Politics

[chicago51]

I don't have a strong opinion on Rand Paul himself, its just, I love that he is bringing up this issue.

Senate Democrats are pissed especially over the court of appeals judge I mentioned. They might change the rules again. I doubt it, they don't have spines.

A great day for the filibuster, and for filibuster reform

I actually support Ran's filibuster. I totally disagree that the issue is worth blocking the nomination but I still support his filibuster.

Rand Paul launches talking filibuster against John Brennan

This was no silent filibuster. Ran took the floor and talked for a long time. I think talking filibusters are great for the Senate. I hate when some Senator can not even be on the floor yet still basically shut everything down on an issue. The country deserves debate. I may disagree with Ran but if he has some concerns he has the right to get up there on CSPAN talk for as long as he wants about his concerns.

I too have concerns over drones.

 

[Irish Houstonian]

We know from Romney's 2010 tax returns that he had a Swiss bank account up to that tax year. We did not see his 2009 tax returns, which in and of itself is not that big a deal.

But ...

in 2008, a whistleblower at a bank in Switzerland told the IRS that there were thousands of American clients at his bank who had unreported accounts. The rest of 2008 and into 2009 more than 14,000 people came forward to take advantage of a long-standing policy of the IRS to allow offenders to avoid prosecution if they paid back taxes with interest on the funds they hid in Swiss accounts to avoid taxes. In addition, they had to pay some fines. Up until 2008, very few people took advantage of this IRS policy, but once the whistleblower came forward, the flood gates opened. The whistleblower's bank was forced to pay $hundreds of millions in fines and they handed over the names of more than 4000 American clients suspected of tax fraud. A lot of people got scared that their names were on that list and came forward.

If that were enough to indict Romney, then the evidence in Whitewater would have gotten Clinton the death penalty.

 

[GoIrish41]

If that were enough to indict Romney, then the evidence in Whitewater would have gotten Clinton the death penalty.

Actually, the IRS in 2009 could have prosecuted the whole lot of tax cheats that came forward to save their own a**es from a worse fate. Romney (if indeed he was one of them) could have been prosecuted for tax evasion along with the rest of them. But, they didn't and the rest is political history.

 

[RallySonsOfND]

Good thing we live in an INNOCENT before PROVEN guilty country.

 

[chicago51]

Because they hit such homeruns (like the billions we've lost in "green" energy) in investing.


Unemployment will never get below 7% with Obama in office. The ACA pretty much guaranteed that. Whether that was the intent or not.

Here is my take on green energy:

If you think oil is somehow going to get less expensive as time goes on it is foolish thinking. Ultimately we should be making the transition to renewable energy. Ultimately we should be devoting a portion of the budget to green energy.

Now in terms of the stimulus and green energy: If you need jobs right now which we did and still do, I am not sure green energy should have been a huge part of the stimulus. I have several reservations about the stimulus. I zero reservations against doing a stimulus. I think the stimulus that we put out there could have been done differently to achieve a better outcome.

I actually think the American Jobs Act if ever gets passed is would get a much better bang for the buck in terms of job creation.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/jobs_act.pdf

It does have some infastructure investment but it is not just a pure "spending" stimulus. It has other things in the proposal. I am interested to hear what things people like or dislike from it. It has some tax cuts for small businesses and other things that I think conservatives would support.

 

[GoIrish41]

Good thing we live in an INNOCENT before PROVEN guilty country.

Indeed. However, this was the first in a series of examples of political incompetence and evidence that Romney was a horrible candidate. He was tried in the court of public opinion, and he lost.

 

[Buster Bluth]

the incredible amount of political damage he took early in the general election (and even in the GOP primary) over not releasing any more than that one tax return (2010). Come on, you had to ask yourself back then why the heck he was willing to take that beating when you could have turned it off at any minute. Why would he endure such political punishment? Speculation was that he was, perhaps, one of those thousands of Americans who suddently took advantage of the IRS policy in 2008/09. If he was, the additional taxes, interest and fines he was forced to pay would certainly have been a part of his 2009 tax returns. It isn't that far fetched. Remember we knew he had that Swiss bank account in 2010. When his own father turned over ten, or maybe it was 12, tax returns and set the precident for someone running in a presidential election, it seems odd that the son would be so willing to ignore that precident. And, he couldn't very well turn over 2008's tax return without turning over 09's. The year he skipped would certainly have raised a lot of eyebrows.

Admittedly, I do not know if anything was done illegally. But, I'm not just making some assumption from out of the blue either. If something looks like sh*t, and smells like sh*t, there is a pretty good chance that it is sh*t. And if Romney was so squeaky clean, he could have easily demonstrated that he wasn't full of sh*t by releasing his tax returns. I, for one, think he is a crook because it is really the only plausible explanation for his actions, inactions really, when he was being savaged during his campaign.

Oh please. He also could have been excoriated for making thirty or forty million annually those years too, or revealing more investment in the global market instead of just the US (oh no...).

I have a hard time thinking a man who is so astoundingly morally clean and disciplined would intentionally evade taxes when he is loaded beyond anything he will ever need. It's unbelievable how some people continue to act towards him despite a lifetime of accounts speaking to the opposite.

 

[GoIrish41]

Oh please. He also could have been excoriated for making thirty or forty million annually those years too, or revealing more investment in the global market instead of just the US (oh no...).

I have a hard time thinking a man who is so astoundingly morally clean and disciplined would intentionally evade taxes when he is loaded beyond anything he will ever need. It's unbelievable how some people continue to act towards him despite a lifetime of accounts speaking to the opposite.

I have a hard time understanding how you find him so astoundingly morally clean. How many people did he cause to suffer to become loaded beyond anything he will ever need. You can look the other way if you wish. I choose not to.

 

[chicago51]

Oh please. He also could have been excoriated for making thirty or forty million annually those years too, or revealing more investment in the global market instead of just the US (oh no...).

I have a hard time thinking a man who is so astoundingly morally clean and disciplined would intentionally evade taxes when he is loaded beyond anything he will ever need. It's unbelievable how some people continue to act towards him despite a lifetime of accounts speaking to the opposite.

People in that position always seem to want more. Not a comment on Romney necessarily personally it is a non issue for me. There are people though that are greedy SOBs and sociopaths.

 

[Buster Bluth]

People in that position always seem to want more. Not a comment on Romney necessarily personally it is a non issue for me. There are people though that are greedy SOBs and sociopaths.

Each of those three statements disagrees with the other two.

 

[Buster Bluth]

I choose not to.

No instead you choose to convict a man without knowing much about the situation. What a way to improve the national political conversation!

 

[chicago51]

Each of those three statements disagrees with the other two.

What?

People wanting more = greedy

I think those statements agree.

The middle statement was just me saying I can careless about Mitt Romney.

 

[Buster Bluth]

People in that position always seem to want more. Not a comment on Romney necessarily personally it is a non issue for me. There are people though that are greedy SOBs and sociopaths.

That's why.

 

[GoIrish41]

No instead you choose to convict a man without knowing much about the situation. What a way to improve the national political conversation!

Buster, you yourself have admitted many times in this thread that he lied to the American people. At the very least, you have acknowledged that he is a liar. If memory serves, you were willing to overlook that little blemish because he was making a political calculation. Why is it so hard to believe that he did the same thing with releasing his taxes? You are seriously irritated that I'm making an allagation about Romney ... the guy who said Obama won the election by handing out gifts to minorities? That is an accusatiion about abuse of presidential power. Where was your outrage when that happened? give me a break.

 

[chicago51]

That's why.

Fair enough I shoudn't generalize.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/e7UcQcD9INI" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

 

[Buster Bluth]

Buster, you yourself have admitted many times in this thread that he lied to the American people. At the very least, you have acknowledged that he is a liar. If memory serves, you were willing to overlook that little blemish because he was making a political calculation. Why is it so hard to believe that he did the same thing with releasing his taxes? You are seriously irritated that I'm making an allagation about Romney ... the guy who said Obama won the election by handing out gifts to minorities? That is an accusatiion about abuse of presidential power. Where was your outrage when that happened? give me a break.

When did he say that?

And I believe I've been very open about my distaste for Romney's campaign. It was entirely regrettable. He was a nearly perfect man for the job and they screwed it all up.

 

[Ndaccountant]

What?

People wanting more = greedy

I think those statements agree.

The middle statement was just me saying I couldn't careless about Mitt Romney.

FIFY

 

[GoIrish41]

When did he say that?

And I believe I've been very open about my distaste for Romney's campaign. It was entirely regrettable. He was a nearly perfect man for the job and they screwed it all up.

He said it immediately after the election. Here is one of dozens of articles that come up on the topic when you Google "Romney gifts to minorities."

ROMNEY: Obama Won By Showering 'Gifts' - Business Insider

Yes, I'm agreeing that you expressed your distaste for his campaign. I'm just reminding you of that. If he lied about any number of other things, why is it such a stretch that he lied about what was in his tax returns?

I don't have to agree that he was an almost perfect man for the job and you don't have to agree with my thesis, but don't act as if I'm some guy on the fringes for believing it. There are a lot of people who believe exactly the same thing. He's not given us any reason not to and it would have been really, really easy for him to do just that.

 

[irishpat183]

Here is my take on green energy:

If you think oil is somehow going to get less expensive as time goes on it is foolish thinking. Ultimately we should be making the transition to renewable energy. Ultimately we should be devoting a portion of the budget to green energy.

Now in terms of the stimulus and green energy: If you need jobs right now which we did and still do, I am not sure green energy should have been a huge part of the stimulus. I have several reservations about the stimulus. I zero reservations against doing a stimulus. I think the stimulus that we put out there could have been done differently to achieve a better outcome.

I actually think the American Jobs Act if ever gets passed is would get a much better bang for the buck in terms of job creation.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/jobs_act.pdf

It does have some infastructure investment but it is not just a pure "spending" stimulus. It has other things in the proposal. I am interested to hear what things people like or dislike from it. It has some tax cuts for small businesses and other things that I think conservatives would support.

My point was it should be left to the private sector. They're far more efficent and inventive than our government that lines the pockets of their cronies (left and right)


Government shouldn't be out throwing our money at companies that were doomed to fail from the start because they want to do a favor for a family friend (Joe Biden...Nancy Pelosi)

 

[irishpat183]

What?

People wanting more = greedy

I think those statements agree.

The middle statement was just me saying I can careless about Mitt Romney.

What?

 

[irishpat183]

He said it immediately after the election. Here is one of dozens of articles that come up on the topic when you Google "Romney gifts to minorities."

ROMNEY: Obama Won By Showering 'Gifts' - Business Insider

Yes, I'm agreeing that you expressed your distaste for his campaign. I'm just reminding you of that. If he lied about any number of other things, why is it such a stretch that he lied about what was in his tax returns?

I don't have to agree that he was an almost perfect man for the job and you don't have to agree with my thesis, but don't act as if I'm some guy on the fringes for believing it. There are a lot of people who believe exactly the same thing. He's not given us any reason not to and it would have been really, really easy for him to do just that.

Yet Obama has been a becon of honesty and has given the American people reason to trust him?.....Sheesh....

 

[Downinthebend]

Good thing we live in an INNOCENT before PROVEN guilty country.

False. If you can be killed without due process.

 

[Downinthebend]

I have a hard time understanding how you find him so astoundingly morally clean. How many people did he cause to suffer to become loaded beyond anything he will ever need. You can look the other way if you wish. I choose not to.

I agree 100% with your mentality, I just apply it to Obama.

 

[Irish YJ]

 

[Downinthebend]

Which is why I voted for somebody that would: Ron Paul.

 

[Irish YJ]

So, you are saying Ron Paul is Nobody?

 

[chicago51]

What?

I was responding to questioning. I should have chose my words and check my grammar instead rapidly responding. It did not come off the way I intended.

 

[chicago51]

I got to say after checking up more on Ran Paul giving a talking filibuster I got some thoughts:

I actually agree with Ran Paul a statement I thought I would never say. We need to know more about when the government can kill a citizen without due process.

Secondly this is how the filibuster should be. Get up there and state your case.

 

[GoIrish41]

I got to say after checking up more on Ran Paul giving a talking filibuster I got some thoughts:

I actually agree with Ran Paul a statement I thought I would never say. We need to know more about when the government can kill a citizen without due process.

Secondly this is how the filibuster should be. Get up there and state your case.

could have done without the "Hitler" reference during his filibuster.

 

[chicago51]

could have done without the "Hitler" reference during his filibuster.

Yea I just heard it on the news after I already posted. He had a good thing going then Ran Paul had to be Ran Paul. That dude is one crazy bastard.