The fiscal cliff

[Maggot]

I will check. I know s.s. is up.

[Midwest Spy]

So . . .

If you receive a paycheck (with deductions), have you noticed an increase in fed payroll withholdings?

Just curious.

Yes.

Definitely got taxed at the 6.2% rate.

[HairOfTheDog]

At least both houses of Congress seem to be willing to work together and negotiate on the debt ceiling (for now).

WASHINGTON — Backing down from their hard-line stance, House Republicans said Friday that they would agree to lift the federal government’s statutory borrowing limit for three months, with a requirement that both chambers of Congress pass a budget in that time to clear the way for negotiations on long-term deficit reduction.

The new proposal, which came out of closed-door party negotiations at a retreat in Williamsburg, Va., seemed to significantly reduce the threat of a default by the federal government in coming weeks. The White House press secretary, Jay Carney, said he was encouraged by the offer; Senate Democrats, while bristling at the demand for a budget, were also reassured and viewed it as a de-escalation of the debt fight.

Full story here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/19/us/pol....html?_r=0

[Maggot]

Good, lets see if a budget can be done in 3 months because I would love to see them all lose a few paychecks. But I bet it does not happen a budget that is.

[Duchess]

I think they all have a lot of nerve saying they work for us. If that were the case I wouldn't be paying them because they didn't do their damn job.

[username]

The can gets kicked down the road...again.

[HairOfTheDog]

The can gets kicked down the road...again.

Yeah, another delay, but at least it's not as much of a delay AND a pissing contest as it was. It will be interesting to see if the paycheck sacrifice will motivate the finalization of a budget, finally.

"The House Republicans’ campaign arm quickly moved from taunting Democrats about raising the government’s borrowing limit to demanding that they sacrifice their paychecks if they fail to pass a budget."

[Maggot]

The can gets kicked down the road...again.

No the White house has to do a budget. They would not do it themselves so they are forced to do it. It is whats right. Somebody has to cut the credit card up, and they will be demonized for it. Just like a strict parent would be.

[username]

I agree that a budget is long overdue. We'll see. We still have to deal with the sequestration issue first, right?

It just seems to me that meaningful reform (especially spending cuts) keep getting kicked down the road because the assholes can't figure out how to negotiate a deal.

[HairOfTheDog]

So the House voted today and the debt ceiling and spending debates are officially postponed until March. The current situation has been years in the making and I really hope that there is finally a budget/plan with the aim of debt reduction ready to go by the end of March. I'm too jaded to bet a paycheck on it myself, but if some forward movement isn't in place by the end of the first quarter, I think we will have just moved to a different cliff side setting.

WASHINGTON — Avoiding an economic showdown with President Obama, the House on Wednesday passed legislation to suspend the nation’s statutory borrowing limit until May, without including the dollar-for-dollar spending cuts that Republicans once insisted would have to be part of any debt limit bill.

The 285-144 vote staved off an impasse that could have put the full faith and credit of the United States government into doubt and potentially set off an economic disaster. Instead, the next Republican showdown with the president will come in March, when the subject will be across-the-board spending cuts first and a possible government shutdown by the end of the month.

“We know with certainty that a debt crisis is coming to America. It’s not a question of if. It’s a question of when,” Representative Paul D. Ryan of Wisconsin, the Republicans’ former vice-presidential nominee and current Budget Committee chairman, said as he vowed to press ahead with deep spending cuts.

Full story:
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/24/us/pol....html?_r=0

[Maggot]

Just re-reading this thread and it feels like this has happened before.

[Duchess]

Just re-reading this thread and it feels like this has happened before.

After reading you say that, I went back and read it again too. We all sound so smart & knowledgeable!

[Maggot]

Yeah, age makes people cranky.