Jan 05 2009
Obama Going To Govern A Lot Like Bush?
If current trends continue President-Elect Obama is going to really screw with the far left and far right in this country – and perhaps retain a strong centrist base from which to execute two terms in office. Right now Obama is really defying many of claims he will govern as an extreme liberal, defanging the far right as their dire predictions of pending doom fail to materialize and driving Obama’s far left base insane as they find another centrist democrat ignoring their risky policy schemes.
So far Obama seems to on a pretty reasonable line with Iraq, keeping Secretary Gates on board and dumping any talk of a hasty and risky retreat. In Afghanistan he is promoting an increase in forces and investment to drive a security and policy wedge between the Taliban and the rest of the Muslim community there. And let’s not forget Obama voted to keep the NSA-FISA surveillance changes Bush put in place after 9-11.
And Obama is taking a lot of heat for siding, albeit quietly, with Israel on its efforts to destroy the murderous terrorist group Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
And in what has to be driving the left absolutely nuts is Obama’s plan to provide a huge tax cut package in his stimulus plan – a tax cut package that actually reduces the tax burden on Americans, over two years, to a greater extent than either of the tax cuts enacted by Bush and the GOP led Congress:
 President-elect Barack Obama and congressional Democrats are crafting a plan to offer about $300 billion of tax cuts to individuals and businesses, a move aimed at attracting Republican support for an economic-stimulus package and prodding companies to create jobs.
The size of the proposed tax cuts — which would account for about 40% of a stimulus package that could reach $775 billion over two years — is greater than many on both sides of the aisle in Congress had anticipated.Â
…
Mr. Bush’s 10-year, $1.35 trillion tax cut of 2001, considered the largest in history, contained $174 billion of cuts during its first two full years, according to Congress’s Joint Committee on Taxation. The second-largest tax cut — the 10-year, $350 billion package engineered by Mr. Bush in 2003 — contained $231 billion in 2004 and 2005.
As with tax hikes, once tax cuts are enacted it is nearly impossible to convince Americans higher taxes will do them good. We all know there has to be some compromise to the left in any stimulus package, so there will be lame and useless government program growth. But what is interesting is how this approach really drives a stake into the far left liberal policies of taxing the rich, and how that defangs the liberal left and doom & gloom crying far right.
Obama is turning out to be quite a surprise.
Obama is a politician and as such he might well be playing both ends against the middle.
But…I fail to understand how he can pay for 600,000 new government employees and still cut taxes. BTW, I thought he was going to do away with all those dastardly Bush tax cuts. The tax credits to people who do not pay taxes are subsidies, but once you start that sort of thing it can be difficult to stop it.
I know Obama has thrown a lot of people under that famous bus of us, even now he is claiming Bill Richardson lied to him. Please, put an R behind Obama’s name and people would accuse his transition of lousy vetting of nominees.
I did something interesting right after the election. It was a poll by Zogby {grain of salt and all that}…according to that poll the majority of Obama voters thought that Republicans had been in control of Congress for the last two years. If this poll is true, then it is obvious that the media can make people believe anything..just by the tone of their reporting. Hence, Obama could govern like Bush but with a higher approval rating.
[…] http://strata-sphere.com/blog/index.php/archives/7524 […]
“….a move aimed at attracting Republican support for an economic-stimulus package and prodding companies to create jobs.”
Conservative economic policy wins again! It must be that the Obama economic team has told him that the current economy’s fragility will not withstand tax increases, it needs just the opposite.
The sad thing is that even with 100% Republican support, a tax cut for “businesses”-you know….the “rich”, will be difficult to enact in either the House or the Senate.
So many Democrats got elected by decrying the Bush tax cuts, how are they going to perform this complete pirouette with a straight face? This is going to be fun to watch!
Terry – you are right, you can’t pay for that and have tax cuts. But the trick is that we AREN’T going to pay for it – at least not directly. The “plan” is now to simply print money in every way possible and hand it out with no regard to “paying for it” at all. Where do you think the $16 billion for GM and Chrysler came from, after all? Not from any taxes we’re ever going to collect. And no one serious believes that money will ever be paid back – it can’t be.
We can push this until the currency collapses of it’s own weight -which at current rates should happen in 12 – 16 months. After that, it’s game over for this economy, and for this country.
Not sure I can agree with the hysteria that the country is done for because I don’t think the government is as influential in the economy as the unenlightened would have us believe and the role of the president is even less influential. Our economy is larger and more powerful than the stupidity being passed off as government and can (and has) absorbed enormously foolhardy taxing and spending policies while still providing the atmosphere for the hardworking individual to provide a nice little life for himself. While the government can and regularly does make life more difficult than it needs to be, I for one will not give cretins like Reid, Pelosi, Clinton, Shumer, Durbin etc (and add the repubs in) the benefit that they have any real power over me or the decisions I make.
As to the media role in preying on the unwashed masses, look no further than what has happened to the US auto industry—someone convinced people that America doesn’t make good cars and people who can barely drive buy into this logic (and then trade in their foreign import 3 years later). If you listened to these people you would think all Americans have the driving skills of test drivers and if you looked out your window you would be able to see them in action.
As for puppets, Obama is doing a pretty good job—-but still I ask”Who paid for your senate seat PETUS?”
KauaiBoy:
I think there is a lot hysteria too. I also think that when we hear about the Iceland economy collapsing, the Brits nationalizing banks and the EU doing the same…all the while the Chinese and Indian economies are showing signs of slowing..I think that this is bigger than one man, even a president can control. I think the economy will come around eventually. It always does.
Don’t worry, AJ. Obama will go hard left, sooner rather than later.
The only question is whether firearm owners or embryos will be the targets.
Add to this the likelihood of open-borders immigration triggering a fight.
And never, never forget…Obama is not the only player. Eight years ago, we elected a President who thought he was going to be a domestic policy guy.
Until 11 September 2001.
I think the question is not if, but when, where, and with how many dead.
I still think that Obama is trying to pull the wool over my eyes. With Gates he can simply tell him what to do and Gates can do it or resign. Same with Patraus. Presonally I think he gives with one hand and takes away with the other. I would be happy to be proven wrong for the good of the country.
Leon Panetta at CIA? A man with ZERO intelligence experience?
Kiss our foreign intel operations goodbye.
First off, even discounting the absurd idea that a former Chief of Staff has “ZERO intelligence experience” (I think he may have sat in on a meeting or two), he would hardly be the first CIA Director without *field* experience. You might have heard of a different fellow – goes by the name “George H. W. Bush”?
Personally, I find the fact that DiFi and Jay Rockefeller objected to this pick to be a positive sign.
Once again Guy shows his intellect.
What about his dad remember his resume?
YOU must be one of those folks who still thougt Congress was controlled by the Dems.
It’s not experience that’s the problem. It never is.
It’s whether the mind that is used is governed my logic or ego.
In Leons term it will be ego.
Typical dem thought processes.
That was possibly the most non-sensical comment I’ve read in my life. His dad’s resume gives HIM experience? Control of Congress? Leon’s ego vs. logic? Umm.. WHAT?
Have you been drinking heavily?
I don’t drink buddy and it figures that someone like you cannot understand the cocept of logic guiding and being the main force behind most coherent thought.
I believe his dad was head of the CIA but maybe I am wrong but not drunk.
Be Well
My father worked in oil refineries for 46 years. That doesn’t mean I know the first thing about how a co-generator works. (Although I did work for 8 month on a co-gen turn-around.)
Tell you what – if anyone else can explain to me what your comment had to do with Leon Panetta (specifically, the “control of Congress” part, or the “logic vs. ego” part), then I’ll concede this point to you.
Actually Guy even Feinstein thinks Panetta is a bad pick. Harmon would have been better.
Obama is just looking for the most politically advantageous pick, advantageous to Obama that is.
You want to talk about a great CIA chief, Guy, how about Stansfield Turner under Carter? His tenure was marked by Turner’s decision to get rid of all foreign field personell since we could just read wiretaps instead. The CIA never has recovered from that disaster.
Obama has sure been a shock and awe to me, for sure. He isn’t actually President yet; so, time will tell where he goes.
Usually I am really disappointed with the Dem Presidential cabinet picks. I’m actually ok with most. I think his economic team is pretty good. And, Obama, has sure taken a turn to the center right positions on many issues. I am not comfortable with his intelligence team at all. I think there could be some real danger there. I don’t like the “income redistribution” portion of his so called “tax cut” plan—and, am becoming more and more uneasy with the trillion-plus additional debt he is talking. Hopefully some of that will get ironed out. I am uneasy still where he may try to go; but, so far……I am seeing more positive than negative from him. Not at all what I expected.
I keep hearing a stimulus number of $1 trillion. (And man – that’s an awfully big number to wrap my head around – $1,000,000,000,000.00) If 30% of that goes to tax cuts, and 70% goes to spending on things like infrastructure (shovel-ready projects and such), than I think that’s about the best plan we can hope for.
I read yesterday that Obama would like the stimulus plan to pass with 80+ votes in the Senate, and will do whatever is necessary to get it there. That would, IMO, be just a staggering achievement, in this political atmosphere.
Guy we were discussing you insult to DAD GHWB and the availability of his father for advice.
I think time in the military and seeing the result of political stupidity which brings about a World War makes a far better CIA director than a creature of Panettas ilk
Great men know how to think and lead. OBama is neither and without the low life media, He would still be a nobody senator.
And still the Eloi celebrate.
The chief of the Eloi does indeed recommend the celebration.
And the town criers pick up the clarion call, and through the blogs
call far and wide to those ELoi who still have doubts.
“Do not fear. Celebrate. It won’t be that bad. At least it will be quick”.
Let me be practical for a moment.
Magic man, tax the wealth creators all you want. I am now safely
beyond your reach. And I will now buy nothing made in America.
I need a new car and thought to buy Chrysler or Dodge. No way now.
I will buy nothing that helps you to claim you saved the economy.
I hope you are forced out as quickly as possible. I call this strategy
BUY NOTHING. I will pursue it until your failure is complete.
You ridiculous fraud.