Sunday, July 31, 2011
Congressional leaders reach agreement to raise the debt ceiling
Republican and Democratic leaders have agreed on a plan to raise the debt ceiling, President Obama announced Sunday night.The announcement arrives after months of intense closed-door negotiations, and just two days before the deadline set by the Treasury Department.
According to the details available, the agreement would slow the growth of government spending over the next decade by $2-$3 trillion and allow enough borrowing to put off another vote to raise the ceiling to 2013. About $1 trillion will be cut immediately, and the details of the remaining spending reductions will be handled by a bipartisan committee of 12 lawmakers from both chambers, who will recommend cuts for Congress to vote on. To appease the GOP's conservative wing, the deal would also require a vote in both chambers on an amendment to the Constitution requiring the federal government to balance its budget each year.
"I want to announce that the leaders of both parties, in both chambers, have reached an agreement that will reduce the deficit and avoid default--a default that would have had a devastating effect on our economy," Obama said. "Now, is this the deal I would have preferred? No. . . . But this compromise does make a serious down payment on the deficit reduction we need, and gives each party a strong incentive to get a balanced plan done before the end of the year."
House Speaker John Boehner held a conference call Sunday evening with House Republicans in which he urged them to support the package, declaring that the deal in place "meets our principles of smaller government."
"There is a framework in place that would cut spending by a larger amount than we raise the debt limit, and cap future spending to limit the growth of government," he said, according to a transcript provided by Boehner's office. "Now listen, this isn't the greatest deal in the world. But it shows how much we've changed the terms of the debate in this town."
With the approval of leaders of the House and Senate, and Tuesday's deadline looming, Congress must act quickly to convince enough members to seal the deal with a vote on Monday. The deal will require bipartisan support due to the opposition within factions of both parties.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and Majority Leader Harry Reid will both present the deal to their caucus Monday at 11 a.m. with a vote expected afterward.
Why is the blackman God?
Answer:
The reason theBlackman is God is because the Blackman is the original man of the planet earth. There is no such thing as a "mystery god" flying around in heaven (beyond outer-space) controlling the world? The Blackman is the father of civilization. All other people of color are just various shades of black. The [essence] of all colors are derived from "black". The white race was grafted from the Blackman. God comes first whom later created "devil" (devil = doer of evil or one that does evil).
Unrealistic and self delusional creating a mental cataract "believing in a spook, ghost, mystery god" actually as POWER over each and every individual. Who is the all-eye-seeing, supreme being, true-and-living sole-controller???
All persons of color are considered black (Africans Chinese Ecuadorean Korean Japanese...). Pharaoh, Englishman, American, German, etc. are all just different terms for a white person. People whom do no have any culture with a history of telling lies, cheating, and stealing.
The Blackman is God by nature (birthright). Divine leadership manifested authority through principles of applied mathematics (knowledge, wisdom, and understanding).
Read more: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Why_is_the_blackman_God#ixzz1TkFO62nB
Why is the blackman God?
Answer:
The reason theBlackman is God is because the Blackman is the original man of the planet earth. There is no such thing as a "mystery god" flying around in heaven (beyond outer-space) controlling the world? The Blackman is the father of civilization. All other people of color are just various shades of black. The [essence] of all colors are derived from "black". The white race was grafted from the Blackman. God comes first whom later created "devil" (devil = doer of evil or one that does evil).
Unrealistic and self delusional creating a mental cataract "believing in a spook, ghost, mystery god" actually as POWER over each and every individual. Who is the all-eye-seeing, supreme being, true-and-living sole-controller???
All persons of color are considered black (Africans Chinese Ecuadorean Korean Japanese...). Pharaoh, Englishman, American, German, etc. are all just different terms for a white person. People whom do no have any culture with a history of telling lies, cheating, and stealing.
The Blackman is God by nature (birthright). Divine leadership manifested authority through principles of applied mathematics (knowledge, wisdom, and understanding).
Read more: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Why_is_the_blackman_God#ixzz1TkFO62nB
Congress closing in on debt deal as deadline nears
WASHINGTON – Racing the clock to avoid a government default, President Barack Obama and Republican congressional leaders closed in Sunday night on a compromise to permit vital U.S. borrowing by the Treasury in exchange for more than $2 trillion in long-term spending cuts.But no votes seemed likely in either house of Congress until Monday at the earliest, just one day before the deadline to raise the federal debt limit and enable the government to keep paying its bills.
Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell said the two sides were "really, really close" to a deal after months of partisan fighting.
And as evening neared, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid issued a statement saying he had signed off on a pending agreement, subject to approval by the Democratic rank and file.
But that was met by conspicuous silence from the White House, McConnell and House Speaker John Boehner. No deal had been struck, Boehner's aides said, though they arranged a Sunday night conference call to bring other House Republicans up to date on the talks.
Privately, officials said a final sticking point concerned possible cuts in the nation's defense budget in the next two years. Republicans wanted less. Democrats pressed for more in an attempt to shield domestic accounts from greater reductions.
As contemplated in talks that McConnell and Vice President Joe Biden were negotiating, the federal debt limit would rise in two stages by at least $2.2 trillion, enough to tide the Treasury over until after the 2012 elections.
Big cuts in government spending would be phased in over a decade. Thousands of programs — the Park Service, Labor Department and housing among them — could be trimmed to levels last seen years ago.
No Social Security or Medicare benefits would be cut, but the programs could be scoured for other savings. Taxes would be unlikely to rise.
Any agreement would have to be passed by the Democratic-controlled Senate and Republican-controlled House before going to the White House for Obama's signature. With precious little time remaining, bothhouses were on standby throughout the day, and Speaker John Boehner was in his office.
Without legislation in place by Tuesday, the Treasury will not be able to pay all its bills, raising the threat of a default that administration officials say could inflict catastrophic damage on the economy.
If approved, though, a compromise would presumably preserve America's sterling credit rating, reassure investors in financial markets across the globe and possibly reverse the losses that spread across Wall Street in recent days as the threat of a default grew.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said he was "hopeful and confident" a deal would come together. But in a possible hint of dissatisfaction, he pointedly made no mention of congressional Democrats when he said negotiations were between McConnell and the White House and unnamed others.
Officials familiar with the negotiations said that McConnell had been in frequent contact with Vice President Joe Biden, who has played an influential role across months of negotiations.
The talks were proceeding toward a two-step system for raising the debt limit and cutting spending.
The first step would take place immediately, raising the debt limit by nearly $1 trillion and cutting spending by a slightly larger amount over a decade.
That would be followed by creation of a new congressional committee that would have until the end of November to recommend $1.8 trillion or more in deficit cuts, targeting benefit programs such as Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security, or overhauling the tax code. Those deficit cuts would allow a second increase in the debt limit, which would be needed by early next year.
If the committee failed to reach its $1.8 trillion target, or Congress failed to approve its recommendations by the end of 2011, lawmakers would then have to vote on a proposed constitutional balanced-budget amendment.
If that failed to pass, automatic spending cuts totaling $1.2 trillion would automatically take effect, and the debt limit would rise by an identical amount.
Social Security, Medicaid and food stamps would be exempt from the automatic cuts, but payments to doctors, nursing homes and other Medicare providers could be trimmed, as could subsidies to insurance companies that offer an alternative to government-run Medicare.
Officials describing those steps spoke on condition of anonymity, citing both the sensitivity of the talks and the potential that details could change.
The emerging deal could mark a classic compromise, a triumph of divided government that would let both Obama and Republicans claim they had achieved their objectives.
As the president demanded, the deal would allow the debt limit to rise by enough to tide the Treasury over until after the 2012 elections.
But barring a change, it appeared Obama's proposal to extend the current payroll tax holiday beyond the end of 2011 would not be included, nor his call for extended unemployment benefits for victims of the recession.
Republicans would win spending cuts of slightly more than the increase in the debt limit, as they have demanded. Additionally, tax increases would be off-limits unless recommended by the bipartisan committee that is expected to include six Republicans and six Democrats. The conservative campaign to force Congress to approve a balanced-budget amendment to the Constitution would be jettisoned.
Congressional Democrats have long insisted that Medicare and Social Security benefits not be cut, a victory for them in the proposal under discussion. Yet they would have to absorb even deeper cuts in hundreds of federal programs than were included in Reid's bill, which many Democrats supported in a symbolic vote on the House floor on Saturday.
As details began to emerge, one liberal organization, Progressive Change Campaign Committee, issued a statement that was harshly critical.
"Seeing a Democratic president take taxing the rich off the table and instead push a deal that will lead to Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid benefit cuts is like entering a bizarre parallel universe — one with horrific consequences for middle-class families," it said.
While politically powerful business groups like the Chamber of Commerce are expected to support the deal, tea party organizations and others have looked disapprovingly on legislation that doesn't require approval of a balanced-budget amendment.
If they keep to that position, it could present Boehner a challenge in lining up enough votes to support a compromise, just as Obama may have to stand down rebels within his own party.
The day began with optimistic statements in televised interviews by McConnell and White House officials, then quickly reverted to a reminder of the fierce partisanship of the past several weeks.
Soon after the Senate convened, Republicans blocked legislation Reid had advanced several days ago as part of an outbreak of brinkmanship with Boehner and the Republicans. The vote was 50-49, or 10 short of the 60 votes needed to advance the bill.
The vote was of no consequence in the fate of the separate efforts to avoid default.
Those talks were unfolding along lines determined by McConnell and Biden, and it was unclear how much more time would be needed.
On the Senate floor, Reid told lawmakers they could leave the Capitol while awaiting developments. "I would not suggest a ball game, though, maybe closer," he said.
A little over a mile away, on a hot, sunny Sunday, the Washington Nationals were playing host to the New York Mets.
Debt ceiling impasse: How we got into this mess
Washington -- The United States appears to be no closer to raising the debt ceiling than it was in January when the issue arose. In fact, Democrats and Republicans might be further apart now than they were then.After several rounds of negotiations, talks are once again at a standstill as the August 2 date nears at which the U.S. will bump up against its borrowing limit.
Here are some key dates on how President Barack Obama and the Congress got into this position:
January
Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner sends a letter to Congress on January urging lawmakers to act soon to increase the debt ceiling, warning that failure to do so would be disastrous for the economy. The Treasury estimates that U.S. borrowing needs could push the amount of debt past the legal borrowing limit of $14.294 trillion sometime between March 31 and May 16.
Also in early January, the Senate's "Gang of Six," a bipartisan group of three Republicans and three Democrats, begins discussions on a long-term deficit deal
February
17: House Speaker John Boehner says the House of Representatives won't pass a budget for the remainder of the year that doesn't cut spending and that he wouldn't support a series of short-term measures that keep funding at 2010 levels until a deal is reached.
March
Debt-ceiling talks continue privately as Congress and the White House focus their attention on domestic issues such as the economy and immigration -- and global issues involving the uprisings in North Africa and the Middle East.
Congressional Republicans continue to say -- both publicly and in private meetings with Obama -- they will not vote to raise the debt ceiling without conditions controlling federal spending. However, Republicans have not yet come to agreement among themselves about what those conditions should be. Some say there should be spending cuts, while others call for spending caps. Many say there must be a balanced-budget amendment to go along with any vote to raise the debt limit.
Passing a budget to fund the government through September becomes the hot-button issue. An impasse in the talks leads many to speculate that the government could shut down.
April
3: Republican Sen. John Cornyn says he will not vote to raise the debt ceiling unless it's accompanied by systematic reforms to address long-term spending and the national debt. The senator from Texas and member of the Senate Budget Committee also voices support for a balanced-budget amendment to the Constitution as a way to ensure the federal government lives within its means "instead of spending money we don't have."
4: Geithner once again sends a letter to Congress urging lawmakers to pass a plan to avoid defaulting on the country's loans. He says if the debt limit is not increased by May 16, the Treasury has authority to take certain extraordinary measures to postpone the date temporarily that the U.S. would otherwise default on its obligations.
8: Democrats and Republicans narrowly avert a partial shutdown of the federal government, agreeing on a budget deal and a short-term funding extension a little more than an hour before the clock strikes midnight and time runs out. The new funding extension, which cuts spending by $2 billion, will last through the next week.
13: Obama unveils his long-awaited deficit reduction plan, calling for a mix of spending reductions and tax hikes that the White House asserts would cut federal deficits by $4 trillion over the next 12 years without gutting popular programs such as Medicare and Medicaid. Obama's plan includes a repeal of the Bush-era tax cuts on families making more than $250,000 annually -- something sought by Democrats but strongly opposed by Republicans.
15: The budget deal reached to avert a government shutdown wins approval from both the House and Senate, sending it to Obama for his signature. The measure cuts $38.5 billion in spending while funding the government for the rest of the current fiscal year, which ends September 30. With its passage, the White House and Congress will now focus on what are expected to be more rancorous battles over a budget for fiscal year 2012 and the upcoming need to raise the federal debt limit.
The House passes the Republican leadership's 2012 budget proposal, approving a blueprint for cutting federal deficits by roughly $4.4 trillion over the next decade while radically overhauling Medicare and Medicaid -- two popular entitlement programs long considered politically untouchable. Every Democrat opposes the measure. The measure, which Obama opposes, has virtually no chance of clearing the Democratic-controlled Senate.
26: With a showdown over raising the debt limit looming, House Republican leaders say they will hold a series of "listening sessions" for rank-and-file GOP members when Congress returns from a break. The sessions are designed to get feedback on how to frame the controversial upcoming vote to raise the nation's debt limit, according to GOP sources on a conference call for House Republicans.
May
5: Vice President Joe Biden huddles behind closed doors with top congressional budget negotiators seeking to bridge a partisan divide over taxes and spending before the federal government slams into its debt ceiling in the summer.
9: Boehner indicates he plans to hold a hard line in debt-ceiling negotiations. Among his demands: spending cuts in exchange for support to raise the debt ceiling -- and the cuts will have to be greater in magnitude than the ceiling increase.
15: While the budget negotiations led by Biden continue with members of Congress, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky, maintains his position that a vote to increase the debt limit must be accompanied by changes in spending.
16: The United States hits the $14.3 trillion debt limit. Geithner says he will move funds around to pay the bills. Crisis averted -- for now.
17: Gang of Six talks break down as Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Oklahoma, leaves the negotiations -- upset over provisions in its plan.
31: The House votes down a measure that will raise the debt ceiling; Democrats call it a political stunt since it has no chance of passing in the Senate.
June
23: An impasse in talks between Biden and congressional leaders develops over proposed tax increases that Democrats insist must be included in a debt bill to go along with the trillions in spending cuts, Republicans say.
29: The International Monetary Fund says the United States must lift the debt ceiling to prevent a "severe shock" to the world economy.
30: The Senate plans to forgo its scheduled recess for the week of July Fourth to work on legislation to raise the debt ceiling and cut the deficit, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid says.
Reid announces the Senate will take the Independence Day holiday off but will return to work on July 5 after Obama criticizes lawmakers and urges them to cancel vacations.
The House is out of town, with lawmakers working in home districts.
July
3: Obama and Boehner meet to work out a "grand bargain" deal, which includes trillions in spending cuts, changing Medicare and Social Security and reforming the tax system.
5: The president calls on congressional leaders to meet at the White House to work out a deal. A day later, Obama indicates there is still huge differences between the parties.
8: The job market hits a major roadblock, as hiring slows to a crawl and the unemployment rate unexpectedly rises. The economy gains just 18,000 jobs in June, the government reports, sharply missing most expectations and coming in even weaker than the paltry 25,000 jobs added in May. Meanwhile, the number of unemployed rises to 14.1 million.
9: Boehner indicates that a "grand bargain" is unlikely due to the differences on Obama's plan to raise revenues along with the spending cuts.
10: Obama meets with congressional leaders at the White House. At one point, the talks get heated between House Majority Leader Eric Cantor and the president. Multiple sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, say Obama tells the gathering that "this could bring my presidency down," referring to his pledge to veto any short-term extension of the debt ceiling. Sources say he vows, "I will not yield on this."
Cantor tells reporters after the meeting that he proposed a short-term agreement to raise the federal debt ceiling, a position Obama has previously rejected.
12. In an interview with CBS News, Obama warns that he can't guarantee older Americans will receive their Social Security checks next month if a deal is not reached in time. Republicans accuse the president of resorting to scare tactics.
13: The public pressure on lawmakers to raise the debt ceiling is ratcheted when a major rating agency says it will put the sterling bond rating of the United States on review for possible downgrade. Moody's Investors Services says it initiated the review because of "the rising possibility" that Congress will fail to raise the debt ceiling by August 2.
14: The seriousness of the overall situation is reinforced when a major credit rating agency, Standard and Poor's, unveils it is placing the U.S. sovereign rating on "CreditWatch with negative implications."
Also, Reid confirms that he and McConnell are working on a possible debt ceiling measure that could come up in the event the broader negotiations fail to reach agreement. It is based in part on a plan McConnell unveiled that would set up three short-term increases in the debt ceiling while at the same time registering the disapproval of Congress for such a move. Both Obama and Boehner say McConnell's plan is not the preferred option but indicate a variation of it could ultimately be accepted to avoid a larger crisis.
15: Obama says he has not given up hope for a broad deficit reduction deal, urging Republicans to accept a fiscal stability package that includes higher taxes on the wealthy and reforms to politically popular entitlement programs such as Medicare and Social Security.
Republicans also say they intend to move forward with a vote on the "cut, cap and balance" plan -- a blueprint to cut spending significantly, cap future expenditures and amend the Constitution to require a balanced budget in the future.
19: A Gang of Six plan gains traction and becomes the talk of Washington. But the top two Democrats in the Senate indicate they don't think there is enough time to pass the comprehensive debt reduction plan.
Meanwhile, the House votes 234-190 to pass the "cut, cap and balance" plan -- the solution favored by hard-line conservatives. The vote is almost completely on party lines for the measure that includes the requirement that Congress pass a balanced-budget amendment before agreeing to extend the federal debt ceiling.
24: Reid says he is preparing a proposal to raise the ceiling through the end of 2012 and cut $2.7 trillion in debt. The measure does not call for any tax revenue increases.
Geithner, who first alerted Congress in January that the $14.3 trillion debt ceiling would need to be raised, says the situation is urgent.
25: In a prime-time address, Obama singles out House Republicans for intransigence and says the political showdown is "no way to run the greatest country on Earth."
In response, Boehner says that excessive government spending caused the problems the nation faces and cutting that spending is the only way to solve the problem.
Earlier, Reid and Boehner had unveiled their proposals. Reid's calls for roughly $2.7 trillion in spending cuts over the next decade while raising the debt limit by $2.4 trillion -- an amount sufficient to fund the government through 2012
Boehner's plan requires two votes. The first would cut $1.2 trillion in spending cuts over the next decade while raising the debt ceiling through the end of 2011. The second would raise the debt limit through 2012 if Congress approves a series of tax reforms and entitlement changes outlined by a bipartisan committee of Senate and House members.
26: Boehner's plan runs into trouble when the Congressional Budget Office says it fails to reduce spending and deficits as much as advertised. Conservatives criticize the Boehner plan for not doing enough to tackle the nation's mounting deficits and debt.
Meanwhile, Capitol Hill phone lines are jammed and websites of key lawmakers -- including Boehner -- crash as citizens try to weigh in on the debate after Obama's call the night before for the public to push their elected representatives to reach a deal.
27: Signs of disarray emerge in a House Republican caucus split between unhappy conservatives and a leadership struggling to maintain party unity. "Get your ass in line," Boehner tells his fellow Republicans in the face of divisive infighting over his proposal.
Several members are furious when they learn that staff members for the Republican Study Committee -- a group of fiscally conservative legislators -- sent e-mails to outside groups encouraging them to put pressure on fellow Republicans to oppose Boehner's plan.
Meanwhile, Reid's plan comes up short of its promised savings -- a CBO analysis concludes it would reduce deficits over the next decade by $2.2 trillion -- $500 billion short of promised savings of $2.7 trillion.
28: House Republicans call off a vote on Boehner's plan when he is unable to muster sufficient support from his own caucus to guarantee it would pass in the face of expected unified Democratic opposition.
Fiscal conservatives, many of them elected last year with tea party backing, say the plan doesn't cut enough and fails to mandate that the federal government maintain a balanced budget.
29: Boehner's plan narrowly passes his chamber after he is able to muster support from wary conservatives by including a provision requiring congressional passage of a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution before the debt ceiling can be extended through the end of 2012.
No Democrats vote for the plan and 22 Republicans vote against it as well.
The Senate promptly tables the proposal when it comes to them hours later.
Reid announces in the morning that he intends to "take action" on a Senate bill by the end of the day but later complains on the Senate floor that Republicans would effectively filibuster his proposal by requiring a 60-vote supermajority in the 100-member chamber to start debate on it.
August 2
It is the date when the country will run out of the cash it needs to pay all the federal government's bills on time.
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