19 Different Polls: Americans agree - higher taxes necessary

From Bruce Bartlett:

Contrary to Republican dogma, polls show that the American people strongly support higher taxes to reduce the deficit and improve income inequality. ... 19 different polls since the first of the year say yes- Americans think higher taxes are necessary - especially on the rich .

McConnell, Boehner, and Cantor voted EVERY TIME to increase the debt limit under Bush while Bush doubled the national debt. Now, suddenly the top 1% of Americans' tax breaks are more important to Republicans than America's credit and economic stability.

Conservative economic policies are killing the middle class. It is class warfare and the average American is clearly losing.

Republican economic policies are based on proven fallacies like 'trickle-down', and 'higher taxes kill jobs,' 'taxes hurt the economy,' ... etc. Bush cut taxes and had the worst job creation record of any modern president. The Bush tax cuts were not supposed to last forever. Alan Greenspan, whose endorsement was perhaps the single most decisive event in their passage, made it very clear that they were a temporary solution to a temporary surplus, a surplus thanks to the Clinton administration.

Bush Tax cuts will cost America $5 Trillion - CRS.

66% of all income growth during the Bush years has been enjoyed by the top 1%. That is who the GOP is fighting for, against every poll that shows Americans feel the rich are not taxed enough.

For 6 of his 8 years as president, Reagan taxed the top 1% far MORE than Obama has proposed. But Mr. Black President is a ‘socialist’. The effective tax rate vs GDP was 18% under Reagan compared to 14.8% today. The GOP has piled on to the crazy wagon. They are invested in the failure of America. Their only objective is to bring Obama down, even if it means crippling the American economy.

Conservative economic policies are killing the heart of America – the middle class. Yes, it is class warfare and the average American is clearly losing.

66% of the income growth between 2001 and 2007 went to the top 1% of all Americans.

Only the top 5 percent of U.S. households have earned enough additional income to match the rise in housing costs since 1975.

n 1950, the ratio of the average executive’s paycheck to the average worker’s paycheck was about 30 to 1. Since the year 2000, that ratio has exploded to between 300 to 500 to one.

The bottom 50 percent of income earners in the United States now collectively own less than 1 percent of the nation’s wealth.

The top 1% of U.S. households own nearly twice as much of America’s corporate wealth as they did just 15 years ago.

Despite the financial crisis, the number of millionaires in the United States rose a whopping 16 percent to 7.8 million in 2009.

83 percent of all U.S. stocks are in the hands of 1 percent of the people.

61 percent of Americans “always or usually” live paycheck to paycheck, up from 43 percent in 2007.

Approximately 21 percent of all children in the United States are living below the poverty line in 2010 – the highest rate in 20 years

43 percent of Americans have less than $10,000 saved up for retirement

You might be a Republican if...

Republicans: an embarrassment to TN

The Tennessee GOP makes the state look "barefoot and bucktoothed."

NASHVILLE CITY PAPER:

A Democratic legislative leader said Thursday Republicans made Tennessee look to the rest of the country like a “barefoot and bucktoothed” state with their social conservative agenda in the just-finished session.

“A bunch of the radical extreme stuff passed,” House Democratic Caucus Chairman Mike Turner of Old Hickory said.

“It hurts business. It’s embarrassing for me to talk to people in other parts of the country. It hurts our image down here. We had an image of everybody being barefoot and bucktoothed with cow licks on the sides of their head. [In the past], we came a long way to try to diminish some of that. We might have stepped back in the pack in the South.”

Turner named two Republican proposals: the “don’t say gay” bill by Sen. Stacey Campfield of Knoxville to ban any mention of homosexuality in schools, and the bill by Rep. Glen Casada, R-Franklin, to overturn Nashville’s anti-gay bias ordinance. Campfield’s bill passed the Senate in a watered-down form but did not advance in the House. Casada’s bill became law when Gov. Bill Haslam signed it on Monday.

“On the social issues, the John Birch Society issues, Tennessee maybe led the way in that,” Turner told reporters. “We stood out. We made the paper a whole lot more. A lot of people around the country might think Sen. Campfield is a typical legislator here in Tennessee, which is unfortunate.

The writing is on the wall: the GOP is floundering

Give them enough rope and they hang themselves.

NY 26 - special election (to replace Republican Congressman Chris Lee who resigned after publicly trying to solicit women on Craigslist) goes to Democrat Kathy Hochul in a solidly Republican district that is seen as a referendum on Paul Ryan's plan to ditch Medicare.

Obama's rating has been inching higher ever since the Bin Laden killing. Now at +10, Fox News has him at +14.

The hate merchants Limbaugh and Hannity have lost a third of their audience in the past 6 months.

A number of potential GOP presidential candidates have bowed out.

Recent media has given bad new for Palin and Pawlenty.

Teabagger FL Gov. Rick Scott is now down below 30% in the polls.

Gingrich starts his campaign for president and gets smacked down.

In Wisconsin recall matchup, both Feingold [D] and Barrett [D] lead Gov. Walker [R] by 7 to 10 points.

The GOP digs themselves even deeper with the Senate GOP voting to trash Medicare.

GAME OVER GOP

Obama will get 4 more years, the Dems will take back the House. 2012!

Bible: Jesus was clearly a liberal socialist

Since conservatives seem to have claimed 'ownership' of religion and 'moral values,' it is also notable that they are ignoring Biblical moral value principles - true to their consistent hypocrisy.

Why was Jesus crucified?

According to Biblical scholar John Dominic Crossan, Jesus was a philosopher who argued that true happiness could be found by charity and kindness, not by accumulation of wealth. Jesus argued that Roman commercialism had corrupted Jewish society. Jesus was a trouble maker to the Romans and made his feelings known. The only time Jesus was ever documented in the Gospls using physical force was when he expells the money changers from the temple. The small few elite Jews were getting very rich cooperating with the Romans while most were being dispossessed and taxed into oblivion. Under Roman rule, their society was becoming dominated by a wealthy arrogant elite grinding down on an increasingly desperate working class. This disparity was against the principles of Jesus, and the Bible is clear on these values:

But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. You will be repaid at the resurrection of the just. [Luke 14:13 &14.]

If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. [Matthew 19:21]

You cannot serve both God and Money. [Matthew 6:24.]

For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.

[1 Timothy 6:10,11]

Labour not to be rich: cease from thine own wisdom. Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? for riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle toward heaven.

(Proverbs 23:4,5)

He that by usury and unjust gain increaseth his substance, he shall gather it for him that will pity the poor.

(Proverbs 28:8)

The wicked borroweth, and payeth not again: but the righteous sheweth mercy, and giveth.

(Psalm 37:21)

A faithful man shall abound with blessings: but he that maketh haste to be rich shall not be innocent.

(Proverbs 28:20)

What would Jesus think of Republicans targeting the poorest and weakest among us by cutting funding for community health centers, heating for the poor, foodstamps, and medicare while fighting tooth and nail to protect tax cuts for the most weathy?

During the election, Republicans lied through their teeth - accusing the Democrats of wanting to cut Medicare and SS. Now look at the hypocrites... planning to phase out Medicare for those under 55, cutting programs for the poor and elderly while fighting to preserve a tax cut for the wealthiest Americans.

A little history: Note the titles given to these Bush tax cuts for corps and the rich:

Cut #1: Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001

Cut #2: Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003

Cut #3: Tax Increase Prevention and Reconciliation Act of 2005

Well guess what? There was no economic growth and the worst job creation of any modern presidency. The Republican fantasy of trickle down has a proven record of failure, yet they keep sticking to it because of their puppet masters and their innate mental predispostion of not being able to adapt.

This is not to say that Obama is a socialist. We all know where that lie comes from. Like previous presidents, Obama is well connected to the JPMorgan Chase money machine. It just goes to show how hypocrisy runs deep among religious conservatives who now use "socialism" as a dirty word and rallying cry against Democrats.

So, do these GOP generated lies about America becoming consumed by socialism have any bearing in reality? Quite the contrary! America is anything but socialistic. America ranks dead last in social spending among industrialized nations.*
(*OECD members)

Obama approval rating soars

With his approval at 51% in the RCP poll of polls, Obama is polling significantly higher than both Reagan and Clinton at this point in their presidencies.

Just as important, Obama's disapproval of 42.8% is lowest in a year.

We'll look for an additional bump after Obama's State of the Union Address.

Look at GW Bush's approval graph by comparison, a continuous downward slope. He only eeked out a 50% approval rating right at the time of his reelection. It is now revealed that Bush broke Federal Campaign Law, and got away with it. So much damage in his 8 years.

Conservatives desperately try to justify Glenn Beck's remark: "You're going to have to shoot them in the head"

It's OK by conservatives that Glenn Beck tells people "You're going to have to shoot them in the head" ... because Beck wasn't appealing to his supporters, so that makes it OK.

This astonishing apologist rhetoric comes streaming to us with denials and supportive comments (all non-supportive comments are of course deleted) from the Patterico blog. And these bloggers consider themselves "Christians"! How's that for Christian behavior... defending this quote?

"They believe in communism. They believe and have called for a revolution. You're going to have to shoot them in the head. But warning, they may shoot you. They are dangerous because they believe Karl Marx is their George Washington. You will never change their mind. And if they feel you have lied to them — they're revolutionaries. Nancy Pelosi, those are the people you should be worried about." -- Glenn Beck, Fox News, 6/10/10

Yes, the same Glenn Beck who pulled a photo of himself with a gun from his website after the Tucson shootings.

In the title of Patterico's post: "Glenn Beck Did Not Tell His Viewers to Shoot Anyone in the Head" ... no, but it's ok that he told Democrat leaders to shoot so-called radical members of their party in the head.

WTF is wrong with these people ... defending a statement like that?

Christians. heh.

Bill Maher: Founding Fathers wouldn't have much in common with the teabaggers

Hillarious!!!

Bill Maher nails it: AZ shooter's blackboard would look a lot like Glenn Beck's

Enough of the false equivalencies.

Tell us Teabaggers, on what political side do we see gun fetish blogs? On what political side do we see anti-government militias? On which side do we hear most of the anti immigrant hate coming from?

Answer the question teabaggers. How are those "second amendment remedies" workin out for you?


Why did Sarah Palin remove the crosshairs then say they were just "surveyors scopes."

Why did Glenn Beck remove a website photo of a gun?

Why has Roger Ailes told his Fox News employees to "tone down the rhetoric."?

Who is responsible for the gun culture? Gov. Jan Brewer [R] signed a bill allowing loaded guns in bars and restaurants, as well as another that prohibits property owners from banning guns from parking areas, so long as the weapons are kept locked in vehicles. And in July, Arizona became the only state in the nation with a large urban population to allow U.S. citizens 21 and older to carry a concealed weapon without a permit. Lawmakers in 2010 blocked a bill that would have allowed university and community-college faculty to carry guns on school grounds, but Rep. Jack Harper [R], has proposed the bill again this year.

Noooo, the teabagger conservatives don't want to answer these questions. Ingram Entertainment employee Serr8d was too much of a coward to entertain these questions. In his remarkably twisted mind he reasoned that the shooter was a liberal because he was not a Christian:

This skull crap means the guy wasn't an EVIL WHITE CHRISTIANIST, but a Democrat; outreaching to and embracing TEH OTHER religions and beliefs, as Democrats are so fond of doing.

Aaron Worthing at Patterico joins the ranks of the cowardly.



The AZ shooter was upset that people in his district were "illiterate" (read:Mexican). Kind of reminds me of what teaparty racist candidate Tancredo said in Nashville last year that Obama was elected by: "people who could not even spell the word 'vote' or say it in English.'... Further characterizing Democrats as "the cult of multiculturalism" and endorsing the return of Jim Crow laws.

The AZ shooter also was paranoid about US currency and returning to the gold standard... a topic that Glenn Beck talks about all the time. Wonder where he heard that?

There are extremists on both sides of course, but with the Right-wing, it's a bit different. The paranoid and conspiratorial style is much more mainstream, especially with Beck and Fox. On Fox, there are shadowy links between Soros, the Tides Foundation, and other liberal causes that aim to bring America down. Obama is at once fascist and a socialist. Don't forget Palin's dark insinuations about Obama's ties with terrorists and HCR's agenda to impose of Death Panels. Of course, you have questions about Obama birth certificate sadly mainstream when Republican representatives and candidates claim it's still an issue. Candidates and elected officials calling for "second amendment remedies", carrying signs promoting insurrection "Don't Tread on Me" and saying they want their constituents "armed and dangerous." Wake up, this is not an isolated incident. (H/T: the Atlantic)

-- July 2008: A gunman named Jim David Adkisson, agitated at how "liberals" are "destroying America," walks into a Unitarian Church and opens fire, killing two churchgoers and wounding four others.

-- April 2009: A white supremacist named Richard Poplawski opens fire on three Pittsburgh police officers who come to his house on a domestic-violence call and kills all three, because he believed President Obama intended to take away the guns of white citizens like himself.

-- July 2010: An agitated right-winger and convict named Byron Williams loads up on weapons and drives to the Bay Area intent on attacking the offices of the Tides Foundation and the ACLU, but is intercepted by state patrolmen and engages them in a shootout and armed standoff in which two officers and Williams are wounded.

More here:

Exactly how many "liberals" can you find out there who walk into churches, museums and political rallies and shoot people in the head?

Enough of the BS false equivalencies, we can see where this vitriol is coming from.


UPDATE:

Another nut-job was arrested TODAY 1/12/11 by the FBI for threatening to kill Rep. Jim McDermott (D - WA). Check out the afidavit and see how ingrained the right-wing talking points are in his threats.

A SC gun retailer is now selling magazines for assault rifles engraved with Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC) famous quote "you lie" that was yelled at Obama during a speech. Joe Wilson appears in the ad for these Limited Edition(!) assault rifle components.

Republicans love the Constitution so much they want to change it

The first day of the Republican controlled House, they intend on reading the Constitution.

Why is it that Tea Party Republicans that have wrapped themselves in the Constitution are so bent on changing it? They want to change the 14th amendment, the 17th amendment, they want to reject the supremacy clause Article VI, Clause 2, and federal taxation Article I, Section 8, ...clause 2.... and if it were up to them, they'd have a religious (Christian) test for political office which violates Article VI, paragraph 3.

Actually, Republicans want to change the Constitution in a dozen different ways.

Now that's respect for the Constitution!

To top it all off, they had Antonin Scalia school them on the Constitution - he's the guy who thinks that the 14th Amendment - "equal protection under the law" - does NOT apply to women, despite a 1971 unanimous SCOTUS ruled that the equal protection does apply to women.

Scalia also has no problem with promoting religion in government (which is unconstitutional), and is basically one of the most dangerous people of power in America. Let's hope for a retirement soon.

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UPDATE: Denialist blogger who can't handle debate - Patterico - stikes again. I commented on Scalia yesterday. My comment was of course deleted but wha-lah .... he has a post on Scalia today. heh...