GOP hardens resolve on debt talks after poor jobs report

AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite

Emboldened by a weak jobs report, Republicans today doubled down on their argument that Washington can't afford to increase taxes on Americans or businesses as political leaders seek ways to shrink the ballooning federal budget deficit.

"Where are the jobs?" House Speaker John Boehner asked at a press conference today after the Labor Department reported that the the unemployment rate rose to 9.2 percent in June. The economy generated just 18,000 net new jobs last month, making it the slowest month for job creation in nine months.

"Tax hikes on families and job creators will only make things worse," Boehner said, referring to the ongoing negotiations between White House and congressional leaders to forge a significant deficit and debt reduction deal.

Mr. Obama met with congressional leaders on Thursday, seeking a deal that includes $4 trillion in budget savings over a decade. Republicans have insisted on creating a deficit and debt reduction plan as a condition of voting to raise the debt ceiling -- the amount of money that Congress is technically allowed to borrow.

The president and his economic team have repeatedly warned of catastrophic consequences for the U.S. and global economy if Congress does not increase the $14.3 trillion debt ceiling by August 2. Another round of talks is scheduled for Sunday.

Boehner said today he agreed that pressing the negotiations close to the Aug. 2 date "puts us in an awful lot of jeopardy."

He said it was time to "do something big for our economy and, frankly, for our future" but added that there are still "serious disagreements" between Democrats and Republicans.

"It's not like there's some imminent deal about to happen," he said.

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor said that the debt talks that Vice President Joe Biden led for weeks failed because Democrats were "insisting we had to raise taxes."

"If you look at the jobs report and the results of current policies and where we are in this economy, that's why the Biden talks had to end," said Cantor, the number two Republican. "It just does not make sense for Americans to suffer under higher taxes in an economy like this. There is no way the House of Representatives will support a tax increase."

Democrats have called for raising tax revenues -- but in specific ways intended to avoid burdening the middle class, such as closing tax loopholes for industries like corporate jets and raising taxes on the highest-earning Americans.

Boehner did not directly answer a question as to whether he would support closing tax loopholes in exchange for concessions from Democrats -- such as cuts to Social Security. The Ohio Republican simply replied, "At the end of the day we've got to have a bill we can pass through the House and the Senate"

Rep. Michele Bachmann, a Republican presidential candidate, also released a statement today tying the jobs report to the debt ceiling. Bachmann put the issue front and center in her first presidential ad, released this week, in which she repeated her pledge to vote against raising the debt limit.

"Amidst this economic freefall, it should not be lost that the architect of the president's failed economic policies, (Treasury Secretary) Timothy Geithner, will head for the door after he attempts to cement the president's legacy of massive spending and debt by raising the debt limit another $2.4 trillion dollars," Bachmann said in her statement today. "We can only hope that the president will be right behind him after the next election."

[Charli_jean45]

I agree no more free rides for the rich.2012 is on the horizon but the way things are going it's probably down the toilet for our country much sooner than that.The so called GOP did say they wouldn't work with Obama and want him to completely fail. So far that is what seems to be happening.They've almost gotten him to capitulate to their greedy, self-serving ways.So what's next.

[010sonny]

Like your insight, pass these racist bigots, that proclaim they are patriots. See them as similar to Nazi Germany of 1934 to 1945 complete with their Fox La Propaganda Dr. Joseph Goebbel and his urchins.
All of the governors, from Fl. To Wisconsin and all the rest in between emulating similar strategies of silencing of unions and removing the rights of people to vote. Supporting the dismantling of Medicaid, Health Care, with S.S. in their sights. All this to continue tax cuts for the elite at loss of revenue of $70 Billion per year. Demanding subsidies to corporatist. Corporations that paid NO taxes and received tax refunds in the millions, for each, and further demanding subsidies into the $Billions! Threaten to shut down the credit for our nation if we do not comply! LOL guess who owns these corporations?
Foul fragrance is oozing from these Tea intoxicated republicans. Future of our nation in their hands once more will be a disaster of biblical proportions.
There's a slow train coming !
Ominous Onus's Omens of Corporatist Elitists !
Some think that life is but a corporate but you and I have been through that. I hear the riders a coming. Hollering winds all along the watchtowers. Winds of change are rattling our windows. Roberts Jan. 2010 Court ruling of unlimited funds, of corporatist, will hence forth be legal to purchase our politics. Gauntlet has been delivered to the people.
No identification of donors funds required ! Therefore we now observe how Koch is first in line to take advantage of this. Chinese, Iranians, and Germans corporations have an avenue of approach to our democratic principles. Roberts has unlatched the draw bridge and Koch is lowering it for the riders that are approaching, and the winds begin to howl. Dust in the winds filling the hallways of our serene democracy.
Sounds of silence from the populace. Camelot besieged and infiltration of the ominous riders enter.
"We The People In Order To Form A More Perfect Union" are interrupted. Voices fill the air, sound the alarm! Trumpet's have been silenced. Voices fall before the onslaught of the riders. Chaos, fear run within the halls of freedom.
Pied Piper with his dancing prancing Fox seeks to calm the distraught subjects. Voices cry Union, we must Unite, as the riders ride on by. Carving out the multitudes into their separate groups of subjugation.
Ahh& in ruin and polluted beyond appreciation of life. Fair Atlantis submerges beneath the waves of corporatist corruptive pollution, never to rise again. Farewell dear Atlantis.
Time for a Labor Party or National Party. Set sites for 2014. For its ignition and formally declared birth.. Our votes are greater than corporatist funds purchases. Bring us back to our America. UNITEDED !
Video: Clinton: Dems not in class warfare www.cnn.com 50/50

[010sonny]

LOL Dems get serious about spending cuts? That is way out there. Dems are up against the wall with all their spending cuts as it is. Now republicans want our elderly to give up their pensions and health to keep feeding the corporatist.
That jet just flew right over your head. There is only $3 Billion to be gained there. Sen. Cantor says it is not worth pursuing! Just as it is not worth pursuing the subsides of the record profit oil corporations. Yeah same one's that paid no Taxes! Received tax returns in the millions for each and demand subsides into the $ Billions! All the while they bloat the futures on Wall Street for your gas up over 30% {.80/Gal}. Now guess who owns these corporations that paid no taxes and demand your taxes for more for them or they will shut down the government. Few Billion here or there not worth it? Yet Sen. Cantor demands to cut planned parenthood for $300 million or Smithsonian of $436 Million or grannies Health Care and so on for millions. Those are not too small to pursue? What about when Sen. Cantor raised over $ 300 Million to shut down the Avondale shipyards in Alabama and fired 5,000 employee's. Or How about Pentagon with a yearly budget over $ 700 Billion! No cuts there NO, No, NO. Serious, yeah lets see some serious cuts and leave granny alone. Now how about ending the tax discounts on those over $250.000/year.. NO, NO, No. Serious,& really?
Simple solution; 50/50 . Cuts in spending and revenue increases to match accordingly. That gives us balance budget and a small surplus. Anything less and we will default.
Video: Clinton: Dems not in class warfare www.cnn.com 50/50

[010sonny]

Average Joe on the street is educated to the corporatist destruction that they are seeking against them. Republican Koch can only rely on intensifying his hate propaganda. Facts are to his demise. Solidarity has been our forefathers answerer to these villainous varmints of yesteryear as it will be today and hence forward. Remain United. Return us back to our America once again. We could have a Labor Party and celebrate&

[xENTROPYx]

Republicans lose any future support from me. "Americans suffer from higher taxes" is such a joke. I pay the highest percentage and don't make beyond what pays my bills. The whole GOP can jump off a cliff as far as I care. We need to rollback all the tax cuts to the wealthiest and big corps to pre-Reagan era levels. Want to know how a strong economy worked well? Look up Eisenhower's economic policies. He was a Republican BTW these clowns are nothing more than puppets of American Aristocrats.

[RobAla]

You are more than welcome to donate more to the bloated and wasteful federal government, if you like. However, leave the rest of us alone. I am not rich, so tax increases on the "rich" will not directly take more from my family. However, it is insane to impose additional taxes on a nation when it is down. You will slam any growth from the private sector, and it is the money coming from jobs in the private sector that the federal government needs. Washington will cut it's own throat in imposing additional taxes. It is stupid.

[arthanyel]

One key thing the conservatives extremists don't seem to understand - if the US defaults on its debts by not raising the debt limit, not only will we see immediate and drastic impacts on all Americans from the rise in interest rates and the shutdown of services, there is an even bigger impact - default would be the final straw to have the world move away from the US Dollar as a reference currency. China, Russia and Brazil have been working to move away from the dollar for years, and the default would give them the necessary leverage to make the change.

Every currency that trades freely in the world is valued against the US dollar, the reference currency. If that changes, then our dollars will float and be valued against some other reference currency. And that will almost immediately mean our currency will be devalued, increasing prices on EVERY FOREIGN IMPORT, and decreasing our prices for things we sell outside the US. The cumulative impact of higher interest rates and a devalued currency will be catastrophic.

And once this change happens, reversing it will be extremely difficult and will take many years if it can be done at all - in the meantime, we'll all suffer. If you think the current economy is rough, try thinking about everything that you buy going up 10% to 20% in price while your wages fall about the same amount.

[Charli_jean45]

hope you're right david4673. All these things are very frustrating,Sick of the GreedyOldParty, tea party and the whole bunch of fools on Capital Hill.I wish we could vote them all out right now.They are sending our Country down the toilet into the black lake of another depression or worse

[RobAla]

President Obama's record breaking deficit spending devalued the US dollar and it invites inflation. Inflation hits the poor and those on fixed incomes (the elderly) the hardest. You can speculate or make wild claims about who is hurting the poor and middle income workers, but the facts point to President Obama. Think about the "cash for clunkers" program. The poor don't buy new cars, and if you take the old ones out of the market by that stupid program, then the poor are screwed. It resulted in the prices of used cars going up, and it hurt the poor. Cash for clunkers was nothing more than political payback from President Obama to the auto unions that got him elected. It was all a political payback, at the expense of the poor.

[ur_shadow]

The reason our economy is tanking is the government has spent too much, can't lend money without increasing interest rates, and employers won't hire until the economy stabilizes. The President can't raise the debt ceiling (without getting impeached) nor can he raise taxes (otherwise he won't get re-elected). The President really has only 2 choices left: decrease spending (this gets us out of debt) AND lower taxes on business (this increases jobs and therefore tax revenue). Like I've always said, run the recession long enough and you will wind up with limited government.

[arthanyel]

ur_shadow: You are presenting a false dilemma with your conservative propaganda. The debt ceiling MUST be raised. The failure to do so will be catastrophic. And taxes MUST be raised. There is no mathematical way to balance the long term budget without increasing some taxes, unless we contemplate catastrophic changes like eliminating all Medicare, cutting the defense department by 75%, and similar disastrous choices. That is not my opinion - it is the consensus opinion of every non-partisan economist. Look it up.

Lowering taxes on businesses does NOT create jobs. In fact, the opposite is true. All taxes are paid on profits. All spending on "growth" counts as expenses, and reduces profits. So higher tax rates incentivize internal spending, because if the choice is to give the money to Uncle Sam or spend it on hiring employees, companies will hire. But when tax rates are low, the choice is between opening that new plant or giving the executives and major shareholders a big pile of cash - and guess which way THAT decision typically goes.

Finally, our economy isn't tanking because of government spending. Our economy was sabotaged by Republican policies that created unfunded wars, tax cuts and medical spending, combined with the meltdown which resulted from multiple sources, including both Democrats and Republicans. http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/article/2008/nov/30/what-caused-crisis-no-one-thing/

Republicans are driving the country straight back to recession, and their "Party of NO" activity is creating the very uncertainty that is preventing the economy from recovering faster.

[cbsnacilbuper]

arthanyel, do you own a home?

Do you take the deduction for mortgage interest or that "tax cut"?

[arthanyel]

our current crisis was wholly created by Republicans:

Unfunded wars
Unfunded pharma handout prescription drug benefit
Unfunded tax cuts
And, of course, the continued giveaways to businesses that don't need them - Democrats keep trying to end them, Republicans keep blocking their elimination.

Conservatives created the crisis intentionally. Read Grover Norquist's writings and many of the analysis reports on him. People should understand that conservatives don't really care about balancing the budget - they want to drastically reduce the government and dismantle the services they don't like, using a debt crisis as the leverage. They don't want to actually fix the problems. That's why the majority of the debt has been incurred by Republican Congresses and Republican presidents (look it up). And we should not reward them for being willing to throw the middle class and the poor under the bus driven by the wealthy so they can kill Social Security Medicare.

Don't let them

[Charli_jean45]

I agree. History keeps repeating itself.Every time our country is in this situation it's been the republicans almost every time that has caused the crashing downfall.

[RobAla]

Unfunded wars - Democrats continued this, and added Libya
Unfunded pharma handout prescription drug benefit - Democrats gave us an idiotic health care law that took $400 from Medicare and still cost taxpayers an additional $105 billion per year
Unfunded tax cuts - Democrats decided this was a good idea this past year, because the economy could not handle additional taxes.

You are completely out of you mind if you think conservatives are behind all of this. I am an independent conservative who was ticked at President Bush for the stupid bailouts that he started and for adding so much to the national debt.

In 2008, President Bush doubled his 2007 deficit spending. In both 2009 and 2010 President Obama tripled the 2007 deficit spending, and we are projected to do even worse this year. It is absolutely not the doing of conservatives.

[askagain]

Logically, higher taxes mean more government spending and lower taxes equal more personal spending. Yesterday, I paid my property taxes for the year. Before the housing bubble, my home was worth around $700,000. Today my home is worth around $524,000. My property tax increased from $5,000 last year to $5,200 this year. After calling the county assessment office, I was told that my assessment went down but the county commissioners raised the tax rate. The net effect was a $200 increase in proprety tax. That is $200 less that I can spend on other things. That means fewer meals out, less sacings, less spent on clothing, etc. That is $200 less private businesses will have in their coffers.

[retm-w]

So whose going to pay for your county services? You think the counties expenses don't go up every year.

[askagain]

The questions are why services have to go up each year, what services can be eliminated, and is the money being used efficicently? Our county commissions recently let go seven supervisors who they felt were unnecessary and saved county taxpayers $3,000,000. Our county commissioners who are part-time recently voted to eliminate pension and health care benefits for themselves to save taxpayer money. Our city recently started picking-up trash once per week instead of twice per week to save money. Every item should be looked at carefully for ways to save taxpayers money. The days of the blind expansion of services, paying more than is necessary, and keeping civil servants who are not needed on the taxpayer payrolls must end. By the way, 4 out of 5 of our county commisioners were Teaparty candidates.