Ooops! The Chief’s percentages listed below are off a bit, due to his use of an incorrect total for the proposed 2011 non-budget. The really bad news part of this is that the outcome is even worse than before…in other words the actual “chump change” at the center of the current dogfight is even LESS significant than previously calculated. Corrected figures are plugged in at the appropriate places in the post:
White House Summit Fails to Yield Budget Deal as Shutdown Approaches
What a total joke!
President Obama, after a high-stakes meeting Wednesday night with congressional leaders at the White House, called the discussion “frank” and “constructive” but said no budget deal was reached.
“If we are serious about getting something done we should be able to complete a deal, get it passed and avert a shutdown,” Obama told reporters in the White House briefing room, though it remained unclear how the two sides would forge such an agreement.
Unfortunately this whole discussion is a virtual farce!
According to the Washington Post, the Donkey Party has expressed willingness to accept a whopping $23B cut at this time. That represents approx. a 1.6% 0.7% cut. The GOP on the other hand is currently thumping for a righteous and allegedly draconian $40B cutback, which is about a 3% 1.2% cut. So, do the math…the big brouhaha (ha ha ha indeed!) is about a difference of $17B, a huge difference of 1.4% 0.5% of the total budget!
Yep! Just imagine for comparison purposes what would happen to your personal or family budget if you were forced to confront a massive 3% 0.5% loss of income – 1/2 cent per dollar! Definitely a case of being reduced to dumpster diving and hitchhiking? It is according to Pelosi, Reid, et al. Doubtful however in reality, unless you are a bigger dolt than the Congresscritters fighting about the arrangement of deck chairs on the listing titanic ship of state.