*Illinois congressman Jesse Jackson Jr., who served as co-chairman of Barack Obama’s 2008 campaign, compared the president’s economic agenda to that of Republican President Ronald Reagan on Friday.
“If we cut taxes for the wealthy, while maintaining massive military spending in support of two wars, then the new Republican Congress will be empowered to cut social programs in order to reduce the deficit,” Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., a longtime friend and sometimes critic of the president, said in a statement. “So it will be a choice between cutting programs for the poor, children, the unemployed, the uninsured and veterans or allowing deficits to pile up. That was President Reagan’s strategy: A ‘starve the beast’ plan of lowered taxes and increased military spending that would force Congress to make deep cuts in program for the most vulnerable.”
Liberal House Democrats have expressed outrage with the deal Obama cut with congressional Republicans to extend individual income and other expiring tax rates as well as unemployment insurance benefits.
But the proposal still looks to be on track for enactment. The Senate voted Thursday night, 65-11, to clear its decks to consider the bill, and proponents of the legislation were hopeful that a basket of sweeteners would help soften opposition in the House.
JJJ is so right, and I hope the Obama apologist can put their biases aside and see the truth in his statement. Emphasis on the word “massive” military spending. We talking about 200 billion a year.
There is absolutely no reason for any of these wars. Obama and Bush telling us that we are supposed to be fighting them over there so we don’t have to fight them here, even though, less than 10% of the Taliban ever heard of 9/11. It’s ridiculous. And don’t even mention Iraq. That’s Bush retribution for Saddam wanting to kill his papy. So why the fu*k we still there? Is this the change we voted for?
In the mean time, we can’t find money to fund unemployment insurance and all type of social programs getting cut. All this BS so that Barack can kiss Republicans ass.
This guy is just as bad as his mentor, Ronald Reagan. Remember how he was giving him props during the campaign?
I applaud JJJ for being man enough to speak out. More Democrats should be doing this a long time ago. Maybe so many people wouldn’t have to be left out in the cold this winter, with no money to eat or find a place to live. America, we can do better than these warmongers and warmonger pretenders.
HE is correct. If you remember all of the social programs cut during the Reagan era; He is making sense.
As much as I still support Pres Obama, Jesse Jr. is correct in his assessment of the current situation.
An now he’s calling Ex-President Clinton back to “Speak on His Behalf”?.