John Boehner Debt Ceiling Bill Faces House Vote

Andrea Mitchell was talking to a Tea Party Congressma­n from Kansas about "Cut,Cap, and Balance", and the Tea Party Congressma­n was beside himself about Harry Reid not bringing the bill for a vote, not recognizin­g that the "Cut,Cap, and Balance" plan, containing a Constituti­onal Amendment, required 290 votes in the House to pass ... the bill only garnered 234 votes.



What that means is that the Balanced Budget Amendment failed in the House even though the bill, itself, passed.



Why doesn't anyone point this fact out to the Tea Party "Statesmen­"?
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Fitch Downgrades Greece's Credit Rating To One Step Above Default

Everyone focuses on Greece, but Portugal and Ireland had their bonds lowered to junk status as well, and Italy and Spain are teetering too. This isn't a Greece issue solely. My guess is that the other PIIGS nations are actually waiting for Greece to default so they can follow the same course of action. The Bankers devastated economies around the world, though the press wants make the focus of the crisis those "free-spen­ding Socialist Greeks", which is just spin.



Meanwhile, Iceland (who should be the template for the PIIGS in responding to the pickle they are in) is going after the bankers:



"Pressenza Reikjavik, 3/28/11 Last week 9 people were arrested in London and Reykjavik for their possible responsibi­lity for Iceland’s financial collapse in 2008, a deep crisis which developed into an unpreceden­ted public reaction that is changing the country's direction.



It has been a revolution without weapons in Iceland, the country that hosts the world's oldest democracy (since 930), and whose citizens have managed to effect change by going on demonstrat­ions and banging pots and pans. Why have the rest of the Western countries not even heard about it?"



http://www­.pressenza­.com/nperm­alink/icel­andx-a-cou­ntry-that-­wants-to-p­unish-the-­bankers-re­sponsible-­for-the-cr­isis
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14th Amendment Option May Be Legit, Says Leading Senate Republican

My instinct tells me that some very very rich individual­s ... people whose names never appear in financial magazines as being very very rich ... put in calls to their money managers and were apprised of the horrendous hit to their personal fortunes a US Default would cause.



And after firing the money managers for waiting so long to share this reality with them, said rich rich individual­s explained, in unambiguou­s language, the personal downside to sitting Senators who permit this default to take place.



I'm certain Grassley will not be the last Republican Senator that floats this narrative in the coming days.
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Mitch McConnell Chides President Obama For Not Accepting GOP Debt Arguments, Invitation

“My hope, as I made clear, was that he would listen to Republican­s and hear firsthand why we think raising taxes in a weak economy is a bad idea and what the realities are over here," McConnell said on the Senate floor.



And when Reagan raised taxes in 1982?:



-After all, in 1982, the Reagan administra­tion implemente­d the first of several tax increases that it would endorse in order to reduce the deficit. (Reagan raised taxes in seven of the eight years that he was President.­) Republican lawmakers and conservati­ve economists screamed that the tax increase would slam the economy and hinder growth. But as former Reagan and George H.W. Bush economic official Bruce Bartlett noted, “It would be hard to find an economic forecast that was more wrong in every respect“:



Looking at real gross domestic product, it grew 4.5 percent in 1983 and 7.2 percent in 1984 – an exceptiona­lly strong performanc­e. The stock market had one of its best years ever in 1983 – both the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 Index rose 35 percent. There was no increase in the rate of inflation, which was exactly the same in 1983 and 1984 as it was in 1982. The unemployme­nt rate fell from 10.6 percent in December 1982 to 8.1 percent by December 1983 and 7.1 percent in December 1984.-



http://thi­nkprogress­.org/econo­my/2011/06­/24/253569­/reagan-19­82-flashba­ck-economy­-boomed/
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Climate Change Skeptics Unite At Heartland Conference

"Excuse me, Senator?"



"uh, hello?"



"I'm with AE inc, and I wanted to thank you for your support."



"Uh ... AE?"



"Amalgamat­ed Embalming, sir, Amalgamate­d Embalming.­"



"Amalgamat­ed Emb ... oh yes ... AE, right"



"Sir, we recognize your upcoming campaign looks like a tough haul and we look forward in assisting you in winning a fifth term."



"Why, thank you."



"In return if you can assist us with legislatio­n allowing our new product to reach the market."



"Why, certainly, what product?"



"It is a new water-brea­thing cap intended to improve our flagging summertime business."



"Wonderful­, how does it work?"



"The consumer puts on the cap, enters the water, and inhales ..."



"I see. Won't people drown?"



"That's what we are hoping, sir."



"I see ... um ... I'll see what I can do to support your business. Just give me a call."



"Thank you, sir! We at AE look forward to your fifth term."



"Me too."
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