…A sale within the next several months would almost certainly mean U.S. TAXPAYERS WILL TAKE A LOSS ON THEIR $50 BILLION RESCUE OF THE DETROIT AUTO MAKER IN 2009.
To break even, the U.S. Treasury would need to sell its remaining stake—about 500 million shares—at $53 apiece. GM closed off 27 cents a share at $29.97 in 4 p.m. trading Monday on the New York Stock Exchange, HITTING A NEW LOW SINCE ITS $33-A-SHARE NOVEMBER INITIAL PUBLIC OFFERING….
….Shares have been hurt by rising fuel prices, industry production disruptions and management turnover. At Monday's price, and taking into account shares sold during the IPO, TAXPAYERS WOULD LOSE MORE THAN $11 BILLION ON THE RESCUE IF THE GOVERNMENT DUMPED THE REST OF ITS STAKE NOW.
Government officials are willing to take the loss because the Obama administration would like to sever its last ties to the auto maker, the people familiar with the matter said. A summer sale makes it more likely Treasury could sell all of its stake in GM by year's end, AVOIDING A POTENTIALLY CONTROVERSIAL SALE IN THE 2012 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION YEAR…
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703916004576271382418887092.html?mod=e2tw#
See, raising a billion dollars for his campaign is nothing when he can get the taxpayers to pitch in 11 billion to remove just one embarrassment of his.
Obama and Medicare
Piously posturing as the savior of Medicare, President Obama lashed out at the House Republicans for embracing the budget proposed by Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.). But a comparison of the president’s own plans for Medicare with those in the Ryan budget shows that THE DEMOCRATIC CUTS ARE FAR MORE IMMEDIATE AND DRASTIC THAN ANYTHING IN THE GOP PROPOSAL.
WHILE THE REPUBLICAN MEDICARE CHANGES ONLY TAKE EFFECT IN 2021, OBAMA’S CUTS WILL BEGIN HURTING SENIORS RIGHT AWAY. The president’s healthcare legislation imposed a hard spending cap on Medicare — the first time it has ever had one — which he has just proposed lowering by another one-half of 1 percent of GDP (a further cut of about $70 billion a year).
Obama’s cuts, which will take effect immediately, are to be administered by his newly created Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB) of 15 members appointed by the president. ITS RECOMMENDATIONS FOR CUTS IN MEDICARE SERVICES OR FOR REDUCTIONS IN REIMBURSEMENT WILL NOT BE SUBJECT TO CONGRESSIONAL APPROVAL BUT WILL TAKE EFFECT BY ADMINISTRATIVE FIAT. RIGHT NOW.
http://thehill.com/opinion/columnists/dick-morris/156879-obamas-medicare-hypocrisy
Sarah Palin was right. Remember this when the left talks about how the Republicans are destroying Medicare.
Why Obama is so far behind the times
Ruth Marcus of the Washington Post and others have noted that President Obama seems a few beats behind things; unable to anticipate things as they develop, and awkward when forced to catch up. WHEN HE RESPONDS, HIS ANSWERS SEEM LACKING.
Good politicians are in tune with their times, great ones foresee them, but OBAMA SEEMS OUT OF STEP WITH HIS TIMES, AND BEHIND THEM.
He is in the right job (he thinks), at the wrong moment, handed a crisis he never expected, and is doing his best to ignore. HE WAS TOLD, AND BELIEVED, HE WAS THE NEW FDR AT THE START OF A NEW AGE OF EXPANSION, AND IT WOULD BE HIS JOB TO REDEEM THE OLD LIBERAL VISION.
How could he know that a few months into his term the welfare state would implode both at home and in Europe, and that, INSTEAD OF RESTORING THE LIBERAL CREED TO DEPRESSION-AGE GLORY, HE WOULD PRESIDE OVER ITS FINAL DEMISE?
Two years ago, Time had him on its cover as FDR redux, and Newsweek was saying that we were all socialists now. Soon after that, the real socialists threw in the towel in Europe, admitting their system had not been successful, urging retrenchment and large cuts in government spending.
OBAMA'S RESPONSE WAS TO SPEND STILL MORE MONEY, TOUT SPEED RAIL AND WINDMILLS, AND TREAT WARNINGS AT HOME AND ABROAD OF A DEBT-FUELED DISASTER AS PART OF A PLOY BY THE RIGHT IN ITS DRIVE TO STARVE CHILDREN
http://washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/columnists/2011/04/why-obama-so-far-behind-times#ixzz1K3jesIe9
This is a sad commentary on Obama and the state of the Left in this country. They actually feel if you aren’t with them, you are un American.
Obama in and on Texas
Apparently Obama did not appreciate the tone of this reporter from Texas, who asked Obama some pointed questions and at one point corrected him on how badly he lost the Lone Star state in 2008. OBAMA TESTILY CONCLUDES "LET ME FINISH MY ANSWERS" AT THE END OF THE INTERVIEW:
In case Obama needs a better refresher, the National Republican Senatorial Committee gleefully sent out the following email:
Good morning – as you continue to hear national DEMOCRAT CAMPAIGN STRATEGISTS PONTIFICATE ON HOW THEY INTEND TO TARGET TEXAS IN NEXT YEAR’S ELECTION, I wanted to point out that in an interview last night, WFAA-TV reporter Brad Watson had to remind even President Obama that HE ACTUALLY LOST TEXAS BY 11 POINTS IN 2008 – AT THE HEIGHT OF HIS POPULARITY -- AND NOT BY “A FEW PERCENTAGE POINTS” AS THE PRESIDENT INITIALLY CLAIMED.
http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/case-obama-has-forgotten-he-lost-texas-117-points_557578.html
Obama, the Democrats and the left in general are more and more out of touch with reality.
Obama: The Bully-in-Chief
…To grasp the magnitude of this spectacle, it is important to understand the context. At the start of the year, the President spoke directly to Republican House leaders at their annual retreat. There, he took on a tone reminiscent of his hope-n-change, post-partisan healer routine from the 2008 campaign trail, urging, "I DON'T THINK [THE AMERICAN PEOPLE] WANT MORE PARTISANSHIP... THEY DIDN'T SEND US TO WASHINGTON TO FIGHT EACH OTHER IN SOME SORT OF POLITICAL STEEL CAGE MATCH TO SEE WHO COMES OUT ALIVE... THEY SENT US TO WASHINGTON TO WORK TOGETHER, TO GET THINGS DONE."http://www.americanthinker.com/2011/04/the_presidents_maturity_proble.html
In such an environment of cooperation and collaboration, PRESIDENT OBAMA INVITED CONGRESSMAN PAUL RYAN -- the architect of the recent Republican budget plan -- TO SIT IN THE FRONT ROW, JUST INCHES FROM THE PRESIDENTIAL LECTERN AT HIS RECENT BUDGET ADDRESS. It would be fair to assume that Ryan believed this to be a sign of goodwill. Though the President was sure to disagree with portions of his plan, Ryan probably felt he was in for a bipartisan pat on the back and an expression of appreciation for tackling this monumental challenge. Why else would the President save him such a seat of prominence?
How about so the Playground Bully-in-Chief could ambush Ryan and make an example of him in front of the country? FOR THE BETTER PART OF AN HOUR, THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES LAMBASTED RYAN'S EFFORTS PUBLICLY AS LITTLE SHORT OF ABANDONING AUTISTIC KIDS TO THE SEWERS AND LOCKING GRANNY IN THE ATTIC.
Given this undignified blindside, Rep. Ryan would have been well within his rights to walk out of the hall in disgust. But apparently, decorum and respect are words that find meaning in the Ryan vocabulary -- more than can be said for our Chief Executive. After all, THIS RECENT MANIFESTATION OF HIS BRAZEN CHILDISHNESS IS BUT ONE THREAD IN A MUCH LARGER TAPESTRY OF IMMATURITY THAT HAS EMERGED
Like a bully, Obama likes to pick times his opponents can’t fight back. Ryan above and SCOTUS at last fiscal year’s SOTU.
Obama lies again
President Barack Obama claimed that coal could create "the kinds of air pollution" THAT IS "CREATING ASTHMA FOR KIDS," in speaking at a town hall event in Annandale, Va., on Tuesday. However, the NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH SAYS THAT “THE EXACT CAUSE OF ASTHMA ISN’T KNOWN” AND THAT “ASTHMA IS DIFFERENT FOR EACH PERSON.”
http://cnsnews.com/news/article/obama-claims-air-pollution-coal-creating
I’m sure NBC/CBS/ and ABC will lead with the story that Obama was lying in his Annandale speech.
Even Arianna doesn’t trust BHO
….Perhaps it's because we feel like we've seen this movie before. CALL IT "ATTACK OF THE IMPASSIONED YET EMPTY RHETORIC." But this version was even more unsettling than the earlier versions, in which the president delivered great speeches then failed to back up his words with the promised action. IN THIS SEQUEL, HIS WORDS TURNED TO BROKEN PROMISES AS SOON AS THEY PASSED HIS LIPS.
IT'S ALMOST AS IF THE SPEECH WAS PREMISED ON THE HOPE THAT MOST OF HIS AUDIENCE HADN'T BEEN KEEPING UP WITH THE NEWS. "They want to give people like me a $200,000 tax cut that's paid for by asking 33 seniors each to pay $6,000 more in health costs? That's not right. And it's not going to happen as long as I'm president," he said, drawing rhetorical lines in the sand. The problem is, he had already welcomed Republicans across these lines and enjoyed a few celebratory toasts with them on the other side.
We got used to the president making strong promises and then caving -- from closing Guantanamo to not extending the Bush tax cuts for millionaires. Now he's making strong promises he's already broken. HE'S LIKE A POLITICAL VERSION OF THE GUY PEARCE CHARACTER IN MEMENTO -- HE'S FIGURED OUT A WAY TO BREAK PROMISES OUTSIDE OF THE LIMITATIONS OF LINEAR TIME….
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/arianna-huffington/obama-economy-speech_b_851311.html
2012 is looking good if you are a Republican, not so much if you are a Democrat.
Obama: Sense and Nonsense
President Obama said sensible things in his speech about deficits. "Most Americans tend to dislike government spending in the abstract, but they like the stuff it buys," he noted. True. "NOBODY WANTS TO PAY HIGHER TAXES." TRUE. "AROUND TWO-THIRDS OF OUR BUDGET IS SPENT ON MEDICARE, MEDICAID, SOCIAL SECURITY, AND NATIONAL SECURITY." ALSO TRUE. Therefore, cuts to discretionary programs alone "won't solve the problem." True again.
Alas, THAT WAS ABOUT THE EXTENT OF THE PRESIDENT'S TRUTHFULNESS. The rest of his speech WAS WASTED SETTING UP STRAW MEN AND KNOCKING THEM DOWN with bombastic nonsense about who wants Americans to be prosperous and happy (him) and who wants them to die cold and hungry (anyone who disagrees with him). As for specifics, he offered none.
THE ONLY WAY TO SHOW CARE FOR OTHERS, OBAMA SUGGESTED, WAS BY SPENDING ON GOVERNMENT PROGRAMS. Blame for high deficits, he insisted, falls exclusively on inadequate taxation. Nowhere did he mention that FEDERAL SPENDING HAS SKYROCKETED IN THE PAST THREE YEARS, FROM $2.9 TRILLION IN 2008 TO $3.8 TRILLION TODAY.
http://www2.timesdispatch.com/news/editorials/2011/apr/17/TDOPIN01-sense-nonsense-ar-975980/
Obama support falls with just about everyone
….According to this McClatchy-Marist Poll, 61% OF REGISTERED VOTERS NATIONALLY DISAPPROVE OF HOW THE PRESIDENT IS HANDLING THE FEDERAL BUDGET DEFICIT. 34% approve, and only 5% are unsure.
Republicans are the most dissatisfied with how Mr. Obama is tackling the deficit. Most GOP voters — 91% — disapprove of his approach while just 5% approve. AMONG INDEPENDENT VOTERS, MORE THAN TWO-THIRDS — 68% — ARE UNHAPPY WITH HOW THE PRESIDENT IS ADDRESSING THE ISSUE COMPARED WITH 28% WHO APPROVE. And, while 64% of the president’s own party approve of how Mr. Obama is dealing with the deficit, a significant 30% of Democrats would prefer he take on the issue in a different way.
President Obama laid out his plan to deal with the budget deficit last Wednesday. And, while there was a slight bounce in those who approve of how the president is handling the federal deficit after his speech, voters remain pessimistic. Prior to the president’s address at George Washington University, 31% approved of how he is dealing with the deficit compared with 38% who report the same after he outlined his plan.
When it comes to Mr. Obama’s overall job performance, voters remain tepid. Currently, 44% OF REGISTERED VOTERS APPROVE OF HOW THE PRESIDENT IS DOING IN OFFICE COMPARED WITH 49% WHO DISAPPROVE. Six percent are unsure.
http://maristpoll.marist.edu/419-high-dissatisfaction-with-washington/
What should concern the left is that these polls are among registered vs likely voters. Democrats traditionally do much better with all registered voters than they do in actual elections with actual voters.
Obama Has No Budget Plan
He has a campaign agenda.http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/265067/obama-has-no-budget-plan-michael-tanner
Even by the very low standards of Washington politics, President Obama’s budget speech last week was a model of disingenuousness. In fact, to treat the president’s speech as a budget proposal is probably unfair. It wasn’t really a budget plan; it was a campaign speech — long on vitriol, platitudes, and promises, but short on detail. Even so, it’s worth pointing out some of the bigger inaccuracies….
Here’s a summary of Obama inaccuracies:
OBAMA JUST WANTS TO TAX “MILLIONAIRES AND BILLIONAIRES.” His definition of a millionaire includes people making under a million dollars down as far as $200,000 per year.
OBAMACARE SAVES MONEY. Obamacare ginned the numbers and then spent the savings twice. He also doesn’t address the long term Medicare deficit of $45 trillion.
OBAMA WOULD CUT DOMESTIC SPENDING. This is probably the most dishonest part of the speech. Obama says he will cut $750 billion over 12 years. INCLUDED IN THESE SAVINGS ARE SAVINGS ON DEBT SERVICE AND “REDUCED SPENDING THROUGH THE TAX CODE.” IN OTHER WORDS, HE COUNTS TAX HIKES AS SPENDING CUTS (ie. Cutting out the homeowners tax deduction would raise revenue, but Obama counts that as a spending cut.
OBAMA’S PLAN BALANCES THE BUDGET. Actually none of the plans we are talking about balances the budget, but Ryan’s plan is 89% better toward that goal that Obama’s.
You would have to be a fool to believe this president.
No comments:
Post a Comment