The Pew Research Center's president, Andrew Kohut, penned a revealing statement in his June 14 article about America's debt and deficit: "In my years of polling, there has never been an issue such as the deficit on which there has been such a consensus among the public about its importance ... "
The issue of the budget deficit has risen 16 points since 2007, now trailing only the economy and jobs in its public ranking of significance in the minds of voters, according to Pew research.
This information is known as politicians circulate their proposals and commitments on the campaign trail to address our nation's economy and true spending problem.
In recent days, there have been serious efforts in the U.S. Senate to address "the single largest, growing major expense in the federal budget," according to Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala. His reference is to multiple attempts to make some simple reforms to the food stamp program that were rebuffed by the majority Democrats in the chamber.
Sessions said his two reform proposals were aimed at "preventing states from waiving eligibility requirements" in order to participate in the program and "eliminating bonus pay provided to states for deliberately swelling the rolls."
The almost $500 million in bonus pay for state incentives for increased enrollment was protected, and the attempt at saving a projected $11 billion of the $770 billion total estimated by the Congressional Budget Office to be spent on food stamps overwhelmingly was defeated in a party-line vote, news accounts said.
Offering just a bit of perspective, this cut of $11.5 billion would occur over 10 years. A measly 1.49 percent cut over a decade that comes from common-sense reforms, without penalizing needy recipients, has been fought and defeated.
Will Rogers got it right when he joked, "This country has come to feel the same when Congress is in session as when a baby gets a hold of a hammer."
related articles »
The East Ridge City Council voted to give all city employees a one-time bonus Thursday night, even though the move ...
Exhibit No. 698,427 demonstrating that the federal government wants more people dependent on ... the federal government: bonuses to states ...
WASHINGTON — Unemployment has been stuck near 9 percent since the recession ended more than two years ago. The jobs ...
WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama’s increasing involvement in budget talks reflects an unspoken reality of Washington’s latest mini-drama: No one ...
Yeah, you're still worried about Food Stamps while Republicans want to pour more and more money into Corporate Welfare.
We get it, you freak out over a wasted dime going to a bum, but if you burn 100 dollar bills to a guy in a business suit, well, that's right and proper.
Yes America has noticed the debt and it is about time. It has been much reported that our nation's debt has increased under Obamination more than all of the past presidents combined!
However, 47% and rising of American households pay no federal income taxes. These also receive the bulk of the benefits that are paid for by those who do pay federal income taxes, yet many of these non taxpayers complain that those who do are not paying their fair share. Now there is something wrong with this Liberal thinking.
Obamination often makes this false claim of fairness. Are Liberals really that unintelligent or are they just poor citizens full of envy, hate and greed?
I contend that most of this 47% could care less about our national debt.
"You know, Paul, Reagan proved deficits don't matter," - VP Dick Cheney, 2002
If the majority of the public today is so concerned about the deficit, it only shows how adept the Grand Old Tea Party is as a propaganda machine. They are truly masters at making the blind, deaf, and dumb believe the lies and misinformation that they want them to believe. When Bush almost overnight took our economy from a budget surplus to a deficit, imediately after taking office, Cheney and his fellow Republicans weren't the least bit concerned about the deficit. But ever since Obama took over, that is practically ALL that matters to them. Funny thing.
The deficit is no lie and it is certainly not unimportant, but it is not what's crippling our economy right now. The Republican obsession with cutting spending in all areas that touch the poor and the middle class while leaving the rich to coninue with their picnic in the park will only create more disparity and more unemployment, pain, and suffering. Sensible spending on job creation/training, infrastructure, and renewable energy (it is the wave of the future whether conservatives want to accept it or not) would have us on the road to recovery in no time. It does not take a PhD in economics to see that. It's only common sense. But common sense is not in the teabagging Republicans' vocabulary.
We have 47 million people on food stamps and rising and the Demoncrats want to bribe states with 500 million dollars of other people's money to enroll millions more! I guess they figure there is no end to the stupidity of the American people.
Obesity is a problem in this country and the Liberal Demoncrats ( yes I know that is redundant ) hypocritically claim they care and want to do something about it. They note the role soft drinks and fattening snack foods play in obesity.
However they are just flaming hypocrites for those 47 million on food stamps can buy all the high calorie, high fat junk food they want with that SNAP card !
excerpt from a USDA website listing eligible "food" items : "Soft drinks, candy, cookies, snack crackers, and ice cream are food items and are therefore eligible items"
http://www.fns.usda.gov/snap/retailers/eligible.htm
Conservative,
How is any of that hypocritical? Poor people making their own food choices?! What a scandal! All those foods are eligible food choices for anyone. Why should it be different for people on food stamps? People have to be properly educated about making good food choices. Our bodies crave sugar and fats. And it just so happens that those two things are the main ingredient for obesity.
Democrats are doing something about it.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-05-31/nyc-mayor-bloomberg-seeks-ban-on-super-size-soft-drinks.html
http://www.letsmove.gov/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/08/michelle-obama-obesity-_n_820171.html
http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=news/health&id=8689966
Republicans aren't:
http://abcnews.go.com/US/cookie-protest-sarah-palin-calls-pennsylvania-nanny-state/story?id=12104862
You say you can't afford to feed your family shrimp, lobster, red snapper, grouper, scallops, filet mignon, porterhouse or lowly t-bone steak, well cheer up those on food stamps can!
excerpt from a USDA website listing eligible "food" items :
"Seafood, steak, and bakery cakes are also food items and are therefore eligible items"
http://www.fns.usda.gov/snap/retailers/eligible.htm
Conservative,
Please explain how any of that is bad. Also, who can't feed their family seafood or steak. Those aren't expensive food items.
I look for Obamination to soon have sign up booths for food stamps at his campaign rallies complete with pictures of Pepsi, Cheez Doodles, Doritos, pork rinds, candy bars, various cuts of steak, jumbo shrimp, tuna, and red snapper in such an appealing fashion that it would make Southern Living magazine envious.
You're upset that products you don't like are purchasable by SNAP?
Why aren't you calling the corporations who manufacture them, and telling them to stop lobbying to prevent the SNAP program from covering those foods?
Why aren't you?
Or login with:
New Account