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Mitt Romney sat down with Fortune magazine for a pretty interesting interview, which was published today. It's worth your time, and I'll resist the temptation to go through every exchange in detail, but there's one part of the Q&A that seemed especially important.
Romney believes -- or at least wants you to believe -- that he and Paul Ryan can balance the budget while cutting taxes on the rich, increasing defense spending, and increasing Medicare spending, all without raising taxes on the middle class. Anyone with common sense and a calculator knows such a plan is silly, but Romney says he can pay for his multi-trillion-dollar plan through ending various tax deductions and cutting spending.
Which tax deductions? Romney and Ryan refuse to say -- the former governor told Fortune he'll "work with Congress to identify which of the alternative methods we should apply to reduce deductions, benefits, and exemptions." In other words, maybe after voters elect him, Romney will tell voters what he'll do.
And what about the spending cuts? Asked for specifics, Romney told Fortune:
"[T]here are programs I would eliminate. Obamacare being one of them but also various subsidy programs -- the Amtrak subsidy, the PBS subsidy, the subsidy for the National Endowment for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Humanities. Some of these things, like those endowment efforts and PBS I very much appreciate and like what they do in many cases, but I just think they have to stand on their own rather than receiving money borrowed from other countries, as our government does on their behalf."
In Grown-Up Land, destroying the Affordable Care Act would make the deficit significantly worse, not better -- Obamacare saves the country hundreds of billions of dollars -- making this part of the plan particularly incoherent.
But what about the other specifics? Sam Stein explained, "The government spends $444 million a year on the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (the parent organization of PBS); Amtrak received $1.56 billion in federal funding in 2010, with $1.3 billion in stimulus funds; while the National Endowment of the Arts lists the current level of federal funding at approximately $146 million."
Looking at a deficit of a trillion dollars, the Republican has a plan to make the budget shortfall significantly worse, then make it ever-so-slightly "better" by nibbling around the edges.
In fairness, I should note that Romney also intends to save a little more by eliminating health care for the poor through Medicaid, and through some vague plan involving shrinking federal programs through attrition.
But even if Romney implemented all of these efforts exactly as he's promising now, would they eliminate the deficit while he also cuts taxes and increases defense and entitlement spending? Of course not.
Anyone who takes this nonsense seriously isn't paying close enough attention. For all his talk about having the courage to make tough calls, Romney's still taking the coward's way out.
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THe media and Republican lovefest with Paul Ryan is made more disgusting by the fact that no one bothers to take even a cursory glance at the details of the new GOP running mate's "revolutionary" budget proposal. This "math whiz" and "visionary" has a plan full of holes, errors, question-marks and policies that either make no sense or actually increase our debt and deficit. The only thing "bold" about Paul Ryan and Mitt Romney is that they want to kill Medicare. They have no replacement, and they have no answer for the fact that this plan will cause health care costs to double and do nothing to balance the budget. It's a bunch of shiny objects to fool the press and please the Tea Party. It's a fake plan with no substance. - PP
Agree. How ambiguous is dangerously ambiguous?
The ambiguoulsy gay duo !! Robme Hood and Ryan of Rottingham !!
I don't think you should disparage gay people by calling these clowns gay. They are simply rich, white, slime balls.
How ambiguous is criminally ambiguous?
The tea party always falls for dangling carrots, and the right wing just has to keep one dangling in front of them while they run in circles. Ryan is a dangling carrot to appease the stupid.
They're blinded by hatred, Jan. They've been carefully whipped into a frenzy by four years of outright lies about the President, and they've gobbled down every spoonful with gusto. I can't help but think about how the RNC categorized the Republican base before the 2008 election - reactionary, motivated by fear, ego-driven.
Excuse me golferfawn, I was not disparaging gay people. Rachel Maddow's show had a cartoon image referencing them as the ambiguously gay duo and I was just continuing on with the joke.But I would but you wold not say she is disparaging gays right ? Get a sense of humor okay ? And it is not a slur to call them ambiguously gay because hey are. Just telling it like it is.
It is nauseating and again, reminds me of the Palin pick. For the first few weeks, there was a lot of fluff. But eventually, talk did turn to her readiness or lack thereof, and what exactly her positions were.
I have faith that it will happen again.
You've heard of "poor white trash"? Well, these slime twins are rich white trash. I hope that they never set foot in my neighborhood. They do and I will be arrested for what I'm thinking. As it is right now, I can't be arrested for what I'm thinking of the slime twins.
It's amazing that this man has gotten this far in the campaign, without any mention of a plan. No promises, no demands. What you see is what you get, he's ready to retire in style at The White House. He gets to run around and put his feet up on the desk, snicker, and let The Elite finish the job of destroying The Middle Class. He stands for everything that is the opposite of a caring individual. All he is waiting for is a crown, ours is a crown of dirt.
It's not amazing, it's the dumbing down of Americans, the co-opted, corrupted, and corporate "lame-stream media" and a sense of futility by Americans that refuse to even participate in this corrupted system...
Romney will probably do the same as he did in Massachusetts...he didn't raise state taxes per se;Le's just say he just raised every fee imaginable so as to raise some revenue, that way he could say he didn't raise state taxes; he got money from raising fees at every turn; then he made deep cuts, taking funding out of education, away from the poor, the elderly poor and the disabled. Oh, did I mention that he didn't raise state taxes...errrrr, except that property taxes went sky high because our local towns had to made up the difference to finance our schools and other costs that Romney cut at the state level so he could then say HE DIDN'T RAISE STATE TAXES. Sneaky guy, that Romney. He left the state of Massachusetts in a mess, nearly ranking last in unemployment, only next to last to the states suffering from Katrina. Romney was no job creator..he is no leader, either and if he says he'll cut the dept you can depend that he will take it all out of the hides of the middle class, the poor, and the disabled, but he'll make sure his wealthy buddies pockets are well padded.
Be assured that Willard does, indeed, have a plan. He's gotten this far without having to articulate that plan with the assistance of an almost criminally inept media, which has so far refused to call him on his refusal to offer specifics. And he is loath to publicly disclose his plan because he knows that affirmatively acting to destroy the middle class will not sit well with the American public.
I would love to hear one reporter -- just one -- say to him, "Excuse me, but your response didn't answer my question." What are the chances of that happening?
Perhaps during the debates ...
Mitt Romney is not running a campaign; he's making a hostile takeover bid.
"Government by organized money is just as dangerous as
Government by organized mob". . . Franklin Delano Roosevelt
They have organized money, big money!!! Romney seems much more confident since he chose little slime. They must be staying up late memorizing their new script. I'm afraid of these men, for I think they are the anti-Christs on steroids.
You forgot the magic part-- surging economic growth will more than make up for the loss in revenue from tax cuts and the deficit will disappear without any substantive spending cuts (except to programs that are ideologically suspect of course)
How does that add up? Shut up, socialist!
I still believe Ryan was chosen to be a scapegoat for Romney. And, for the record, socialist democracy would help this country get back on it's feet for EVERYONE, not just the "worthy' TEAPARODY, all for one!!!
It seemingly never occurs to our dear loved ones to the right of decency that government can be an instrument of celebration! You know, as in let's celebrate who and what we are all about by publicly funding the exchange of ideas of what is and what ought to be!
Boy oh boy, it is getting harder to practice the public good these days! -Kevo
Let me clarify:
A budget that runs a surplus is bad because it clearly takes in too much hard working Amurkin tax dollars.
A budget that runs a deficit is bad because that means the gubmint is spending too much hard working Amurkin tax dollars on moochers and looters.
A budget that runs a deficit but doesn't spend money on things Republicans don't like is good because. Just because. But we should probably raise taxes on the poor and middle class just to be safe. Those moochers and looters...
I just noticed I failed to mention a budget that runs a surplus without spending money on things Republicans don't like, but then I remembered it's because that doesn''t exist.
LOL thx
Leave it to Romney to regurgitate the same old tired list of where he would make cuts. Has this man ever had an original thought?!?
No.
Grover told him we just need your working digits to sign the bills we send to you! So you don't need to strain your brain with "thought".....At least he didn't say he was ending welfare for oil/gas/pharma/agriculture - that would be bad.....
This kind of crap is exactly why we can't let Romney any where near the White House. Any plan to reduce the deficit that doesn't increase taxes on the wealthy or reduce defense spending is doomed. Anybody with an honest bone in his body has to admit the Republican "plan" which refuses to look at either increasing taxes on the wealthy or reducing defense spending is pure folly. There just isn't enough other discretionary spending and you can set the tax rate on poor people at 100% and still not pull in enough to make a real dent.
You can also set the tax rate at 100% on the rich and not pull in enough to solve either the deficit or debt situation. I, fr one, favor restoring tax rates pre Obama ( yes, he now owns them), tax all income at the same rate, remove all dedutions, including mtge, medical, and charitable. All loopholes. Then, have two simple rates. Finally, reduce spending. There are two responsibilities of the Fed govt. Defend the country and provide a safety net. We don't need Big Bird as a national priority.
Ron - I move to go back to FDR tax rates of at least 90%. (He wanted 100% but the corporatist yelled him down.) And look what that did for the country! Great advancements for all!
Yes...we do.
I'll bet Paul Ryan learned his ABCs on Sesame Street!
Well, he does look a bit like "the Count"...
;-)
I was thinking more along the lines of Eddie Munster...but definitely something undead.
Can just one person corner this talking mouthpiece and ask him specifically why he wants to do away with ACA? I get that he's blah blah blah catering to his base blah blah blah, but in the real world, if the only reason Mitt has for dumping ACA is because a Democrat enacted it, that should be publicly exposed.
OMG, the media couldn't be any more gentle or soft on this man who says he can run a nation of over 311,800,000 people. He can't even run his own campaign and our crappy media are terrified of exposing him.
The media needs a horse race damn it. You cant sell pharmaceuticals and Cheerios if no ones watching .
Let's see, now that foreclosures are up that would not be too bad, but for those with mortgages, losing the mortgage interest deduction would mean whay? Raising taxes? That's what they called ACA penalty, sooo…
Taxes WOULD go up for a whole lot more people if the mortgage interest deduction were removed. This would also affect economy, as many people go buy stuff with tax refunds. If they get no refund, they won't buy much.
But no, we can't raise capital gains rate for dividends because they have been using those tax rates for hiring… nope, they have not.
Here's your coupon for Granny's Medicare and here's your tax CUT (again?) Mr. Buffett.
Let's not forget the cutting of welfare, meaning less food for poor, how utterly anti-charitable can we be? This is no small thing, it is abominable.
If we get an undivided Republican government in the next election, I'm sure we'll find out very quickly. The GOP is so radicalized now, expect to see Wisconsin/Michigan/Florida/Arizona-style extremism on the national level. Plus, as an added bonus, impeachments of all federal judges who fail to issue rulings that align with right-wing preferences.
Anybody think that's far-fetched? Vote Republican and find out.
"Lying is the most personal act of cowardice there is." Nancy Farmer.... " A half-truth is the most cowardly of lies." Mark Twain... Lies and half truth are all we get from these alleged GOP patriots. The GOP have been lying since Nixon with increasing damage to America and the world. Fiscally irresponsible and war-like, role model for those Satanic athiests that the religious right so condemn, yet vote for.
During the Second World War, Winston Churchill’s finance minister said Britain should cut arts funding to support the war effort. Churchill’s response: “Then what are we fighting for?”
This is a sublime story about one of the great hawkish conservative leaders of the 20th century throwing his support behind the cultural institutions of his country.
If Willard M. Romney is running for the highest office of the land and promises to cut
subsidies for Arts,PBS---Please can someone tell me why this man is running for that office in the first place?
Without Arts,What would be the meaning of American?
It amazes me that someone like Romney wouldn't understand that Arts are the cornerstone of a culture.
Oh well i guess in the republic of BAIN they don't have and don't need any culture.
khayyam
What Romney and the Right don't understand it has been traditional for government to support the Arts and Humanities. Private sponsorship of them is a fairly recent phenomenon.
Well, where Mitt comes from, plastic forks and paper plates, laden with green jello is considered fine dining. And the arts consist of crayon drawings of a blue-eyed, latter day Jesus on the refrigerator door.
Mitt is beholden to Grover Norquist on one hand and the First Presidency on the other, so don't expect the toad to have an original thought of his own. We'll all be having a federally enforced Family Home Evening and wearing short sleeved white shirts with skinny black ties if he's elected.
Robme Hood and Ryan of Rottingham ! Vulture Capitalism on Parade !
How very creepy AND criminal !
Last year when the debt ceiling debate was raging, Democrats proposed cutting the special deductions for corporate jets. The estimated $3 billion dollars in savings was mocked by Fox as a "drop in the bucket".
Why is it that PBS, NPR, the Arts, and Amtrak, all programs that benefit the vast majority of our citizens, are all seen as necessary cuts, and essential to those same Fox yakkers?
I got a deal for you Mitt. I'll let you cancel 2 F-35 fighters at $112 million each and we can fund PBS and have some change left over
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/04/02/us-lockheed-fighter-idUSBRE8310WB20120402
He knows how stupid he sounds but PBS as a waste has been Luntz inspired Republican meme for years
I really hate Mitt Romney .
With a burning white hot absolutely disgusted hate.
We don't want to lose you to hate, Effin, you'll have to change parties. lol
Yeah I guess I do sound kind of Teapartyish . I am channeling it into donations and GOTV, with the occasion fun and frivolity like confronting a Redneck with a "Get our freedom back from Obama" bumper sticker and calmly ask them .
I am curious sir can you tell me exactly what freedoms you have lost ? I might consider voting Republican next time if you can explain it to me.
I lost the freedom to go into the polling place to cast my vote with out an ID.
Come November, I am going to go to vote and NOT show that crap. I have been voting in the same precinct for 20 years and they know me-- speak to me by name. If they demand to see some ID, I will pull out my PASSPORT, my DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS IDs, my DRIVERS LICENSE, my MILITARY ID and my BIRTH CERTIFICATE. I wonder if that would be sufficient enough for them. I hope so-- I can't think of anything else I have that I could use.
what is it in a name from our past that its very sound seems to resonate in our senses and legitimate political wannabe's? its almost as if name recognition trumps any question of suitability. we saw it with bush. now, its romney. somehow the name conjures up memories of a courageous, sincere, and honorable governor of long ago. alas, the son inherited neither the father's character nor his fortitude. if we keep being wowed by names, what's in our future--another nixon or hoover? unlike wine, names don't necessarily get better with time.
Romney+Ryan=0 Middle Class. Do the math.
+1
It will also mean the end of the poor, because if he wants a balanced budget AND lower taxes for the rich AND more military spending, he will get rid of Medicare for the poor, and the only way that will save money is if he also gets rid of the requirement for hospital emergency rooms to treat the indigent, so they will have nowhere to go but into death. No one left alive but the rich. Survival of the meanest.
And I'm hearing the cost of food is about to skyrocket even more with this drought. So, the poor and those becoming poorer will have even less food.
Being retired and other issues, I am not looking forward to seeing the food prices, which are already high.
It's your own damn fault for not choosing to be rich. Nyah.
On the 'plus' side, if Republicans do manage to get everything sorted just the way they want, the eventual backlash should make a zombie apocalypse look like two weeks in Nice.
We need a caption contest for the picture accompanying this article.
He looks like he got bitch slapped by Cameron.
Seriously though, since the Military is off the table for spending cuts in Mitt's world, it stands to reason this boy is going to go for the hard right favorites for execution to stay in their favor. This means Women, the poor, and minorities.
That being said, anything that involves a social safety net is going to get the axe, and of course, that liberal bastion known as the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Yep, that will save some bucks.
Let's pick one of the things he'd eliminate. Public Broadcasting. That would primarily hurt small local broadcasters...indeed, the lion's share of donations come from companies and individuals. Boston would manage okay, albeit there would be cuts in their programming.....a smaller demographic? Not so much. So there go those jobs.
Supposedly we have pulled out of Iraq and will be moving out of Afghanistan. Cut the defense spending. We already have spent more than the world combined on defense. (I'm sure that I'll hear from someone who will then say, "Cut defense? Then you'll be cutting jobs.")
Sadly, any cuts (and cuts are needed) will be required...and will result in pain and suffering for many. But cut where we can do the most good! Why go after the small potatoes??
Caution: Anybody who wants to cut funding for something like Sesame Street DOES NOT WANT OUR FUTURE GENERATIONS TO BE ABLE TO READ. Historically, when people in power deny those they want to oppress the opportunity to read, it's so they have no choice but to accept what they are told due to the inability to find out truth for themselves. I'll never trust anyone who even suggests cutting funding to Sesame Street.
I learned to read watching the Elecxtric Company! You are spot on!
But clearly my spelling needs work!
But, but, but, he said Trust me. Sounds like a plan to me. It's his plan anyway.
Our Plan needs to be paying more attention to election of Governors, Senators, Representatives, even our Mayors and council members. The GOP is long gone and has been replaced with TEAPugnicants and pretenders.
We are crumbling from within where lies the enemy.
Our only arms are knowledge and the Vote - and they are working on both of those as well. Ignorance breeds fear and the TeaPugnicants are providing both. We can't let them win.
Never, Never, Never give up. Winston Churchill
I also recall recently someone here pointed out Winston Churchill, whose country was at the height of WW11 asked to cut funding for the arts, replied Then, what are we fighting for? for? http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/docs/2011/july/tradoc_148055.pdf
It may or may not be accurate, but the sentiment behind it is worth pondering awhile. Jefferson and Franklin wanted government to promote the arts, free press and patents.
Look at the pride in the London Olympic Games. Overcoming all the adversity, they showed us their identity remained intact. Never give up was a common theme with Churchill. The National Health System is a valuable part of the people in Britain.
Why dispute the idea of retaining our founding ideals? I searched and found MANY people asking and doubting it was true that Churchill said it. Whether or not he said it, the point remains… why do we seek to cut out the free press and say that should not be public. Well, freedom of the press IS part of this country and freedom. Trying to turn it into corporate owned only is not wise. We already have enough of corporate owned media slanting the very thing that makes us free.
There was disturbing arresting and removing and keeping away of those at public campaign to silence opposition. What indeed are those people fighting for in foreign lands?
Yes, T.P. ers want to do away with all those things WHILE they say uphold the Constitution. Do they know what's in there?
Many T.P.ers are Ignorant and they grew from a handful to many with just repeating uninformed, baseless accusations of socialism. We need to fight back with the same emotion, because eyes glaze over to hear numbers and inside Washington wonkiness. Not that I don;t want that, but we need to get into more hearts than heads.
If we had socialism, we would have not taken single payer off the table. This is the good parts of ACA. This is regulatory answer of the same issue of the COST of health care here. Health care elsewhere is not for profit, so it costs less. They have research and development of effective treatments, so ACA addresses it.
People need to know how this could be helpful to their family. But they turn it into a socialism thing. We are very far from Nationalized Health care.
We won't give up.
Can anyone tell me what infinitesimal percentage of the budget PBS, Amtrak and the National Endowment of the Arts takes up? These are his big ideas? Oy vey...
Apparent Obama's team has another ad theme waiting called "...and you didn't learn it either!" for R&R to add to the Elizabeth Warren argument of "you didn't build it" alone for businesses. Romney's business model anyway is that of a chop shop- run up debt with others' money, loot it, and then declare bankruptcy!
He is playing to the base and they eat it up like ice cream. They also vote in better percentages than the educated liberal folks. If you put a frog in a pot of cool water and slowly raise the temperature you will cook him before he realizes what is happening. If you feed the right kind of vague pap to the Republican right they will vote for you and your vague promises and plans. They will be unhappily surprised when they see your real plan but then it will be too late they will be cooked. The rest of us better get to the polls and make sure this does not happen.
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting and PBS, with Big Bird and all the rest of their daytime educational shows for kids, they threaten to take away the stupidity of our children, infiltrate their minds with no less than 26 letters and numbers up to the 9's! We must stop paying for this continuing treat to the illiteracy of our 5 year olds!
And that national endowment for the arts? We should stop all this broadcastins of classical European (German and Austrian, Beethoven in particular) music, those outrageous displays of semi nude young women painted by crazed French artists in our biggest cities!
And when it comes to trains, and lazy Americans, it's time those elite intellectuals from places like Harvard started walking, instead taking high speed trains between Boston and NYC!