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"...Listening to Obama talk about jobs and shared prosperity
yesterday reminded me that we are back in campaign mode and Barack
Obama has started doing again what he does best – play the part of a
progressive. He's good at it. It sounds like he has a natural
affinity for union workers and ordinary people when he makes these
speeches. But his policies are crafted by representatives of
corporate/financial America, who happen to entirely make up his
inner circle.<br>
<br>
"I just don't believe this guy anymore, and it's become almost
painful to listen to him."<br>
<br>
[From <a class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E" href="http://www.commondreams.org/view/2011/09/06-6"><http://www.commondreams.org/view/2011/09/06-6></a>.]<br>
<br>
<br>
On 9/11/11 7:10 PM, C. G. ESTABROOK wrote:<br>
<span style="white-space: pre;">> <br>
> <br>
> Bob's argument would make sense if it weren't for what Obama
said in<br>
> the course of the deficit talks: that he supports massive
cuts in<br>
> entitlement programs, including Social Security, and that he
supports<br>
> the most modest of tax increases on the wealthy in order to
provide a<br>
> patina of 'fairness' and 'shared sacrifice,' without
materially<br>
> affecting the super-rich. --CGE<br>
> <br>
> <br>
> On 9/11/11 6:49 PM, David Johnson wrote:<br>
>> <br>
>> <br>
>> *Bob,* ** *You obviously have NOT looked at the details
of Obama's <br>
>> plan !* ** *It is SOLELY targeted at Social Security
payroll<br>
>> taxes, both what employees and employers pay.* ** *It is
a<br>
>> DEFUNDING of Social Security !* *Pure and simple !* **
*It<br>
>> specificly says that ; " Social Security payroll taxes
paid by BOTH<br>
>> employers and employees will be reduced from 6.2 % to
4.2% and then<br>
>> to 3.1%.* *AND, in addition to this, employers will be
exempt from<br>
>> paying ANY ( NO ) social security tax for ALL new hires
and for ALL<br>
>> employees they give a raise to ( which the percentage
wage increase<br>
>> is unspecified, so it could be as little as 1- cent per
hour ), up<br>
>> to FIFTY MILLION dollars per COMPANY, with no time limit
specifics<br>
>> !* ** *Face the facts, Obama is a puppet of corporate
America and a<br>
>> closet republican neo-con.* *He admires Ronald Reagan and
has not<br>
>> only continued the Bush agenda but has expanded it beyond
what ANY<br>
>> republican would have dared.* ** *The phoney son of a
bitch needs<br>
>> to be " taken down " ! * ** *We need SOMEBODY to run
against him in<br>
>> the Dem primaries ( Dennis Kucinch or whoever ) and if
that doesn't<br>
>> work, we need a third party candidate !* ** *Obama has
betrayed<br>
>> EVERY SINGLE campaign promise he has made, and he needs
to be<br>
>> exposed and opposed.* ** *Protecting Social Security and
EXPANDING<br>
>> Medicare to every man, women and child in this country
should be<br>
>> THE ISSUE that we need to advocate ( in addition to an
immediate<br>
>> withdrawl of ALL U.S. troops and private mercenaries from
Iraq and<br>
>> Afganistan, that would save the taxpayers $ 2.7 BILLION a
week ).*<br>
>> ** *For those who agree, we should support !* *For those
who do NOT<br>
>> support or state wishy washy views, we need to vote out
of office.*<br>
>> ** *This is THE issue we can win with !* ** *The time of
automatic<br>
>> and blank check support for democrats is past.* *Until we
realize<br>
>> this and PRACTICE this, this country and the world is
DOOMED !* **<br>
>> *David J.* ** **<br>
>> <br>
>> ----- Original Message ----- *From:* Robert Naiman <br>
>> <a class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E" href="mailto:naiman.uiuc@gmail.com"><mailto:naiman.uiuc@gmail.com></a> *To:* David Johnson
<br>
>> <a class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E" href="mailto:dlj725@hughes.net"><mailto:dlj725@hughes.net></a> *Cc:* JWJ C-U <br>
>> <a class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E" href="mailto:centralILJwJ@yahoogroups.com"><mailto:centralILJwJ@yahoogroups.com></a> *Sent:*
Sunday, September<br>
>> 11, 2011 2:27 PM *Subject:* Re: [CentralILJwJ] Fw:
Obama’s ‘Jobs<br>
>> Act’ Proposal: Why Less is More of the Same<br>
>> <br>
>> <br>
>> <br>
>> <br>
>> The payroll tax holiday isn't de-funding Social Security
- that<br>
>> isn't the way the payroll tax holiday has worked so far.
The money<br>
>> has been made up from general revenues. Which, in fact,
has had<br>
>> the (temporary) effect of making Social Security more
progressive.<br>
>> (The payroll tax is regressive, because it is capped;
Social<br>
>> Security is progressive overall, even though it is funded
by a<br>
>> regressive tax, because the payout is steeply
progressive.)<br>
>> <br>
>> Some progressives have in the past argued against the
payroll tax <br>
>> holiday on the grounds - they have argued - that it is
dangerous<br>
>> to weaken the political link, even temporarily, between
the payroll<br>
>> tax and the benefit, and that this weakening of the link
will later<br>
>> be used as an argument to undermine the program.<br>
>> <br>
>> But, on balance - given that there are very real benefits
from the <br>
>> payroll tax holiday, in terms of economic relief for
working<br>
>> people in tough times and in terms of boosting employment
- I find<br>
>> this argument unconvincing. The link between the payroll
tax and<br>
>> the benefit hasn't stopped people from arguing for cuts
to Social <br>
>> Security benefits in the past, and current proposals to
cut<br>
>> benefits, such as by cutting the cost of living
adjustment (a<br>
>> proposal, unfortunately, supported by President Obama)
haven't<br>
>> appeared to be slowed by the link between the payroll tax
and the<br>
>> benefit.<br>
>> <br>
>> Furthermore, we already have a payroll tax holiday at
present, so <br>
>> such a holiday has to be withdrawn at some point, the
question is: <br>
>> now or later? Later - when we no longer have 9.1%
measured <br>
>> unemployment - makes more sense.<br>
>> <br>
>> Given that extension of the holiday - like extension of<br>
>> unemployment benefits - is a significant chunk of
economic stimulus<br>
>> that has a plausible chance of getting through Congress
right now,<br>
>> I think that on balance the extension of the payroll tax
holiday is<br>
>> worthy of support. Others may disagree. But I think the
claim that<br>
>> this is a nefarious plot to undermine Social Security is<br>
>> dramatically overblown.<br>
>> <br>
>> At the end of the day, Social Security is a check from
the U.S. <br>
>> Treasury. At the end of the day, what defends Social
Security is <br>
>> defending Social Security: a supermajority of voters
defending the <br>
>> payout.<br>
</span><br>
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