Dems Demand A New Credit Card, And They Want You To Pay For It

June 29, 2011

Despite Weak Economy, White House Demands Struggling American Families and Job Creators Foot the Bill For More Spending and Borrowing from China

Democrats ran out their last credit card in a spending spree during their two years of unchecked power in Washington.
Now they want a new one, and instead of cutting spending to make government live within its means, Democrats are demanding increased taxes to make struggling American families and job creators pay for more of their borrowing from countries like China.
This proposal to increase taxes despite a weak economy will only set back job creation and economic recovery. No wonderAmericans disapprove of President Obama’s handling of the deficit and the economy.

BACKGROUND:

In ongoing negotiations over raising the debt ceiling, Democrats have chosen a curious place to make their stand: raising taxes to pay for more borrowing from countries like China:

OBAMA “INSISTING ON HIGHER TAXES”: “But Carney also affirmed that Obama would only go for a deficit-reduction plan that included both spending cuts and increased tax revenue, an approach that Republicans say would never get through Congress.” (Jim Kuhnhenn, “GOP, Democrats Seem to Harden Stance on Debt,” Associated Press, 6/27/2011)

DEMOCRAT LEADER NANCY PELOSI: NO DEAL WITHOUT TAX INCREASES. ” ‘You cannot achieve what you set out to do if you say it’s just about cutting. It has to be about increasing the revenue stream as well,’ Pelosi said Sunday on CNN’s ‘State of the Union.'” (Alexander Bolton, “House Dems: Closing Special Tax Breaks Not Same as Raising Taxes,” The Hill, 6/26/2011)

This call for higher taxes despite a lagging economic recovery exposes the core insincerity at the heart of Democrats’ rhetoric. Democrats are desperate to appear sympathetic to those suffering in the weak economy, but they continue to push policies hostile to job creation and economic growth:

CBO: LONG-TERM DEFICITS “DAUNTING”: “Budget deficits will probably drop in the next few years, but long-term prospects are ‘daunting’as spending on entitlements and health care spikes, the federal agency charged with keeping tabs on Congress said Wednesday.” (Robert Schroeder, “Long-Term Budget Outlook ‘Daunting,’ CBO Says,” MarketWatch, 6/22/2011)

“DEMOCRATS PUSH NEW STIMULUS”: “Senate Democrats kicked off their new drive for a jobs agenda by demanding that new stimulus measures be included in the bipartisan deficit reduction talks led by Vice President Joseph Biden.” (Steven T. Dennis, “Senate Democrats Push New Stimulus,” Roll Call, 6/22/2011)

IN OTHER WORDS, DEMOCRATS’ PLAN TO REDUCE SPENDING IS TO SPEND MORE? ” ‘This is a stimulus program,’ said Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), the No. 3 Democrat, adding that a package would be paid for in the long run as part of the deficit reduction package.” (Steven T. Dennis, “Senate Democrats Push New Stimulus,” Roll Call, 6/22/2011)

BUT FEDERAL SPENDING IS ABOUT TO TOP WORLD WAR II LEVELS: “The CBO’s newly released 2011 Long-Term Budget Outlook forecasts that federal spending will soon exceed spending during parts of World War II.” (Jeffrey H. Anderson, “CBO: Federal Spending Will Soon Exceed Spending During Parts of WWII,” The Weekly Standard, 6/22/2011)

CBO HEAD: GOVERNMENT POLICIES, DEBT “LIKELY SLOWING THE NATION’S ECONOMIC RECOVERY”: “Uncertainty about federal policies combined with the threat of long-term debt is likely slowing the nation’s economic recovery, the head of the Congressional Budget Office said Thursday.” (Vicki Needham, “CBO Head: Government Policies, Debt May Be Slowing Economic Growth,” The Hill, 6/23/2011)

Then again, many Democrats are delusional enough to continue arguing that their last spending spree funded by borrowing from China already turned the economy around:

OBAMA CLAIMS HIS POLICIES “PULLED US BACK FROM THE BRINK AND PUT US ON A BETTER PATH”: “In the closing weeks of the campaign the bottom fell out of the economy and the middle class got hammered some more … That demanded that we make some tough decisions. Decisions we know now have pulled our economy back from the brink and put us on a better path.” (President Obama, “Remarks by the President on the Critical Role the Manufacturing Sector Plays in the American Economy,” The White House, 6/28/2011)

OBAMA THINKS HE “DESERVES CREDIT” FOR ECONOMIC POLICIES: “President Obama told supporters at a fundraiser in Miami Monday night that he deserves credit for cleaning up the mess he inherited.”(David Boyer, “Obama wants credit for cleaning up ‘big mess,'” Washington Times, 06/14/11)

DNC CHAIR CLAIMS OBAMA “TURN[ED] THIS ECONOMY AROUND”: “We were able to, under President Obama’s leadership, turn this economy around.” (Remarks from Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, NBC’s Meet the Press, 6/12/2011)

But Americans don’t buy it. Instead of making excuses for their disastrous policies and trying to make American families foot the bill, when will Democrats take responsibility for their failed agenda and stop calling for more of the same?:

MCCLATCHY-MARIST POLL: OBAMA HITS “LOWEST RATING EVER” ON ECONOMY, VOTERS DISAPPROVE ON DEFICIT BY “NEARLY 2-1”: “President Barack Obama is in a fragile position as the 2012 campaign begins: Only 37 percent of registered voters approve of his handling of the economy, his lowest rating ever, according to a new McClatchy-Marist poll.”

“Another ominous sign for Obama: By nearly 2-1, voters disapprove of how he’s handling the federal budget deficit, expected to hit a record $1.5 trillion this fiscal year, which ends Sept. 30.” (David Lichtman, “Poll: Approval of Obama on Economic Policy Hits New Low,” McClatchy News, 6/28/2011)

EVEN DEMOCRATS TRUST GOP ON ECONOMY, JOBS, CUTTING SPENDING. “As the public grasps for solutions, the Republican Party is breaking through in the message war on the budget and economy. A majority of Americans say job growth would best be revived with prescriptions favored by the party: cuts in government spending and taxes, the Bloomberg Poll shows. Even 40 percent of Democrats share that view.”(Mike Doming, “Poll: 44% of Americans Worse Off Under Obama,” Bloomberg, 6/22/2011)