it’s class warfare!

People Press: As the nation prepares for another round of deficit reduction debates, the public’s confidence in congressional leaders, particularly Republican leaders in Congress, has plummeted. Just 35% say they have a great deal or fair amount of confidence in Republican leaders in Congress to do the right thing when it comes to dealing with the federal budget deficit, down from 47% in May. Fully 62% say they have little or no confidence in the Republican leaders on this issue.

Public confidence in Barack Obama on the budget deficit, by comparison, has remained largely unchanged. The latest national survey by the Pew Research Center finds that 52% express at least a fair amount of confidence in Obama to do the right thing when it comes to dealing with the deficit, virtually unchanged from 55% earlier in the year.

The drop in confidence in GOP congressional leaders is broad based, even occurring among Republicans themselves …… Democrats offer a more positive assessment of their leaders’ handling of the deficit than Republicans do of theirs. Fully 84% of Democrats have at least a fair amount of confidence in Obama to do the right thing regarding the deficit, and 75% are confident in Democratic leaders in Congress….

…. The survey also finds continued public support for raising the tax rate on high incomes as a way to reduce the federal budget deficit and the size of the national debt. Two-thirds (67%) approve of raising the tax rate on incomes over $250,000 as a means of reducing the national debt … Just 30% disapprove…

Full article here

read it and weep, gop

Link

Thanks Loriah 😉

“by the time i feed my family, i have maybe $400,000 left over”

ThinkProgress: Rep. John Fleming (R-LA) appeared on MSNBC with Chris Jansing this morning to attack President Obama’s new deficit reduction plan, which includes some tax increases on the wealthy…..

Fleming is himself a businesses owner, so Jansing asked, “If you have to pay more in taxes, you would get rid of some of those employees?” Fleming responded by saying that while his businesses made $6.3 million last year, after you “pay 500 employees, you pay rent, you pay equipment, and food,” his profits “a mere fraction of that” – “by the time I feed my family, I have maybe $400,000 left over…..”

More here

“this is not class warfare, this is math”

Full video:

President Obama talks about cutting the deficit from the Rose Garden of the White House, September 19

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“I reject the idea that asking a hedge fund manager to pay the same tax rate as a plumber or a teacher is class warfare.”

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“It’s also about fairness. It’s about whether we are, in fact, in this together. And we’re looking out for one another. You know what’s right. It’s time to do what’s right.”

‘class warfare’

CBPP: House Speaker John Boehner’s new budget proposal would require deep cuts in the years immediately ahead in Social Security and Medicare benefits for current retirees, the repeal of health reform’s coverage expansions, or wholesale evisceration of basic assistance programs for vulnerable Americans.

The plan is, thus, tantamount to a form of “class warfare.” If enacted, it could well produce the greatest increase in poverty and hardship produced by any law in modern U.S. history.

This may sound hyperbolic, but it is not. The mathematics are inexorable:

See link for details

…. the Boehner plan would force policymakers to choose among cutting the incomes and health benefits of ordinary retirees, repealing the guts of health reform and leaving an estimated 34 million more Americans uninsured, and savaging the safety net for the poor. It would do so even as it shielded all tax breaks, including the many lucrative tax breaks for the wealthiest and most powerful individuals and corporations.

President Obama has said that, while we must reduce looming deficits, we must take a balanced approach. The Boehner proposal badly fails this test of basic decency….

See full article here

Thanks SouthernGirl and Bob

cantor: a fraud, a liar and a rank amateur.

up, up and away….

Politicususa: A new Quinnipiac poll released today found that in one month President Obama’s approval rating in Florida has gone from 44% to 51%.

….. the President has experienced a net 16 point swing … he went from having a net negative approval rating of 44%-52% in April to having a positive 51%-43% job approval rating in May.

Obama has made up most of his ground with Independents, who swung a net 18 points in his direction. The president’s job approval rating with the state’s Independents has gone from 39%-55% in April to 47%-45% today. Obama also gained a net 12 points in Democratic approval from 79%-16% in April to 86%-11% today. Obama experienced a huge swing with men in the state. He has gained a net 22 points. The president has gone from a 19 point negative split in April, 39%-58% to 47%-45% today.

….Something interesting happens when Gov. Rick Scott’s approval numbers from the same poll are compared with Obama’s. As Obama was gaining a net 18 point in the state, Gov. Scott was losing 16 points. His approval rating has fallen to a Palin-like 29%. His disapproval rating (54%) almost mirrors Obama’s new approval rating (51%)….

More here

‘optimism among u.s. chief executives tops pre-slump high’

Bloomberg: Optimism among U.S. chief executive officers surpassed the highest level reached before the recession as more business leaders projected increased sales, investment and hiring, a survey showed.

The Business Roundtable’s economic outlook index increased to 113 in the first quarter, the highest point since records began in 2002 … Readings greater than 50 coincide with an economic expansion. The previous peak was 104 in the first three months of 2005.

“Companies have given strong signals about their willingness to expand,” said Ivan Seidenberg, chairman of the Business Roundtable. “As we keep a steady flow of capital investment, we’ll certainly see sales forecasts go up, and as we do that we’ll start to see hiring.”

None of the 142 CEOs surveyed said they expected a decline in sales in the next six months, and 92 percent projected an increase, paving the way for more hiring and investment in equipment. A gain in capital spending plans points to further strength in manufacturing, the industry that’s propelled the economic expansion.

…Fifty-two percent of CEOs said they will add to payrolls, up from 45 percent in the fourth quarter and the largest share on record. Some 62 percent said they plan to spend more on equipment, up from 59 percent.

The business leaders’ forecast supports March employment data. Companies in the U.S. added 201,000 workers this month after a revised 208,000 gain in February…