GOP Holding the Needy Hostage on Unemployment Benefits

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As a previous poster said:
The federal deficit projections didn't take any of this into account! Get ready for $1.5 trillion to $2 trillion deficits!!!
This is laughable. Thanks government, you just stole trillions of dollars of compounding interest from future generations. Before we could even consider the deficit cuts we are adding a trillion dollars and the interest associated with it. I think the government is planning on hyper inflation. It is the only possible solution.

Jake of OH 3:58PM December 07, 2010

mr. bill of mo.do you ever get tired of being a bellboy for the g.o.p. and their trickle-down dogma? open your eyes they donn;t give a damm about your well being.their stance on unemployment benefits proves that.,

bruce b of NV 1:45PM December 07, 2010

susan m.you are a very bright and talented writer,your current column affirm,s this,but for you or,or anyone,to think that the republicans are ever going to be benevolent towards the lower and middle class worker you are living in a fools paradise.the only time these people care anything about the average person is when their pandering for votes.

bruce b of NV 1:30PM December 07, 2010

Appreciate your comments and your experience. Your comments highlight the problem with America. Everyone thinks they are entitled to something.
What workers fail to understand is that they are as much a "resource" as the raw material resources used in production. If a company produces excess widgets or curtailed demand for widgets creates a massive inventory of widgets then it stands to reason that the business owner would stop production of widgets until the inventory is sold or demand for widgets increases. That means no more raw material orders and, NEWSFLASH, it means letting the human resource go. Business want to stay in business, but they have to stay profitable. They can't operate at a loss. So, rather than board up shop, they will trim excess from payroll. They go lean and mean. Hence, the plethora of pink slips.
Here's the point, if life gives you lemons, make lemonade. There are so many unemployed, what a great time for the ambitious. What is stopping people from gathering disparate expertise, identifying a niche, and exploiting the niche for gain?
A former business manager could put his/her head together with a former accountant, finance expert, marketing director, production supervisor, transport specialist, and come up with something rather than wait around for uncle sam to cut you a check that is 80% less than you were accustomed to making. The point is if you don't like it, do something about it.

david of ID 1:05PM December 07, 2010

CEOs do not face the same problem. Who knew?
In 200B, CEOs at the 50 largest U.S. corporations earned about $14 million a year. CEOs at medium-sized companies brought in $9.4 million; and CEOs at smaller companies got $4.7 million.
On average, at the 350 companies surveyed by Mercer in 2008, CEOs got $7.3 million. That comes to $28,000 per working day - slightly less than the average employee earned in a year.
In 1960 executives earned about 16 times more than the average worker - By 2009 they earned about 366 times more.
U.S. companies have the highest disparity of executive to employee pay in the world. And, are the highest paid executives among all countries.
Further, I note that many corporations have reduced employee's hours to 36 hours a week in order to disqualify them for benefits, retirement or vacation.
Recently I saw a Japanese executive interviewed on T.V. He commented that, in Japan an executive who preforms poorly and causes losses and layoffs resigns in shame and even returns most of his salary - to do otherwise would be dishonorable. But in America they have a party and pay themselves bonuses.
So Art Laffer and John Galt - Get your head out of your taco-shell.
p.s.
And BHO, cut spending, scrap all the job killing regulations, reduce union legacy costs, means test SSI, secure the border and get a real energy policy instead of "The Green Dream".

R.L. Schaefer of CA 12:44PM December 07, 2010

How about you stop being a victim?
For your information I don't sit in a "nice cushioned chair making money". Yes, I have a job in sales (commission) and I read everything I can about business, I take classes to improve my skills and have for my entire working life, I attend every training seminar I can afford, I study my customers, my industry, and my competition, how about you?
You remind me of some of the people I laid off when I was in-charge of a manufacturing company years ago. They had worked there for 15 plus years and they had a job and they did just that one job, nothing extra, no additional training, no increased benefit to the company. Hell, I even spent over $5,000.00 of the company's money to setup a training center with books, training tapes (audio & video), catalogs of all the available seminars I did this a year prior to the layoffs. I told everyone that it was free to use and that I would have the company pay for any seminar they wanted to attend. Guess how many people used the center or ask to attend a seminar..... ZERO. Then when it came time for layoffs everyone was surprised that is was them. It was one of the worse days in my career but it helped knowing that I had offered help and no one had taken the personal responsibility to take it and improve themselves.
So don't talk to me about YOUR crap!

Larry of CA 9:51AM December 07, 2010

CBO said Bush tax cuts to rich increased the amount of revenue they paid by 4.06 %. As it did for John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan.
That destroys enough of your comments.

Bill Hedges of MO 12:51AM December 07, 2010

There is something libs keep forgetting or just plain lying about. The new congress with the republican house has not taken over yet, democrats still have the majority. If the dems really wanted to do away with the Bush tax cuts and have the democratic tax increase, they could have done so at any time. But just like Obama and the lib journalists they would rather blame the republicans for what the dems don’t have the balls to actually do. Now I am glad because it would be a further blow to the economy, but at least admit that most of the dems didn’t want to raise taxes on anyone either.

kewaal of GA 12:05AM December 07, 2010

The Tea Party members are about to arrive and guess what... the republicans are democrats are going to EXPLODE the federal deficit. The Republicans want the rich to get more money to spend overseas and have lobbied heavily for a tax cut. The Democrats want the poor to not be thrown under the bus and want a 13 month extension for unemployment benefits. The Ron Paul folks want to eliminate the Income tax and to appease them Obama is willing to have a 2% tax holiday.
The federal deficit projections didn't take any of this into account! Get ready for $1.5 trillion to $2 trillion deficits!!!
Way to go Republicans! The Tea Party is coming, quick, spend, spend, transfer money to the rich, tax breaks for all, money for everyone, print QE2, this is all good for the economy!!! HA HA HA HA!
Soon the tea party will be shown to be the same 'ol same 'ol when it comes to actual votes. Watch as none of the Tea Party members stand up and criticize the extension of the Bush tax cuts or the tax holiday as the deficit EXPLODES!!!
HA HA HA! FAKES!!! HA HA HA!!!

Indep_end_ent of MA 10:14PM December 06, 2010

I have posted the link where CBO said Bush tax cuts to rich increased their tax burden, increasing revenue by 4.06 %. Have done same thing for John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan tax cuts.
States have tried to soak the rich with BAD RESULTS.
Why doesn’t anybody show where raising taxes on rich increase revenue for government ??? There are many JFK quotes affirming this. Why Democrats don’t quote J. Kennedy economics.
“Millionaires Go Missing”
“Maryland's fleeced taxpayers fight back”
“Maryland couldn't balance its budget last year, so the state tried to close the shortfall by fleecing the wealthy. Politicians in Annapolis created a millionaire tax bracket, raising the top marginal income-tax rate to 6.25%. And because cities such as Baltimore and Bethesda also impose income taxes, the state-local tax rate can go as high as 9.45%. Governor Martin O'Malley, a dedicated class warrior, declared that these richest 0.3% of filers were "willing and able to pay their fair share." The Baltimore Sun predicted the rich would "grin and bear it."
“One year later, nobody's grinning. One-third of the millionaires have disappeared from Maryland tax rolls. In 2008 roughly 3,000 million-dollar income tax returns were filed by the end of April. This year there were 2,000, which the state comptroller's office concedes is a "substantial decline." On those missing returns, the government collects 6.25% of nothing. Instead of the state coffers gaining the extra $106 million the politicians predicted, millionaires paid $100 million less in taxes than they did last year -- even at higher rates.
No doubt”
http://www.taxcutsincreaserevenue.com/Go-To-9823-0314-8302/Tax%20Increases%20Cut%20Revenue.htm
“The Soak-the-Rich Catch-22”
“Since 1978, the U.S. has cut the highest marginal earned-income tax rate to 35% from 50%, the highest capital gains tax rate to 15% from about 50%, and the highest dividend tax rate to 15% from 70%. President Clinton cut the highest marginal tax rate on long-term capital gains from the sale of owner-occupied homes to 0% for almost all home owners. We’ve also cut just about every other income tax rate as well.”
“During this era of ubiquitous tax cuts, income tax receipts from the top 1% of income earners rose to 3.3% of GDP in 2007 (the latest year for which we have data) from 1.5% of GDP in 1978. Income tax receipts from the bottom 95% of income earners fell to 3.2% of GDP from 5.4% of GDP over the same time period. (See the nearby chart).”
http://cliftonchadwick.wordpress.com/2010/08/03/the-soak-the-rich-catch-22/

Bill Hedges of MO 7:31PM December 06, 2010