REPUBLICANS are OUT of Control ?

Republicans Say they are Willing to Shut Down the Government in March

White House officials are eyeing a return to elements of a “grand bargain” they tried to reach late last year with House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) in order to defuse a fresh threat to the U.S. economy in just two months, according to The Washington Post and sources familiar with the discussions. The Post article is at http://tinyurl.com/ahtfrb6.

President Obama and Boehner came close last month to a major deal aimed at stabilizing the federal debt. But the speaker abandoned the talks, saying that the White House offer was too heavy on taxes and too light on spending cuts. Instead, Democrats and Republicans reached a far more modest agreement to avoid the fiscal cliff. Republicans say they have a stronger hand in the new negotiations because of the federal government’s pressing need to increase its $16.4 trillion borrowing limit. The government hit the debt ceiling this week, and the Treasury Department warns it will be unable to pay its bills in about two months unless it can borrow more. Congressional Republicans say they will not vote to raise the debt ceiling unless there is a deal to make steep spending cuts. Republicans also say they are willing to shut down the federal government in March, when a resolution funding it expires. If Republicans do resist an increase in the debt ceiling, Obama Administration officials plan to attack them for risking an economic calamity in an effort to slice Medicare. One possible way to curb the debt is to adopt a less-generous measure of inflation in calculating Social Security payments, the “Chained CPI.”

According to the Social Security Actuary, moving to a chained CPI would mean an immediate benefit cut. “An average earner retiring in 2011 at age 65 would lose over $6,000 over 15 years if the chained CPI were adopted,” said Edward F. Coyle, Executive Director of the Alliance. “The losses would be greater for those living longer.” The Alliance is planning a broad lobbying effort between now and the end of February. More on the chained CPI is at http://tinyurl.com/b49dhhc.

"Democracy...is two wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch"!
Liberty...is a well-armed lamb contesting the vote.

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