My Response to the GOP Response
Some of you will think I am cherry picking from the response only comments that make my point.
You’re exactly right!
The President did not cause the economic and fiscal crises that continue in America tonight. But he was elected on a promise to fix them, and he cannot claim that the last three years have made things anything but worse:
The President did NOT cause the crises. It’s nice to hear a Republican admit it.
We do not accept that ours will ever be a nation of haves and have nots; we must always be a nation of haves and soon to haves.
Great, we agree on this too!
That means a dramatically simpler tax system of fewer loopholes and lower rates. A pause in the mindless piling on of expensive new regulations that devour dollars that otherwise could be used to hire somebody. It means maximizing on the new domestic energy technologies that are the best break our economy has gotten in years.
I love the loopholes line. It’s overused. Nobody actually supports loopholes. The President also talked in his speech about more sensible regulations and a simpler tax code.
It’s absolutely so that everyone should contribute to our national recovery, including of course the most affluent among us. There are smart ways and dumb ways to do this: the dumb way is to raise rates in a broken, grossly complex tax system, choking off growth without bringing in the revenues we need to meet our debts. The better course is to stop sending the wealthy benefits they do not need, and stop providing them so many tax preferences that distort our economy and do little or nothing to foster growth.
Agreed!
In word and deed, the President and his allies tell us that we just cannot handle ourselves in this complex, perilous world without their benevolent protection. Left to ourselves, we might pick the wrong health insurance, the wrong mortgage, the wrong school for our kids; why, unless they stop us, we might pick the wrong light bulb!
Republican rhetoric – this issue is more complicated than Republicans care to admit. I detest government regulation as much as anyone (probably more), especially when it comes to things like my choice of light bulb. BUT have you been paying attention to the news over the last decade? Many of us do choose the wrong mortgages when given the chance.