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Republicans Broke the House—Will Voters Care?

Discussion in 'Too Hot for Swamp Gas' started by philnotfil, May 13, 2024.

  1. Gatorrick22

    Gatorrick22 GC Hall of Fame

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    What this proves is the congress are the thieves... They write the bills that are either signed or no one gets a dime to make the federal government work. The entire congress is made up of a bunch of thieving grifters.
     
    Last edited: May 14, 2024
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  2. uftaipan

    uftaipan GC Hall of Fame

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    Question all you want. In reinforcing failure by nominating Trump over Haley, you have turned a probable victory into a near-certain defeat. No matter what mental gymnastics you undertake, you can’t win a presidential election without the assent of the swing voters. And they will not vote for Trump again. Learn or don’t.
     
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  3. l_boy

    l_boy 5500

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    Do you have a clue what conservatism literally means?
     
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  4. l_boy

    l_boy 5500

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    Let’s look at spending

    Federal Net Outlays as Percent of Gross Domestic Product



    In 2023 spending was 22% of GDP. In all of the Reagan years it was over 20%. The increase can be entirely attributable to debt service expense.

    Here is tax as a percentage of GDP. At a high level it seems pretty consistent. If you look deeper you see it go down during the Reagan years, Bush years and Trump years. Taxes were decreased even though they were substantially below spending.

    upload_2024-5-14_3-47-45.jpeg



    Looking at deficits

    Federal Surplus or Deficit [-] as Percent of Gross Domestic Product

    upload_2024-5-14_3-50-28.jpeg

    It follows that deficits generally increased more during republican administrations.

    Some republicans have built up this fantasy, that they hate deficits, that the deficits are because of increased spending, and it is the democrats fault. It just isn’t true. If republicans were really concerned about deficits they wouldn’t be voting in tax cuts when they are already in deficits.

    You didn’t get the memo. Republicans have finally just given up on it. Now “conservatism” is about worshiping Donald Trump. That’s pretty much it. Republicans stand for absolutely nothing, except for fealty to Donald Trump. You just don’t seem to be paying attention.
     

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    Last edited: May 14, 2024
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  5. 92gator

    92gator GC Hall of Fame

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    Of course. Read closer, *professor*.
     
  6. l_boy

    l_boy 5500

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    So you want to radically change from 2023 when govt spending to gdp is 22%, to Reagan years when govt to gdp was 21-22%?
     
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  7. 92gator

    92gator GC Hall of Fame

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    There are primarily, 2 ways to eliminate a deficit: reduce spending to below revenues, or increase revenues beyond spending. The latter entails increasing the size of the government (lecture me more about "conservativism", *professor*). Conservatism would naturally favor the former. (A third way exists as a hybrid, but those are the 2 primary wats).

    Trump is a basically a Hail Mary. Decades of poly's campaigning conservative pub, and legislating liberal dem, have rendered voters cynical. And desperate.

    Haley, et al would be guaranteed status quo spending > revs, = downward (suicidal really, at this point) trajectory.

    So too Trump it seems, but Trump at least delivered on the SCOTUS (after decades of frustration on that front), and now, as politically persecuted by weaponized DOJ, it's become compulsory, to shove trump down their gullets, again.
     
    Last edited: May 14, 2024
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  8. l_boy

    l_boy 5500

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    Trump was mostly a populist Democrat. There is nothing conservative about him.
     
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  9. 92gator

    92gator GC Hall of Fame

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    Last year the cost to service our debt surpassed 1 Trillion per year. The deficit was 1.7 trillion.

    The GDP crawls at a snails pace, while our debt compounds. We're in a death spiral.

    NB: we're borrowing more than a Trillion per year--so we're literally borrowing, to service our debt.

    Bury your head in the sand as you please. It won't alter reality.
     
    Last edited: May 14, 2024
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  10. gatorjo

    gatorjo GC Hall of Fame

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    To him it means whatever mental gymnastics are necessary to vote for a criminal. Because the criminal condones his anger, grievance and Otherism. We know the obvious truth well by now.

    Oh, and that poster really really cares about deficit spending. That's why he's so excited to vote for the guy who never paid any taxes and who voluntarily reversed decreasing deficits, to bring us our first non-crisis $1 trillion+ deficit.

    Grievance and tax cuts. And people who are ethnically different. No matter how the "true conservatives" wrap it up.
     
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  11. duggers_dad

    duggers_dad GC Hall of Fame

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    LOL at people who believe there are two parties.
     
  12. g8trjax

    g8trjax GC Hall of Fame

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    Any congress critter not in favor of spending our money like drunk sailors is now considered batshit crazy.
     
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  13. duggers_dad

    duggers_dad GC Hall of Fame

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    By and large voters won’t care because they prefer to believe we have two parties.
     
  14. G8tas

    G8tas GC Hall of Fame

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    You're right they tend to ignore the Green party
     
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  15. PITBOSS

    PITBOSS GC Hall of Fame

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    There was one potus candidate who continued to talk about reducing debt and called out both parties and Trump. But Nikki Haley didn’t stand a chance as maga will vote for Dear Leader no matter what.
     
    Last edited: May 14, 2024
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  16. GatorNorth

    GatorNorth Premium Member Premium Member

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    The US asset base is approximately $160T.
    About half of that asset base is controlled by Boomers, or roughly $80T.

    Eventually Congress will figure out the only way out of this mess is to tax Boomer's assets and finally agree on something to reign themselves in. Taxing the shit out of the eldest of us.
     
    Last edited: May 14, 2024
  17. VAg8r1

    VAg8r1 GC Hall of Fame

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    To a large extent members of Congress represent the views of their constituents and that includes members of the so called Freedom Caucus who supposedly favor fiscal responsibility especially considering that they only support extreme measures like blocking budget agreements when there is a Democrat in the White House.

    Americans are against irresponsible government spending as long as it doesn't involve cuts to programs in which they receive benefits and similarly Americans favor reducing the federal deficit in principle so long as it doesn't mean reducing the deficit through increasing revenue by raising taxes. Walt Kelly's character Pogo said it all "We have met the enemy and he is us".
    upload_2024-5-14_12-3-12.jpeg
     
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  18. gatorchamps0607

    gatorchamps0607 Always Rasta VIP Member

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    Both sides suck. What's the difference here?

    You both vote for and enjoy your own flavor of corruption. The answer is in the middle. It's NOT just a Republican or Democrat problem. You are both horrible at running the country and the numbers prove it. Biden and Trump have both done good things and they have both done horrible things. When we have a president who will bring both sides together instead of tearing us apart, we can progress as a country. Until then, we will continue to swirl the porcelain throne while you sit here and fight with each other over who's shit sandwich tastes the best.

    upload_2024-5-14_11-16-25.png
    upload_2024-5-14_11-17-4.png
     
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  19. Trickster

    Trickster VIP Member

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    The answer is clear when you they want a dictatorship, with them choosing the dictator.
     
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  20. tampagtr

    tampagtr VIP Member

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    All true, but I don't think they appreciate how much damage so do their own economic interests, both of the changes in domestic policies they advocate and foreign policy