After weeks of "intense deliberations," co-chairs of the debt super committee officially announced they failed at reaching any kind of deal.
Representative Jeb Hensarling and Senator Patty Murray, Co-Chairs of the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, said the country's "fiscal crisis must be addressed" right away and "cannot leave it for the next generation to solve."
Check out the full statement:
After months of hard work and intense deliberations, we have come to the conclusion today that it will not be possible to make any bipartisan agreement available to the public before the committee's deadline.
Despite our inability to bridge the committee's significant differences, we end this process united in our belief that the nation's fiscal crisis must be addressed and that we cannot leave it for the next generation to solve. We remain hopeful that Congress can build on this committee's work and can find a way to tackle this issue in a way that works for the American people and our economy.
We are deeply disappointed that we have been unable to come to a bipartisan deficit reduction agreement, but as we approach the uniquely American holiday of Thanksgiving, we want to express our appreciation to every member of this committee, each of whom came into the process committed to achieving a solution that has eluded many groups before us. Most importantly, we want to thank the American people for sharing thoughts and ideas and for providing support and good will as we worked to accomplish this difficult task.
We would also like to thank our committee staff, in particular Staff Director Mark Prater and Deputy Staff Director Sarah Kuehl, as well as each committee member's staff for the tremendous work they contributed to this effort. We would also like to express our sincere gratitude to Dr. Douglas Elmendorf and Mr. Thomas Barthold and their teams at the Congressional Budget Office and Joint Committee on Taxation, respectively, for the technical support they provided to the committee and its members.
The panel was established as a result of this summer's drawn out debt ceiling negotiations. Remember that?
They were tasked with coming up with finding a way to cut at least $1.2 trillion from the budget over 10 years. They ran into expected spats over taxes and government–funded programs like Medicare and were unable to work out a bipartisan agreement.
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Dear friends,
I wanted to let you know about a new petition I created on We the People, a
new feature on WhiteHouse.gov, and ask for your support. Will you add your
name to mine? If this petition gets 25,000 signatures by December 18, 2011,
the White House will review it and respond!
We the People allows anyone to create and sign petitions asking the Obama
Administration to take action on a range of issues. If a petition gets
enough support, the Obama Administration will issue an official response.
You can view and sign the petition here:
http://wh.gov/j04
Here's some more information about this petition:
Investigate members of congress, who signed Grover Norquist pledge, for 16th
amendment violation, bribery, dereliction.
Congressional members except and signed bribery pledge of Grover Norquist, A
direct violation of the 16th amendment, misconduct, dereliction of congress.
Many thanks. I have been posting here and there about this situation...one man controlling half the votes of the SuperCommittee, the house, and the senate. Those who pledged allegiance to Grover Norquist give him the power of dictator. This is not tolerable in a democracy.
A remedy is vital...and the petition created on We The People is the significant first step.
this morning on "morning joe", joe scarborough, who had sinus surgery and has been out for a few days, was on the phone commenting about grover norquist and the fact that "he has no power".
of course i disagree with scarborough's assessment of grover norquist having "no power". not that the repubs would want to raise taxes anyway, but their "no tax pledge" to grover norquist justifies their doing nothing. and as dick durbin and john kerry said, the republicans are unable to move on taxes because of their pledge to grover norquist. another fact i find interesting, whenever i hear the republicans or romney or perry complain about how the president has been absent from negotiations, they fail to mention how the republicans demanded that the president stay out of the negotiations because they do not want to give him credit for anything. and while the democrats are not perfect, the republicans are so hypocritical.
A 250 point drop in the Dow because of this. Draining most US citizens retirement fund
The world views us a clowns.
We have Republicans playing to the 1%
Michell Obama and Dr Bidden booed at a NASCAR event supporting our troops yesterday
Are we repeating 1933 over again??
NO WORK NO PAY...GIVE ALL of Congress PINK SLIPS.......They have a breach in contract for not working for the good of America and the people! Welcome to the real world......find others jobs apparently your not good politicians "for the People".
Part of Congress's job is Levying Taxes. That's what they are charged with when they took the job. If they refuse to do that job, which the no-tax pledge results in, then they should resign or be fired (voted out) as they obviously cannot do the job they are required to do.
How can Grover Terdkisst circumvent the constitution with his no tax pledge.Your right D-Web, any democrat or republican that signed this pledge should be tried in federal court for violating the constitution.
Dear Lawrence,
I am an avid watcher of MSNBC and I watch all the shows from Joe Scarbrough til your show and sometimes I watch the repeats as I work on my homework.
I must say I love Rachel, and Ed but you have now become my favorite. I enjoy how you assess the political strategies that the republican congress attempt to play thinking we the people are ignorant. But most importantly you are the only one who assess the intelligence of the President and how he knows how to checkmate the do nothing republican congress.
I hope the American people take the time to understand how the republicans want to destroy Obama and they use the middle class as pawn to do so at the risk of destroying this country for power and greed.
I love your mind Lawrence keep up the excellent work and yes I cheered our President after his press conference today because it is evident that no matter what the republicans are not going to do anything that will help this economy because it will make this President look good.
The President has done all that he could within the last three years in comprimising. He proved that for the last three years but no matter what the republicans will do the opposite if what he proposes helps this country which will make him look good. Keep up the excellent work Lawrence, you are a man after my own heart.
Cheers Edie
edie,
i agree. i really miss lawrence, i am always asleep when he is on.
As soon as I heard that a super committee was going to decide what to do about the debt I knew it was bound to fail because of the Republican's pledge to an unelected/anti-American/self-serving piece of slime! Whenever a debt problem arose in America, it was dealt with spending cuts and revenue increases. But now, because of the what seems to be, a blood oath signed by Republicans, only cuts in government initiatives to the people are going to be allowed during President Obama's administration! Republicans should be made to clean up this debt problem since they, under President Bush were the ones that caused the problem in the first place. President Bush was handed a beautiful/strong/fruitful economy in the black. But, at the end of his term he handed President Obama an economic pile of junk which was the work of President Bush and his entire Republican Congress! Now the road is set towards further bringing down the American/European/World economies because in the minds of the right wingers, the hate for the Black President justifies their means! Even at the cost of a world economic catastrophe! QUICO!
The tax rates...including the "Clinton rates," do not reflect changed incomes of citizens.
The middle class is struggling, and shrinking. About 1/3 (if I recall correctly) of American citizens are now at the edge of dropping below the poverty line. And the percentage of Americans living in poverty keeps growing. "Economically challenged" Americans comprise the MAJORITY of Americans. And this majority clearly needs help.
Then examine the top tax bracket. Here, income has MUCH changed since the tax code was last revised. The wealthiest are very much richer. So this tax bracket now encompasses a huge range of incomes. And income of $400 thousand is taxed at the SAME rate as income of $4 billion. This is both nonsensical and inequitable.
Now that the SuperCommittee failed, this seems to be the ideal point for promoting adjustment of tax rates. The most obvious need is for some additional tax brackets for high-end earners. The most serious need is help for the majority of Americans (who will welcome increased tax rates for wealth if the majority see lower rates, I'll bet).
The changed incomes demand, I think, changes to payroll taxes, as well. The most common recommendation is to raise the income cap (perhaps by the same percentage that high-end incomes have increased). Given the current plight of the middle class, lowering of their Social Security contributions makes sense.
The situation in government - in which roughly half our elected leaders pledged allegiance to Grover Norquist - is inextricably tied to tax reform. Nothing can be accomplished until leaders are free from a pledge foolishly made. I recommend the petition at:
Go back a few postings to Rodney E. Rhodan. He supplies a link on which you can click.
The tax rates...including the "Clinton rates," do not reflect changed incomes of citizens.
The middle class is struggling, and shrinking. About 1/3 (if I recall correctly) of American citizens are now at the edge of dropping below the poverty line. And the percentage of Americans living in poverty keeps growing. "Economically challenged" Americans comprise the MAJORITY of Americans. And this majority clearly needs help.
Then examine the top tax bracket. Here, income has MUCH changed since the tax code was last revised. The wealthiest are very much richer. So this tax bracket now encompasses a huge range of incomes. And income of $400 thousand is taxed at the SAME rate as income of $4 billion. This is both nonsensical and inequitable.
Now that the SuperCommittee failed, this seems to be the ideal point for promoting adjustment of tax rates. The most obvious need is for some additional tax brackets for high-end earners. The most serious need is help for the majority of Americans (who will welcome increased tax rates for wealth if the majority see lower rates, I'll bet).
The changed incomes demand, I think, changes to payroll taxes, as well. The most common recommendation is to raise or eliminate the income cap. Given the current plight of the middle class, lowering of their Social Security contributions makes sense.
The situation in government - in which roughly half our elected leaders pledged allegiance to Grover Norquist - is inextricably tied to tax reform. Nothing can be accomplished until leaders are free from a pledge foolishly made. I recommend the petition at:
Go back a few postings to Rodney E. Rhodan. He supplies a link on which you can click.