The Walmart cycle.

               One meme or article after another tells us to avoid Walmart. Which is absolutely right! They subsidize their company by paying low wages, thereby forcing their employees to receive Federal Benefits. That alone costs American tax payers billions of dollars a year. Not to mention the money they receive from Federal and State governments to build stores or warehouses in their areas or the tax breaks and tax havens they use to avoid paying billions of dollars in taxes.

The Walton family are worth a couple hundred billion dollars. While making these billions of dollars they bemoan employees who ask for a higher wage or the right to unionize. All the while purchasing product from China, a Communist dictatorship that not only manipulates their currency but also subsidizes their companies. The Walton maintain that if they raise pay, they have to raise prices. While saying this they reap profits that have rarely been seen in American history.

Now here is the conundrum. The average person making even $12 an hour is that they do not have alot of disposable income. Electric, gas, phone, taxes and even sewer have all seen precipitous increases, all while this person has been stuck at $12 an hour. A family of 4, with mom and dad both working, will in many cases qualify for Federal Benefits. The failure of corporations to raise peoples pay while making record profits has presented these people with a pickle. Do I shop at a cheaper store and get more or shop at more expensive and get less. Where does this leave them?

At a time when Americans need more help then at possibly any time in our history, we have also found ourselves in a period of hyper-polarization. While these people need help, Paul Ryan and Republicans want to cut Federal Benefits while cutting taxes for the wealthy. Democrats led by Elizabeth Warren are trying to extend unemployment benefits, raise taxes on the wealthy, reel in to big to fail and fix income inequality. Bernie Sanders, the only Independent who really matters, my little joke, is fighting along many of the same fronts as Elizabeth Warren. It has become class warfare. Rich saying the poor dont work hard enough and poor asking for a fair share. All of this while 47 million Americans are on Food Stamps because of low pay or no jobs.

Here is where it comes full circle. These people on the bottom end up shopping at Walmart because of their low pay. By shopping at Walmart they are putting people like themselves out of work, as well as giving the Waltons a false sense that their model is a good thing. The person shopping there doesn’t want to do these things, but what company can compete with a monolithic corporation like Walmart. Of course it would be another corporation. What option do these people have? Even if you dont shop at Walmart, the majority of products are made somewhere else.

Government shutdown is the leadup to raising the Debt Ceiling.

         First to be clear, the Debt Ceiling is for bills Congress already incurred. It allows us to pay the bills Congress already approved. Under George W. Bush the Debt Ceiling was raised 7 times. That is under a President who took us from a surplus to about $10 trillion debt. He ran up a $15 trillion bill. Where were the Republican fiscal hawks then. Sadly many were ok with this spending.

The extreme right wing of the Republican party, the Tea Party, have pushed a very extreme agenda. The word compromise means surrender to them. They have made it a mission to destroy our government. My way or the highway is not how the Democratic process works. To use dramatic methods to extract every last thing you want is undemocratic. No one ever gets everything they want in the democratic process, they compromise and get the best of both sides. This is why Congress is in gridlock, the refusal to negotiate in good faith.

It is ignorant to blame President Obama for this shutdown. In fact Michelle Bachman said that they were happy with the shutdown. Other Republicans said theg were giddy about the shutdown. Why we President Obama give away the house when Republicans are coming back for more in a few weeks. Republicans are attempting to extract some now and more in the Debt Ceiling negotiations. Democrats are letting the Republican party show their lack of empathy for the American people.

From April until now, Democrats attempted 18 times to negotiate to avoid this shutdown. They were filibustered by Marco Rubio, Paul Ryan, Mitch McConnell, Mike Lee and several other prominent Republicans. Republicans have said they will not budge on Debt Ceiling negotiations. Despite the fact they already approved the spending. Very hypocritical stance. They keep mentioning the choice was President Obama’s. What they dont say is that there never was a choice. There was an ultimatum. Do this or we shut down the government. Now the GOP is scrambling to save their tarnished image, which is unsavable.

This is just setting the table for the next showdown in a few weeks. Republicans are making a spectacle of everything in order to polarize the country more. We will be in this same spot or worse in a few weeks. Our economy is taking a severe hit from this shut down. I believe Republicans thought President Obama would blink and negotiate the ACA. They took a calculated risk and lost. Sadly they weren’t smart enough to set up a way out of the mess they put us in. Just don’t move from manufactured crisis to another. Govern intellegently, think about the people. Stop spreading disinformation. The ACA is the law, help people learn it.

Where did our elected leaders go?

           In 2009 President Obama took over as our first African-American president. That was the day government shut down. The Republicans vowed that making him a one term president was there number one priority. They would do anything to make that happen. In their efforts to unseat him, they did irreapairable harm to America. They created a divide so wide that if you disagree with a conservatives point of view, you are a Nazi, a marxist, a socialist and a traitor.

Health care costs were raging out of control. Increasing about 200% since the year 2004. I did not have a copay in 2004, meds cost 10-20-30. By 2008 I was paying $65 a week and 20-35-55 for meds. Office visits went from $10 to $20 and specialists $25 to $75. The ACA was put into effect to stem the rising costs, help get the uninsured insured at a reasonable rate and stop people being denied for pre-existing conditions. Despite the President and Democrats trying to stem health care costs, which were crippling our manufacturing sector, Republicans railed against it. In fact they have voted 41 times to repeal it, costing us $60 million dollars with those votes, some fiscal hawks right. What is wrong with stopping people from losing their homes when they get sick. Shows who Republicans really work for.

Republicans attacked President Obama over unemployment. While at the same time shooting down his jobs bill, which would have created a million new jobs. They said the unemployment rate was to high. But when the president got it under 8%, they said the president doesn’t create jobs. Republicans took over the House in 2010, they have not created a single job. They are much more concerned with anti-abortion laws and religious laws. The president’s economic plan is working despite sequestration and continued Republican interference. If Republicans were willing to work with Democrats maybe their input would be in these bills, possibly even improving them.

Paul Ryan, John Boehner and several other prominent Republicans have said that there is no longer a debt crisis. Yet these so called budget hawks try to take the country hostage on the debt ceiling. First this is just for bills that Congress already approved. Why would they not approve money for spending they already approved? It is a domestic terrorist attack designed to further an agenda that caters to corporations, ALEC, the Koch Brothers and NRA amongst others. These is not what our forefathers envisioned when they wrote the Constitution.

Why has the Debt Ceiling become a political show?

             During Ronald Reagans time in office Congress voted to raise the Debt Ceiling 17 times. They raised it another 7 times under George W. Bush. The Republicans give President Obama a difficult time about, even at one point lowering the United States credit rating, just to make a point. Once again it is a point at the expense of the American public.

Contrary to Conservative news and radio show hosts and their audience, we are no longer in a debt crisis. Speaker of the House John Boehner and Republican wunderkind Paul Ryan both admitted that fact. As well as several other prominent Republicans. $2.5 trillion has been trimmed off the defecit over the next 10 years. That is a fact that is little known in Conservative circles. It is a combination of Medicare saving money, more tax revenue, cutting waste from programs, as well as cuts across the board, the Sequester.

The Debt Ceiling has never been taken hostage like this before. This is the first time in the last 75 years this has ever happened. In fact I believe this is the first time in history. This is unprecedented. It is a small minded attempt to force President Obama to capitulate to their demands. They are willing to again downgrade our credit rating to do this. This is verging on lunacy. This is not how to govern a country. Democracy is built on compromise. The Constitution was great men compromising. But these great men made slavery legal in our country. So all men are fallable.

Sadly this is just another dog and pony show to coddle their base. Democrats and President Obama have shown their willingness to compromise, Republicans will not because they are catering to a growing radical base. It is zealots whose understanding of the Constitution is limited who are forcing the polarization. The Representatives are fostering this hatred of people with different opinions.

The Debt Ceiling is raised to pay bills we have already incurred. Nothing else. Please do not be bamboozled by someone trying to forward their own agenda. The Conservative movement has turned a matter of practice into a personal attack on the President. When is enough, enough. Time enough has passed, get over your losses and govern our country properly.

Republicans plan on holding the Debt Ceiling Hostage again, the Ryan Budget is their demand.

                 Even though in March Speaker of the House John Boehner acknowledged that there is not an immediate debt problem, Republicans plan on holding the Debt Ceiling hostage again. They demand that the Ryan Budget be put in place or they will vote against the Debt Ceiling. This is unprecedented in American history.

Until 2011 no political party had the votes or the intent to stop the President from raising the Debt Ceiling. Which will cause a lowering of our borrowing ability and cause problems economically worldwide. Despite the National Debt being lowered and our slow but steady climb out of an economic abyss, the Republicans seem more than willing to sendvus back there. This is a House that refuses to vote on the Senate Immigration Bill and Student Loan Rates. The do nothing Congress led by Republicans seems to want to hurt America.

The Paul Ryan Budget, a cruel joke against middle class and poor Americans. He cuts Food Stamps and other parts of the SNAP program by $125 billion, while giving larger tax breaks to the wealthy and big corporations. It is a joke of a Budget Proposal that promotes Austerity, but only in the programs that help poor Americans. Austerity doesn’t work. Paul Ryan’s budget repeals the ACA yet uses the savings to balance the budget. That is unlikely to work.

President Obama and Democrats caved last time on the Debt Ceiling to save America’s credit rating. They better not cave this time or Americans will suffer worse than before. Republicans are again holding the American public hostage in order to forward some backwards agenda that benefits 3% of the population. To forward a corporate agenda, because a lobbyist paid them to do so. The Republican party’s disdain for President Obama is destroying any credibility they ever had. Now to retake the House and push them further down. 2014 is the year of the Progressive. For that we need to thank Republicans for their actions.

The Senate votes yes to extend corporate welfare to Tobacco Growers and no to stopping Food Stamp cuts.

               The Senate voted down an amendment by Kristen Gillibrand (D-Ny) to restore $4.1 billion in Food Stamp cuts, by reducing corporate welfare to a handful of crop insurance companies, mostly based overseas. Only 26 Senators voted yes. We can’t just blame Republicans this time, 28 Democrats joined all Republicans in voting against the amendment. If our government moves forward with these cuts, 500,000 low income families will lose an average of $90 a month.

             There are already cuts being made to the Food Stamp Program because of Federal Stimulus money drying up. The part that is disgusting is that Democrats are voting against a large part of their base. The job market is slowly recovering, many of the jobs out there are low wage, part time jobs that don’t help people get off of assistance. The private market is creating those type of jobs, the government jobs are being cut by the Sequester. Now is not the time to cut Food Stamps, once the unemployment rate goes below 7% then you can start considering ot, until then you are hurting people that Republican policies already hurt.

Food Stamps until President Obama took office were a program tgat generally was left alone by both parties. Every $1.00 that is spent on foid assistance programs generates $1.84 for the economy. That is almost doubling your investment, what other Government program does that? It is a program that helps the working poor, which the Grear Recession created a lot of. To attack the lower income class while leaving corporate welfare alone, which cost taxpayers almost $200 billion as opposed to Food Stamps costing $80 billion, is a slap in the face of the American public. Many of these same Senators voted to continue subsidizing Tobacco Growers just days before voting to take food out of a child’s mouth. Tell me lobbying had nothing to do with either of these votes. This is a heinous act of cowardice by a Congress that obviously is more concerned with campaign donations than with their constituents.

This cut in Food Stamps will result in a loss of 56,243 jobs. Every $1 billion cut from the SNAP Program results in the loss of 13,718 jobs. The Center for American Progress notes that the job losses will have the greatest effect on young workers. They account for a large share of workers in the food related industries. Is now the right time to inact these cuts?

Paul Ryans latest budget calks for $135 billion in cuts from the SNAP Program. That is heating and food assistance for the poor and the elderly, these are the people that should we should be cutting aid from? Seriously? These cuts to the SNAP Program would result in 1,851,930 jobs lost, is that good for the economy Mr. Ryan? Republicans sell these cuts by saying those on assistance are lazy, contrary to this Republican intentional misconception, most workers return to the workforce within a year of losing their jobs. But the low wages and part time hours created by the Private Market continue helping prople qualify for the program. Republicans are betting on the working poor not showing up at the polls to punish their policy of hurting the poor to make the rich richer.

Upward mobility is nearly in the U.S. Our People are stuck in perpetual poverty without the means to improve themselves. Every policy or Bill proposed by Republicans benefit the wealthy abd step on the throat of the poor. President Obama has been trying to create steps up the ladder to the middle class, only to be obstructed by greedy Republicans. But this time Democrats sold him out as well. Good looking out for your people and your President.
  
                

Karl Rove launches Benghazi themed attack ad aimed at Hillary Clinton, but Benghazi is not a political stunt.

               Less than 5 months into President Obama’s second term, Karl Rove kicked off the 2016 presidential campaign with a Benghazi themed attack ad that directly takes aim at Hillary Clinton. The web ad was launched by the Karl Rove funded American Crossroads. They spent more than $21 million during the last election. It is the freshest evidence that hyperpartisan SUPER-PAC slush funds are now a core part of the permanent campaign.

             The American Crossroads ad matters because it is a preemptive strike against Hillary Clinton and her possible 2016 presidential campaign run. The days of Clinton being Obama’s favorite cabinet member with Republicans are apparently over. According to polls Hillary Clinton easily bears Ted Cruz, Chris Christie, Marco Rubio and Paul Ryan. Chris Christie is closest in the polls.

                The Rove ad never mentions President Obama by name and only shows him briefly standing beside Clinton. They were standing together at Andrews Airforce Base when Ambassador Stevens and his aides bodies arrived back in the U.S. Tie clip of Clinton speaking is important because it uses the most credible criticism of the Obama administration in the wake of the Benghazi attack. It shows her incorrectly blaming the awful internet video that the we had nothing to do with.

                  Roves video portrays Clinton as the problem, showing a shift in no longer going after the Obama administration. The demotion of whistleblower Gregory Hicks after the attack us used as evidence, whether true or not. The ad goes on to ask ” Was she part of the cover-up?” The ad then answers in the affirmative, after airing her saying “What difference does it make?” Never mind that Republicans always omit the next sentence, which was “It is our job to find out what happened and do everything we can to prevent it from happening again.” But that isn’t good material for an attack ad.

            The fact that American Crossroad is trying so hard to connect Benghazi to Clinton shows us the large role hyperpartisan shadow money groups okay in our politics. The IRS targeting Tea Party groups seeking tax exempt status is completely wrong. But investigating the many shadow money groups playing politics while doling out tax breaks to donors is overdue. This is mist likely the earliest presidential attack ad in history.

             This shows the fundamental difference between Democrats and Republicans. Republicans turned Benghazi into a political stunt to attack a “potential” Democrat candidate for president. Republicans say that Democrats used Sandy Hook that way. But there was a difference, it wasnt used as an attack ad, the parents of those children created their own lobbying group to confront the NRA. Benghazi was a tragedy, but the way Republicans are politicizing it is a travesty.

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Rush Limbaugh, the hypocrite and bigot, how does he have a radio show?

                 As I have said in some of my earlier posts I listen to conservative talk radio sometimes because we do nit have a progressive channel. It also truly prepares me for how to debate concervatives. They listen to Rush Limbaugh like he is quoting the Bible. If you look up what get says you will actually see that he skews every story to fit his agenda.

                What I just said was a play on what he was saying today. He was saying that the media is totally flawed because they are liberals who present their agenda in every story. The media has let the American people down because every news story they write is skewed to get their liberal agenda across. I realize that I said that twice but I can’t get over Rush Limbaugh saying it.

                 This is a man who called Sandra Fluke a who’re, yet has been married 4 times. He at one time went into rehab for drug abuse. A good conservative Catholic does not get a divorce or did they change that to keep the rich coming to church.

               This man speaks as if he doesn’t twist the news to work for his agenda. He turns everything into a President Obama conspiracy. He forced the IRS to look at Tea Party organizations who were looking for tax exempt status. He blamed President Obama for the Benghazi situation. He praises John Boehner, Paul Ryan, Mitchell Mcconnell and Marco Rubio as Herod of the American cause. He tends to leave out the parts where Republicans are trying to take away our civil rights.

               Democrats are evil to this man. They do nothing but hurt the country to Rush Limbaugh. He at one point was the shining example if conservative Republicans, then he started letting Hus true identity show. He let on that he was a bigot and a sexist. He has lost a lot of advertisers and is now distinguish his company money. The Stop Rush movement has gained traction as is causing Hus corporate advertisers to drop like flies. One step closer to removing this man from the radio.

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If Republicans want answer for Benghazi, maybe they should look at their own voting record.

           House Republicans vote to reduce funds allocated to the state department for Embassy security since they won the majority in 2010. For the last several years Republicans have continued to deprioritize the security forces protecting State Department personnel worldwide. In the fiscal year 2011, Republican lawmakers shaved $128 million off the administrations request for Embassy security. They then cut back another $331 million in 201. Throw in the Sequester this yearand it is truly amazing we haven’t had similar occurrences.

                     Representative Steven Lynch ( D-MA) blasted the Republican effort to renew questions into the Benghazi Embassy attacks. Representative Lynch is a member of the committee that will hear testimony on the attacks. He dismissed the claim that the Obama administration did not provide adequate security at the Benghazi Embassy. During an exchange with FOX News Sunday host, Chris Wallace, Lynch reminded Wallace that Republicans voted to cut finding for Embassy security when then Secretary of State Hillary Clinton asked for it. All Republicans voted NO. They complain about lack of security at Embassies after they voted against funding for security at Embassies.

               Representative Jason Chaffetz (R-UT), a primary driver of these new hearings, was one of the lawmakers who voted to cut a total of almost $500 million from the Embassy security budget. Chaffetz ignorantly said that funding had nothing to do with security. Chaffetz has defended hos NO vote by saying Embassy security was not a priority. Republicans who voted against funding claim that the Department of Defense was responsible for security, not the State Department. Then why hold Hillary Clinton, the Secratary of State responsible? However a State Department review emphasized the need for more funding to prevent new security threats. Clinton repeated her call for more funding during Benghazi hearings in January.

                    Then Secretary of State Clinton warned Republicans that proposed cuts would create security risks. Paul Ryan, Darryl Issa and the House Republicans voted for an Amendment in 2009 to cut $1.2 billion from State operations. This included funds for 300 diplomatic security positions. Under Ryan’s proposed budget, non-defense discretionary spending,  which includes State Department funding, would be slashed by an additional 20% in 2014. Which translates to more than $400 million in additional cuts to Embassy security. But of course they want to blame President Obama, they cabling hide their guilt from right wing nut jobs.

                 This is just a witch hunt to tarnish Hillary Clintin’s name. Republicans know that if she decides to run for President they cannot compete. I believe the closest poll was 6 percentage points. This just makes the Tea Party look petty and childish. But I guess the Republicans do not know how to act.

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The good, the bad, the Republicans.

          There have been many bleak moments in the wake of the Great Recession. These are moments when you wonder if Republicans have a soul left. As a whole their morals have been compromised and right and wrong seem to mean little to them. Not just Republican lawmakers but their supporters as well. You cannot disagree or debate without them calling you names and veering from fact into supposition to blatant lies.

                   Republicans attacked then Secretary of State Hillary Clinton over the Benghazi tragedy. But while attacking and blaming her they neglected to mention that they cut close to a half billion dollars out of the amount the Obama administration asked for to guard embassies. They say it was not a pressing issue. But it is when they have a chance to tarnish her image. Paul Ryans budgets and their blatant attacks on the poor, while cutting taxes for the rich. His budget repeals Obamacare yet keeps the money it saves to balance his budget, seriously.

               The blatantly lie to the American people. Republicans voted against VAWA yet tell people they voted for it, we can look these things up. They have tried to block, through the filibuster, anything Obama has tried to do. Yet they claim that they don’t abuse the filibuster, they have used it more with him in office than at any other time in history. They forced the Sequester, blamed Obama, yet said that it was what they wanted. Voted against raising the minimum wage, equal pay for women, and Obamas Jobs Bill. In the 2 years they held the majority in the House they created zero jobs, in fact they caused more job losses.

           But the absolute kicker is the Manchin/Toomey Gun Bill. This basically gave them everything they wanted, 90% of the American people wanted it, yet Republicans and 5 Democrats voted to filibuster it. These would have appeased the public. Yet they say they didn’t like it because it might create a gun registry. That us a LIE! OUTRIGHT BLATANT LIE! It explicitely said that anyone, federal agents included, caught creating a gun registry would get 15 years in prison.

           Universal Background Checks, Assault Weapon Bans and High Capacity Magazines were all shot down. This after 20 kids were shot at Sandy Hook. The parents of the children spoke to Senators and the Senators still voted along corporate lines. Now many are not even speaking with the parents now. What does that say about the morals of our esteemed leaders. They know they are wrong yet continue to do it. The indifference of good men creates greater evil.

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