July 1, 2011
Politics Notes 6/2011

Monthly Notes:

  • Average American spends 52 cents of every dollar on housing and transportation
  • $2.8T spent on top 1%
  • Trade tariffs: US = 2%, China 20%, India 40%
  • Government isn’t about turning a profit
  • Yemen, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Libya, Iraq are all Muslim countries which we’re bombing
  • Bush tax cuts promised growth in GDP, increase in wages, and more jobs but has only lead to the slowest growth of any period since WWII
  • 40% of the Bush tax cuts went to the top 1%
  • One half of Americans can’t come up with $2,000 in 30 days
  • More than $6.6B in Iraq reconstruction funds are missing
  • Meat packing industry causes 18% of greenhouse gas emissions
  • Less than 2% of people are without health care in Massachusetts, kids less than 1%
  • We consume in one year what it takes to produce in 1.3 years
  • During the Bush Administration, Republicans voted 19 times to increase the debt ceiling by $4T

Republican Hypocrisy:

  • Four Republican Senators who wanted to do PayGo backed out when Obama wanted it
  • Republicans came up with the bipartisan Deficit Commission but as soon as Obama backed it, they didn’t want it anymore
  • Cap and Trade was a Republican idea, now they don’t support it
  • Health insurance mandate was a Republican idea, now they don’t support it
  • Terrorism trials they once supported but now do not
  • Republicans were for ending oil subsidies but now are against it
  • Number of GOP Senators who voted for the debt ceiling increase: 31 in 2002, 50 in 2003, 50 in 2004, 51 in 2006, 26 in 2007, 34 in 2008, 33 in 2008… Since Obama took office: 2 in 2009, 1 in 2009, 0 in 2010

Monthly Questions:

  • How come we still practice Bush policies but Obama gets blamed for the slow economic recovery?
  • Is it really mature to walk out of a meeting about something as important as the debt ceiling?
  • How bad is it that our citizens have to rob banks to get health care?

12:24pm  |   URL: http://tmblr.co/ZQOKYy6eaX8F
(Notes: 46)
  
Filed under: tax cuts transportation tariffs iraq health care hypocrisy 
April 28, 2011
Politics Notes 4/2011

Paul Ryan’s bill that passed the house:

  • Independent economists say it doesn’t reduce the deficit
  • Balanced budget in 2040

Monthly Notes:

  • For every $1 spent on unemployment $1.61 is put into the economy, for every $1 spent on the Bush Tax Cuts only 32 cents is put into the economy
  • This country buys extra sugar to keep it at a high price
  • Audit of Pentagon spending finds $70B in waste
  • Median income of people 65+ only $19,000
  • $330B scammed out of taxes in 2010
  • For every $1 the IRS spends on tax evasion they get back $10
  • Defense spending up 81% since 2000, not including Afghanistan and Iraq wars
  • Tax cuts for the rich have not created the jobs Republicans have promised
  • Obama has caved in showing bipartisanship (public option, tax cuts for the rich, watered down financial reform)
  • Created 22M jobs in 1990’s
  • Ike cut defense 28%, Nixon cut defense 37%, Bush I cut defense 14%
  • Richest 400 people paid average of 16.6% in taxes where the average American paid 22.5%
  • Republicans think 5% of budget goes to NEA (reality .00004%)
  • Republicans think 25% of budget goes to foreign aid (reality .18%)
  • Americans on average buy 533 gallons of gas per year

Monthly Questions:

  • Republicans like to think we are the chosen ones, cause that worked out so well for the Jews?
  • 25 years of cutting taxes for the rich and it hasn’t increased revenue; when do we give up that failed idea?
  • So Republicans don’t have to pay for their trillion dollar wars but Democrats have to pay for health care for everyone?
  • What’s going to happen to seniors when they run out of their $15,000 for Medicare?
  • Do Republicans think health care isn’t a basic human necessity?
  • What would this country look like without Social Security and Medicare?

11:27am  |   URL: http://tmblr.co/ZQOKYy4gqes-
Filed under: budget tax cuts taxes health care defense