Darn tooting! If rich people don't want to pay for me to have nicer stuff, then they should go somewhere else to live.

We are socialists and Marxists. We are the patriots who believe that if we are willing to work hard and send our hard earned dollars to shore up our government and our society that we should then be cared for by our government and society. I am a Marxist and I don't mind paying 95% of my wages in taxes but at the point in which I pay so much towards the continuation of my country and my society...I should then be taken care of as well. I welcome this idea and for the betterment of all citizens in this country your line of thinking should not be "how dare we" it should be how much would you be willing to pay in taxes if it meant that all the things that a person needs such as food, shelter, a job, education and health care would be provided to you, your family, your friends and your future generations. We are not lazy, nor are we looking for a free handout. We are willing to work for the betterment of ourselves and our society. We don't wish to be allowed to sit on our butts and do nothing. We wish to pay our fair share or even more than our fair share to make sure that our government can facilitate these needs for all citizens of the UNITED States of America.

Pat, you forget that he increased the price of used cars significantly by removing millions of used cars from the market.

Looks like the President is following the policies of Jesus if he's doing alot for the poor. How about that!!

Jesus didn't get involved in politics to my knowledge.....I'm guessing too corrupt.

“I am for doing good to the poor, but...I think the best way of doing good to the poor, is not making them easy in poverty, but leading or driving them out of it. I observed...that the more public provisions were made for the poor, the less they provided for themselves, and of course became poorer. And, on the contrary, the less was done for them, the more they did for themselves, and became richer.”
Benjamin Franklin

Quaint observations from the 18th century have little applicability to the 21st century global economy. We live in an interdependent highly complex world economy where trades are made at the end of a computer terminal. Somehow I don't think Ben Franklin has too many answers to help the 25% or more unemployed during the Great Depression. We still have about three workers applying for each job that is available. Those who are finding work are earning on average less than $13 per hour despite having considerable job skills. $13 per hour is hardly enough money to raise a family anymore either. This is why so many working adults, about 48 million, or one out of six are living in poverty right now. These people work but need food stamps because the cost of living from gas, to car repairs, to health insurance, to food, to rent are all going up. So the idea that in a global economy, that its workers fault when the global economy changes with forces beyond their control is absurd. Government must offer a safety net for these workers who get laid off. We live in a global economy, where market forces are global and sweep across continents at the computer speed of light. These global forces can result in sudden layoffs and plants moving oversees. The belief that workers can make it all on their own in such an interdependent global economy of the 21st century without any government help at all when they lose their jobs, seems like a quaint conservative notion in an alternative universe called the "denial zone". Where are all those GOP supply side jobs? Gone to Asia no doubt.

Hey Rex....I hear your points....we do need some safety nets...but we have safety nets that have turned into traps that people do not get out of....when we have nearly half of Americans getting some form of Government help....that's a government safety net system out of control i.e. Nanny State.

You ask where all the supply side jobs are......if we had some long term stability in the Obama Administration on Regulation and Taxes....Businesses will hire....they have stockpiled money to weather this Obama Storm out and are more than willing to spend their money again.....the old adage ....you have to spend money to make money....well they are ready to make more money....but they will not until they are confident that the US economy is worth risking their money on.

Jeannie, we've been through this all before. I haven't seen Obama doing that much for the poor. He may be taking from the rich, etc, but he hasn't help the poor out too much, now has he? Do you think the poor are better off now?

Jesus called for you and me to help the poor, not the government.

Very well put Rusty.....

TAP: Our problems are long term requiring a long term strategy that partners government actions with those in private industry. There is a bifurcation going on in the economy right now. Wall Street and big corporations are doing quite well with record profits, low taxation, and the productivity of American workers is at a record high. We need to remember that the GOP filibustered or obstructed about three million jobs bills. The American Jobs Act would have created or saved two million jobs plus the Small Business tax credit bill. There are other bills to like the President Obama's numerous infrastructure bank creation and other ideas in jobs bills. Most of these have been blocked by GOP politicians. Wall Street is doing fine while Main Street languishes because of a lack of demand.

We have a consumption problem right now. Middle class and working class people do not have any money to spend because the jobs they work offer flat wages and salaries. Home equity, credit, and other lines saving are also tapped out for many of these working class people. These folks work and are stuck in an economic rut. Companies are hiring fewer people, making large capital investments in automation, and working their current work forces with more hours to meet production requirements. Our expensive health care system, deteriorating infrastructure, and tax policies all interplay to make hiring levels low right now.

I push for policies that increase education and job training, infrastructure, green energy, and for a Medicare for all public option. Many conservatives won't like these liberal ideas but in the 21st century global economy, Asian countries are making major investments in all of these areas. We need to as well or else our unemployment problems will just worsen along with declining middle class living standards.

Rex...I enjoy reading your posts....That being said.....Rex....we all know that the word...invest....is code word for spend and or Stimulus. We are $16 Trillion away from just being broke.....our credit is gone. We must cut our spending and give business a sense of stability in our tax code and regulation. We have an EPA on overdrive....killing our coal industry which is going to increase electricity costs...most manufacturing requires large quantities of electricity....that is going to hurt....we cannot continue to give companies reasons to move their jobs somewhere else and we cannot afford to keep printing and spending on programs that are corrupt. What happened to all those shovel ready jobs? Big Government Programs=Big Government Waste and Corruption.....and the taxpayer is left with the bill.

And dig those Congressmen, going on vacation now, without completing anything!