare and entitlement programs that are rife with massive fraud, and waste, class-warfare against the business class, stifling over-regulation, the end of our manned space program, an irresponsible, piecemeal approach to defense spending cuts, with no oversight, and no discussion, higher unemployment, a stalled economy, and continual cries for more money.

Obama owns this mess, he isn't cleaning up Bush's mess, he is only creating a bigger mess. He is using the recession, and the crisis to advance his own political agenda, which has been a Franco-German welfare state, and it has been disastrous for our country and the economy. Obama hasn't caused runaway government spending, but he sure has kicked up into the stratosphere.

2010 midterms gave us fresh hope.This amendment will demonstrate we are taking action. If conservatives across the country can stand behind this, we may have a chance of getting it through. That’s what it is going to take.

Amending the constitution is an arduous endeavor. Not only would both chambers have to pass an amendment, but 38 state legislatures would have to ratify it. More likely this year,may be an agreement to grant the president “enhanced rescission” the ability to target wasteful spending via a line-item veto.

Personally, I think that a vote on a balanced-budget amendment is one of the demands we should exact for a vote on the debt ceiling. The current effort to enact a balanced budget amendment is not going to go away. Cut, Cap and Balance, is driven by the very real predictions that our nation is heading for bankruptcy.

There is growing realization that the only way to get the spenders in Washington to stop spending is to give them no choice.

House Passes the Cut, Cap, and Balance Act

House passes the Cut, Cap, and Balance Act of 2011 (H.R. 2560) by a vote of 234-190.  Yesterday,
The House has finally put some teeth in the bill to balance the budget and passed the Cut, Cap, and Balance Act which ensure Washington balances the budget and solves our debt crisis by living within its means.

Obama and the Democrats have no plan they want to continue their spending spree and have avoided their responsibility to present a serious budget proposal to the American people for over two years. Obama throws more rhetoric and promises at the problem. In speeches he gives about the budget he obfuscates, and talks about cutting maybe 500 Billion in maybe 10 years, maybe 15 years, who knows, or cares. It's a ruse, he has no plan and any cuts that are not immediate will never happen.

After playing the "race card' again by accusing Eric Cantor of treating  him worse that "any other" president in history, he storms out of the discussions with Congress and runs back to the  Gang of Six proposal, the one he was against before, he was for it ? Leadership  now  means wait and see what the Republicans offer, complain, criticize and shop around for a better offer.

Any deal that does not do immediate cuts is phony, we know from experience politicians have 100% success rate in fulfilling promises to raise taxes, but are not so good when it comes to making spending reductions real, in fact they will never happen. But the tax increases sure as hell will.

As the debate over the nation’s debt continues, I still believe that any increase in the debt limit must be accompanied by substantial spending cuts and reforms.this measure will ensure Washington balances the budget and solves our debt crisis by living within its means.

The American people are saying to Washington, ‘Quit spending money we don’t have.’  So today House Republicans will bring to the floor the Cut, Cap, and Balance plan…  There is no other credible plan on the table that avoids default and solves the problem.”

The Cut, Cap, and Balance Act contains three provisions designed to avert our debt crisis by controlling federal spending and preventing unnecessary tax hikes on job creators:

    (1) Cuts total spending immediately – $111 billion in cuts over the next year alone and $5.8 trillion over the next decade.
    (2) Caps federal spending at less than 20% of the economic output of the United States within a decade.
    (3) Requires the passage of a balanced budget amendment before raising the nation’s debt limit.

Contact your representative and them know you support this bill. And that you are tired of failed leadership. Let them know you want politicians to do something about out of control spending, government waste, and fraud, and work within a budget.

Click here to find your representative's contact info