Déjà Vu? Dems Push Plan to “Tax, Spend and Raise”… Again

After an Election that Saw them Lose 63 House Seats, Democrats Are Still Pushing the Same Agenda of Higher Taxes, More Spending and More Borrowing from China 

• As the House prepares to consider “cut, cap and balance” legislation, House Democrats are doubling-down on their support for a no-strings attached increase in the debt limit, effectively printing a new credit card paid for with money borrowed from China.
• During their two years of one-party rule in Washington, Democrats ran up the tab with their uncontrolled spending spree. The debt increased by $3.6 trillion between 2009 and 2011.
• Yet today, Democrats somehow remain under the delusion that the nation’s debt is a result of there not being enough taxes, rather than excessive spending. And naturally they’re insisting on tax increases despite a weak economy. 

BACKGROUND:

As the House prepares to consider “cut, cap and balance” legislation to restore fiscal responsibility to government, House Democrats are doubling-down on their support for a no-strings attached increase in the debt limit, effectively printing a new credit card paid for with money borrowed from China:

REP. PETER WELCH (D-VT) SAYS IT’S A NEW CREDIT CARD WITH NO STRINGS ATTACHED OR DEFAULT: “Rep. Peter Welch (D-Vt.), a chief deputy whip who’s championed a straight up vote on raising the debt limit, portrayed a clean vote as the only remaining alternative before the government maxes out on its borrowing authority on Aug. 2 – saying it was difficult for him to see a path to an agreement with the GOP.

“’It’s looking like default or a clean extension,’ Welch said in an interview. He said he was getting support from ‘more and more Democrats, including some members who did not vote for the clean extension on the floor however many weeks ago … we’re absolutely intent that we’re keeping our AAA credit rating.’” (Seung Min Kim, “Hoyer: Dems would support a ‘clean’ debt ceiling vote,” Politico, 7/15/11) 

DEMOCRAT WHIP STENY HOYER (D-MD): “I have told Mr. Boehner that our party stands ready to ensure we do not default on our debts. And I believe that almost every member of our party if not every member of our party would vote on a clean extension to make that happen.” (Remarks from Steny Hoyer during Press Conference, MSNBC, 7/15/2011)

During their two years of one-party rule in Washington, Democrats ran up the tab with their uncontrolled spending spree. The debt increased by $3.6 trillion between 2009 and 2011:

FEDERAL BUDGET DEFICITS TO PASS $1 TRILLION FOR THIRD STRAIGHT YEAR: “The federal budget deficit is on pace to eclipse $1 trillion for a third straight year as congressional and White House negotiators try to hammer out a deal on the nation’s budget.” (Vicki Needham, “Federal Budget Deficit Nearing $1 Trillion,” The Hill, 7/13/2011)

LET’S REMEMBER: DEMOCRATS INCREASED DEBT BY $3.6 TRILLION IN TWO YEARS: “In January 2009, the national debt stood at $10.6 trillion. Fueled by the so-called stimulus, this debt grew by $3.6 trillion in just two years. The magnitude of this amount is difficult to grasp without a comparison. Under Mr. Obama, government has been borrowing $4.6 billion each and every day. That’s more than it cost to construct the world’s tallest building, Dubai’s Burj Khalifa. In other words, the amount of future productivity being sapped from the American economy would be sufficient to construct a new 160-story skyscraper every day of the year.” (Editorial, “Obama Spending Hits New Records,” The Washington Times, 3/8/2011)

AND OBAMA’S TREASURY LOST TRACK OF HOW MUCH DEBT CHINA OWNS: “When the Treasury Department revamped its rules for participating in government bond auctions two years ago, officials said they were simply modernizing outdated procedures.

“The real reason for the change, a Reuters investigation has found, was more serious: The Treasury had concluded that China was buying much more in U.S. government debt than was being disclosed, potentially in violation of auction rules, and it wanted to bring those purchases into the open – all without ruffling feathers in Beijing. …

“The incident calls into question just how clear a handle the Treasury has had on who is buying U.S. debt.Chinese entities hold at least $1.115 trillion in U.S. government debt, and are thought to account for roughly 26 percent of the paper issued by Washington, according to U.S. government data released on June 15.” (Emily Flitter, “U.S. Caught China Buying More Debt than Disclosed,” Reuters, 6/30/2011)

Yet today, Democrats somehow remain under the delusion that the nation’s debt is a result of there not being enough taxes, rather than excessive spending. And naturally, they’re insisting on tax increases, despite a weak economy:

“HOYER ON DEBT CEILING: DON’T EXPECT A SINGLE VOTE” WITHOUT TAX HIKES: “The Democratic House leader in charge of counting votes on legislation to raise the nation’s debt ceiling warned on Monday that he couldn’t guarantee a single vote from his party if revenues weren’t part of the deal. His counterpart on the Republican side echoed that prediction if revenues were part of the deal. …

“A spokesman for Hoyer confirmed that the Maryland Democrat said he could guarantee ‘no Democratic votes on a package without revenues.’”(Sam Stein, Jennifer Bendery, and Michael McAuliff, “Steny Hoyer on Debt Ceiling: Don’t Expect a Single Vote Without Revenues,” The Huffington Post, 7/11/2011)

DEMOCRAT LEADER PELOSI: “House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said reductions in ‘tax subsidies’ for companies must be part of any deal to cut the U.S. budget deficit and increase the federal debt ceiling. …

“‘You can’t cut your way out of the deficit,’ California Democrat Pelosi said. ‘You have to have revenue on the table.’” (Alison Fitzgerald,  “Pelosi Says U.S. Debt-Ceiling Deal Must Reduce Tax Subsidies for Companies,” Bloomberg, 6/27/2011)

ASSISTANT DEMOCRAT WHIP JAMES CLYBURN (D-SC): “WE CANNOT GET AN AGREEMENT WITHOUT” TAX HIKES. “ ‘We cannot get an agreement without revenues’ being raised, and absent that ‘I don’t think we can get to what our goals are,’ Clyburn said on Bloomberg Television’s ‘Political Capital with Al Hunt,’ airing this weekend.” (James Rowley, “Clyburn Predicts Last-Minute Debt-Limit Deal to Cut Up to $6 Trillion,” Bloomberg, 5/27/2011)

OBAMA DEMANDS “SHARED SACRIFICE” IN THE FORM OF TAX INCREASES ON SMALL BUSINESSES AND FAMILIES: “Faced with steadfast GOP opposition to tax increases, [Obama] asked Republican leaders directly what ‘shared sacrifice’ they were offering.” (Ben Feller, “Obama’s Hands-On Negotiation A Political Necessity,” Associated Press, 7/15/2011)

FLASHBACK: OBAMA IN 2009: “YOU DON’T RAISE TAXES IN A RECESSION.” “Normally, you don’t raise taxes in a recession, which is why we haven’t and why we’ve instead cut taxes. So I guess what I’d say to Scott is – his economics are right. You don’t raise taxes in a recession.”(Stephen Hayes, “Obama vs. Obama,” The Weekly Standard, 7/11/2011)