Alright Barack Obama supporters, now what?

[ViRedd]

Medicine Man, you are an economic moron. No bold letters needed to say it either.....

Well said, CJ ... Honestly, I don't know where Med gets his ideas on economics, but he is so wrong that his posts aren't worthy of a response.

I heard a snippet from Obama's press conference the other day. He said that his administration is going to go through the federal budget line my line and eliminate programs that are ineffective and inefficient, and get programs passed that make sense. IMO, that's a hell of a good start ... well, depending on what programs they deem to "make sense," of course.

Vi

 

[VTXDave]

I heard a snippet from Obama's press conference the other day. He said that his administration is going to go through the federal budget line my line and eliminate programs that are ineffective and inefficient, and get programs passed that make sense. IMO, that's a hell of a good start ... well, depending on what programs they deem to "make sense," of course.

Vi

Actually Vi, line item veto authority is unconstitutional. It was attempted by previous administrations and subsequently struck down by the US Supreme Court.

 

[shnkrmn]

Actually Vi, line item veto authority is unconstitutional. It was attempted by previous administrations and subsequently struck down by the US Supreme Court.

Hey Dave, didnt GWB use 'signing statements' to effectively wield a line item veto even though such statements don't really have any constitutional standing?

 

[ViRedd]

Actually Vi, line item veto authority is unconstitutional. It was attempted by previous administrations and subsequently struck down by the US Supreme Court.

I don't think this is what Obama was talking about, Dave. The line item veto would be used for all new legislation passing across his desk.

What Obama was talking about was existing programs ... eliminating the inefficient and outdated ones and proposing new programs that make sense.


A good start, for example, would be to abolish the Department of Education. Ha ... fat chance!

Vi

 

[VTXDave]

Hey Dave, didnt GWB use 'signing statements' to effectively wield a line item veto even though such statements don't really have any constitutional standing?

Yes. GWB did a lot of unconstitutional things including what you've stated. IMO, the Supreme Court should directly address this abuse of power and rule against it.

 

[Joe Camel]

 

[VTXDave]

I don't think this is what Obama was talking about, Dave. The line item veto would be used for all new legislation passing across his desk.

Actually, the budget is approved by Congress and sent to the POTUS for signing or veto like any other bill.

 

[shnkrmn]

Yes. GWB did a lot of unconstitutional things including what you've stated. IMO, the Supreme Court should directly address this abuse of power and rule against it.

Apparently, there is little chance of the court ever hearing a case about this unless a law is passed which allows Congress to legally challenge presidential signing statements.

http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1155732412882

 

[furiuzstylez]

Ok first off ive been lurkin on this site for a while just absorbing and readin, i dont have many posts but on occasion i find a reason to state my opinion. First off YES Obama is a black man and since he was the first to go so far in an election YES it needed to be recognized for the historic event it was. I voted for him due to the fact i think McCain's persona as the aggresive american male is the wrong image that we need to project in this unstable world. We need a person who will sit and talk wit those same people who dont respect the previous administrations actions, something McCain already said he wouldnt do........this thread seems to be littered with a lot of that old school bomb them all mentallity which is a major reason our country is hated all over this world.......
p.s. i think its absurd to condemn and shit on the man who has not spent one day as president, and ignore this brainless dumb-fuck that is representing us....and is considered around the world as the face of america.......a countries president says alot about that particular country
and im proud to say Obama is our president....never felt that way before in my entire 30 years on this planet. SO THAT IS WHY I VOTED FOR OBAMA....anymore ??????kiss-assto those to caught up in their own rascist views and cant see whats best for our country.

 

[shnkrmn]

Actually, the budget is approved by Congress and sent to the POTUS for signing or veto like any other bill.

Clinton briefly had a line-item veto and used it 11 times. It was ruled unconstitutional by the US District court and upheld by the Supremes in 1998. The ONLY way a line item veto can come back is through constitutional amendment, and I don't think any of us will see one of those in our lifetimes.

 

[Doctor Pot]

Well said, CJ ... Honestly, I don't know where Med gets his ideas on economics, but he is so wrong that his posts aren't worthy of a response.

I heard a snippet from Obama's press conference the other day. He said that his administration is going to go through the federal budget line my line and eliminate programs that are ineffective and inefficient, and get programs passed that make sense. IMO, that's a hell of a good start ... well, depending on what programs they deem to "make sense," of course.

Vi

I'm not expecting much, 10 billion if he's lucky. The discretionary budget is only about 20% of the total budget. I'd like it if he cut some of the more expensive military projects, but I'm not sure he can.

 

[CrackerJax]

There is plenty of waste in the defense departments. Then again that can be said for every dept. in the United States Govt.

Don't make cuts..... cut waste. Hit the pork and watch the Congress Guillotine him



out.

 

[tipsgnob]

obama should put Vi in his cabinet...

 

[Doctor Pot]

There is plenty of waste in the defense departments. Then again that can be said for every dept. in the United States Govt.

Don't make cuts..... cut waste. Hit the pork and watch the Congress Guillotine him

Certain things are guaranteed funding for so many years, Social Security and Medicare for instance. I was just wondering if the entire DoD is under this umbrella or just certain projects.

 

[natrone23]

We should stop giving Israel billions every year

 

[Leilani Garden]

We should stop giving Israel billions every year

yeah. I have the same feelings. Nothing anti-semitic about me, but that stuff has gotten us into so much trouble. I'm not convinced I understand it all that well, the why of it, but it needs to STOP.

Good point.

Vi? Good post up there. I agree.

 

[Leilani Garden]

Actually Vi, line item veto authority is unconstitutional. It was attempted by previous administrations and subsequently struck down by the US Supreme Court.

And that SUCKS, doesn't it? Gosh, if it's not obvious that these bills packaged all as one result in such asinine things like that $50 mill bridge to nowhere in Alaska, I don't know what does. We need that line item veto.

Hey, I meant to get back to you on your well thought out post regarding Bread and Circuses, but I got busy (holiday weekend, etc, all that crap). I do see some common ground as far as my beliefs on this topic, but others where we differ. More on that later, when it's not so bloody late. Thanks for the reply, though. I'll get back to you on that later when I have more time.

 

[Leilani Garden]

I don't think this is what Obama was talking about, Dave. The line item veto would be used for all new legislation passing across his desk.

What Obama was talking about was existing programs ... eliminating the inefficient and outdated ones and proposing new programs that make sense.


A good start, for example, would be to abolish the Department of Education. Ha ... fat chance!

Vi

I have seen enough of your posts to know that you are very committed to getting rid of public education. I empathize with your chagrin over the deplorable conditions in many of our public schools, but honestly, what is your alternative? I'd really like to hear you out on this.

I'm also asking this as someone who was educated in private schools. When I got to college, I was astounded by what my peers did not already know, how uneducated they were. But I also realize that much of that has to do with locale (ie, what state, and within those states, which counties) as well as the educational environment one finds oneself in. I can tell you that my children have been schooled in public schools, and they're pretty well educated people. My son, for example, is a heavy duty history buff. He seems to know more about teh Civil War than anyone I personally know. Probably a lot of that has come from his parents buying so many books for him--whatever he was interested in at the time, we got it for him. But a lot of it also has to do with living in a fairly affluent area with a decent school system.

Still, we're really hoping to send him away to a private school next year. In a way, I can't stand the "elitist" feel of it, this boarding prep school, but then again, I want him to be very well educated. I think he'll get that with the school we've chosen.

But not everyone can afford that (and in this case, it's not even me who is "affording it). So? What to do about everyone else. I take it since this is a real bone of contention with you, that your solution is not that a good chunk of the population would remain uneducated (ooooh, memories of the book What's The Matter With Kansas). So, what do you envision, in a perfect Vi world, in which you get everything you want or think is best? I honestly want to hear you out on this? Education is super, super, uber important to me.

Thanks in advance for your reply.

 

[VTXDave]

And that SUCKS, doesn't it? Gosh, if it's not obvious that these bills packaged all as one result in such asinine things like that $50 mill bridge to nowhere in Alaska, I don't know what does. We need that line item veto.

Believe it or not, in "theory" I understand the need for executive authority for line item veto, but I cannot compromise my conviction to believe in strict adherence to our constitution. The whole system is broken. IMO, bills should not be padded with additional pieces of legislation/spending. In doing so, it allows for corruption while pissing away representation. It also allows for an "easy out" when a politician can say something like "Well, I didn't agree with part "X" of the bill, but I agreed with part "Y"...so I voted for it. It's a cop out IMO.

Hey, I meant to get back to you on your well thought out post regarding Bread and Circuses, but I got busy (holiday weekend, etc, all that crap). I do see some common ground as far as my beliefs on this topic, but others where we differ. More on that later, when it's not so bloody late. Thanks for the reply, though. I'll get back to you on that later when I have more time.

No problem buddy.

 

[medicineman]

Medicine Man, you are an economic moron. No bold letters needed to say it either.....




out.

Well at least I'm a specific moron. In general, I'd have to say, you're a complete moron, and a few other expletive-deletives. The unions built the middle class and the rich and powerful have been trying to chip away at them ever since. I mean I can see their point, why have to share power when you can be a complete tyrant? It's good to be king, but that pretty much fucks over the masses, just like what is going on now. The banks, insurance companies and wall street have gotten 350 Billion so far and the poor home owners that are losing their homes, got squat. in fact They are now saying that the money will be used to issue new loans on those houses as soon as the current residents are evicted. If I were about to get evicted, I'd get all my important stuff out and then I'm pretty sure an accidental fire would break out, that's right, I'm smart enough to figure out how to beat an arsonist investigation and I'd leave them some smoking ruins and collect the insurance before it expired and ownership changed hands.