Obama: Cut Defense, Raise Taxes

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REVISTED...
We have been down this path before and it wasn't pretty.
There is a lot more at stake this time around.

Larry of CA 10:20AM February 23, 2009

Give away a trillion dollars to banks, etc and cut taxes? Wrong, eventually someone (Taxpayers, Employed people) has to pay. Time to convert paper dollars into gold coins/land/hard assets that will retain value in times of inflation. For those Obama sheep that cannot see it happening, go to the grocery store. We now spend $200/week where is was about $140 three years ago for the same items.

P.T.Barnum Obama of OH 9:37AM February 23, 2009

I can list thousands of ways not just to get rid of deficit but make it surplus... but will anyone listen? I think politicians are in most ways "stubborn".
1. Stop war
2. Watch American Greed TV Show (O dear politicians, i encourage you watch the show, very good though!)
3. Track down more people like Mr. Maddoff.. and send them to the bar... i mean.. behind bar...haha
4. I havent seen many tourists - Why? hmm many people shared to me and my colleagues that to apply for US Visa is either too expensive or too difficult of a process and not even guaranteed for granted.
5. All political contributors - Get more serious about what you can do to the nation instead of expecting the reward out of your contribution.
6. Increase Taxes??? Somewhat agreed. Why? I want the rich to be higher taxed than what most of us make. But somehow we are not mean to sanction them by taxing them in higher bracket... at the end of the day.. please give them a good reward because of their tax contribution. This - You need to speak with bunch of economists.
7. Cut capitalism... Reward notionalism... meaning.. reduce credit easiness and more apply / focus on the cash basis. (Business: Look more on your cash flows and not on the Income Statement..)
8. Corporate America.. Stop acting like you pretend you reward your employees but at the end of the day.. you cut workforce by thousands of people... - Again, that is just so untouch!
9. Deficit - Mr. President, please dont make more deficit!
10. Surplus - yeah.. it's just 10 years ago we had it!

FH of CA 7:55AM February 23, 2009

Cut medicare, cut social security, raise taxes. What happens to the senior citizens in this country. Maybe he should have a firing squad take care of that problem. And who is this guy who Obahma hired to make sure that everyone behaves; sure hope he doesn't come from Chicago. If he does we're dead.

carol Jecklin of NY 11:42PM February 22, 2009

Must make the size of government smaller...Government is crowding out private businesses in many sectors...Government imposes regulations which decrease innovation and ultimately decrease production which then leads to decreased wealth...Getting government off our backs will create wealth for ALL Americans and not just the power elite and the currently acceptable politically correct class such as "poor homeowners who are underwater on their mortgage"...

Gil of NM 10:32PM February 22, 2009

Name one thing that government does effectively or efficiently.

bob of NE 4:58PM February 22, 2009

Although I agree we need to cut our defense spending some, it scares me anytime a Commander and Cheif, who has no regard for our military personnel(Has anyone seen or read anything from President Obama addresses our troops since he was sworn in?), wants to cut defense.
On top of this he wants to solve our economic crisis by nationalizing banks, and taxing businesses! An free market nightmare! Carter setting up a wiser Reagan!

Phil Davis of SC 4:50PM February 22, 2009

http://americannewsproject.com/videos/300-billion-betrayal
http://www.fedsmith.com/article/313/
http://www.cagw.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=11698
Defense consumes more than one-third of all government expenditures. DOD’s expected expenditures in 2009 are $741 billion; include other affiliated agencies and operations this figure comes to nearly $1 trillion. Since 2001, defense spending has increased over 110 percent and is at its highest compared to any other period except World War II. This level of spending is astonishing, considering that the U.S. spends more on defense than the next 45 highest spending countries combined—including 5.8 times more than China (2nd highest), 10.2 times more than Russia (3rd highest), and 98.6 times more than Iran (22nd highest) – and will account for 48 percent of the world's total military spending.
Criticize this obscene level of funding and conservatives are armed with their empty rhetoric of “supporting the troops” and “protecting America.” In reality, the defense budget serves as a profit bonanza for defense contractors. Over the past eight years defense contractors have seen their profits soar to record levels, even amid the recession.
For instance, the Iraq War is the most privatized war this nation has seen, with nearly 20 percent of funding for operations—about $85 billion—going to private contractors such as Halliburton or Blackwater.
Our intelligence community is outsourced also, with 70 percent of the intelligence budget going to contractors. Moreover, funding does not even stay on American soil, approximately one-third of defense contracts for the Iraq and Afghan Wars have gone to foreign companies.
Amid the funding blitz, the Defense Department continues to fail nearly every audit performed. According to a July 2008 General Accountability Office report, the Defense Contract Audit Agency (responsible for all DOD accounting and contract audits) “improperly influenced the audit scope, conclusions, and opinions of some audits. Problems call into question the reliability of pricing audit reports issued connected with over $6.4 billion in government contract negotiations."

Max of NY 3:40PM February 22, 2009

Reducing the outlay for two wars, increasing defense spending to refurbish the military, increased spending on infrastructure (mass transit), implementation of tax cuts that favor the middle-class, and modernization of health care and Social Security would make a difference in how soon the budget can be balanced.
We need to generate tax revenues through job creation. Taking the surplus from the money spent to fight two wars and using it to create jobs would be a marvel idea.

Rod Davis of MD 3:24PM February 22, 2009

There are finite way to reduce the deficit:
Raise taxes/cut defense/cut social security/cut medicare; interest is not reducable without reducing the deficit and all other expenses are immaterial. So what would u do?
Well we know the answer. Cut taxes. And if you believe that then you likely also believe in the tooth fairy.
And btw Obama proposes to bring tax rates back to where they were in 2000 (e.g. back when the economy was strong).

concerned reader of Pethmeth of IL 2:36PM February 22, 2009