Ryan says Obama, Congress turning blind eye to coming fiscal crisis

Republican vice presidential candidate Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., speaks during a campaign event at SMT, Inc. in Raleigh, N.C., Wednesday, Aug. 22, 2012.

/ AP Photo/Gerry Broome

(CBS News) RALEIGH, N.C. - Vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan played the role of grim economic prophet Wednesday, warning of an impending financial crisis in the United States that he said President Obama and Congress aren't trying to prevent because of the potential political consequences.

The House Budget Committee chairman said that the country's current "European policies," like massive spending and unsustainable entitlement programs, are leading to a crisis that could be prevented.

"What if your president, or your congressman or your senator, what if they saw it coming? What if they knew that that crash was coming, what if they knew why it was going to happen, what if they knew approximately when it was going to happen, and what if they knew how to prevent it from happening, and they had time to do that, but they just decided not to 'cause it wasn't good politics?' What would you think of them?" Ryan asked an energized crowd of over 1,000 people at a sheet metal fabrication company. "Friends, that's exactly where we are today, we are on this path that the president has placed us upon where we will turn out just like Europe if we stick with these European policies."

Ryan portrayed himself and presumptive GOP nominee Mitt Romney as leaders who will tackle hard decisions. But Ryan himself has passed up opportunities to take a bipartisan stab at getting a handle on soaring debt. His criticism helped derail efforts by the Gang of Six, a bipartisan group of senators, to come up with a compromise proposal. And in 2010, he helped sink a plan that would have cut the federal debt by $3.8 trillion over 10 years.

Ryan was a member of the Simpson-Bowles commission that came up with that 10-year plan. He called the commission a "success," but voted against its recommendations because he said they were too dependent on tax increases and did not do enough to structurally reform health care spending. The plan won yes votes from 11 of 18 panel members, short of the 14 required for it to be put to a vote in Congress. President Obama ultimately ignored the commission's recommendations.

During the course of the commission's work, Ryan had teamed up with Alice Rivlin, a former Clinton-era budget director, to sketch out ideas for transforming part of the Medicare program into a voucher, or "premium support," system.

Ryan spokesman Brendan Buck said, "A failure to tackle our deficit is one the president's most glaring broken promises. Under his failed leadership, America is facing yet another trillion dollar deficit and saw an unprecedented downgrade of our credit. While the president sat on the sidelines, Congressman Ryan has worked in a bipartisan manner to find solutions to our debt crisis."

[GOP-R--Con-Men]

I have been analysing the GOP for years and I have deciphered their playbook. And some of the things they do will seem strange unless you know what their goals/end game actually is. Remember everything they do is toward that end.

1. Republicans love deficits when they are the party that creates them. Now you might say, why is that? Republicans hate government and it's ability to help ordinary Americans. Have any republican president EVER ran a deficit by spending money on people to benefit them? No! So what do they do? They empty the treasury wasting money on unnecessary wars and tax give a ways the corporation, big oil and the super rich and the while Americans are in dire need of help from their government. Those entities don't need the money and some never asked for it.

But republican know that they can use a empty treasury to proclaim the country is broke and we can't afford this or that program for ordinary Americans. Then they said you should pull yourself up by your boot straps. Even though republican cut the boot straps and programs that might help you. But they have NO PROBLEM giving billions to corporations, big oil and the super rich. Why would they do this? Remember republicans NEVER want government to be beneficial to Americans. So if government programs prove benefical that's a problem for republicans because it goes against their decades oud mantra that government is the problem and it must be reduced or eliminated.


There's much more to their tricks and games but you get the picture. That's why they must be voted out of office.

[Shallow_RepubsAre_CRETINs]

Who's this guy, "Ryan"?

Oh yah, I remember...

...he's the guy that went to congress in 1999, and kept his mouth completely ZIPPED SHUT about "deficits" and the "national debt" when G.W. Bush DOUBLED the debt balance from $5 to $10 Trillion...

...and now, all of a sudden, he's concerned about the nation's debt....LMAO!...only ignoramuses don't see the politics this guy, Ryan, is playing.

You're credibility is SHOT Ryan.....everyone in America, except ignorant Republi-minions, know that the Republi-'cons' worry about the national debt ONLY when they're not the ones growing the national debt. The past 30 years of history have shown us that.

And boy, when Republi-'cons' get the chance to increase the national debt (whenever we put another Republi-'con' in the White House), they sure do go "all out" and INCREASE it, that's for sure...

...National Debt balance increase under Jimmy Carter = $280 billion.

...National Debt balance increase under Ronald Reagan = $1.8 Trillion.

...National Debt balance increase under Bill Clinton = $1.6 trillion.

...National Debt balance increase under George W. Bush = $4.9 trillion.

[A_Canadian_Opinion]

Hey Ryan, in case you forgot, the GOP have been running the circus in Washington for the last two years. Obama's only power has been veto power, and veto power doesn't get things done (it only gets things not done). In fact, it's the GOP that's been turning the blind eye. Obama's been shouting about the pending debt crisis from the rooftops, and even has a solution, but you don't like the solution because it means you're going to have to open your wallet a little more on April 15 of each year.

[Eco99]

Thank A. Unfortunately most people do not understand the process or how things work here. The president can do some things using Executive Orders but Obama has been maligned for doing this despite the W administrations record usage of this privilege with little complaints from the righties.

[ToolMangler1]

I agree 100%, 'A'..
Obama has been nullified for the past 2 years, and constantly harassed by the GOP/TEA PARTY'S assault on everything he has done for America. The GOP/TEA PARTY'S basic membership have no idea what the upper 1% of the party have been doing behind their backs and out of sight to the main membership..
The only reason for SCOTUS to 'neuter' the campaign contribution limits is to eliminate the Democratic parties ability to keep America as a 2 or more party governed nation..

[marychgo]

How does Ryan have the...let's call it "gall"...to blame Obama for what Ryan and his Republican cohorts are actually responsible for?

Obama didn't vote for two budget-busting tax cuts; Ryan and the Republicans did. Obama didn't vote for two unfunded wars; Ryan and the Republicans did. Obama didn't vote for Medicare Part D without funding it; Ryan and the Republicans did. Obama didn't cause the S&P to downgrade the U.S.; Ryan and the Republicans did. Obama didn't allow Wall Street to run wild; Ryan and the Republicans did.

OTOH, I guess this ploy is a pretty standard Karl Rove technique: accusing the other guy of doing what you've actually done!

[GOP-R--Con-Men]

No honest discussion can be had on the lack of progress of the economy and President Obama without also talking about the role deliberate, unyielding sabotaging obstruction by republicans has played. Absent that the discussion is dishonest and bogus.

[rayward73446]

Ryan and the GOP leadership have tried to sell this bogus fear campaign before, and failed because voters are more savvy than they think we are. Instead of selling fear campaigns why aren't they working on improving the economy, creating good paying jobs, and rebuilding the crumbling infrastructure? The GOP did not do any of these things under Bush, or Obama. In fact they did just the opposite. If Romney and Ryan gets elected why do people believe that they will change from doing what they have been doing all their lives. The simple answer is that they won't. They will take the country back under the failed Bush policies, and kill off the middle class.
Not to mention their waging a war on women, the elderly, middle aged, the disabled, and the poor. All to provide lower taxes for the wealthy.
Those of us that are not part of the 1% will lose big time in higher taxes, lower paying jobs and the reduction or canceling of needed government services. This one is easy, vote for Obama and end this madness that has possessed the GOP. The only way to pay down the deficit is to get everyone back to work, and paying taxes again. These bogus plans have no chance of working, and are based on flawed information, provided by the very people who created this mess in the first place.

[ToolMangler1]

I agree 100%.
They may succeed this time because they bought the SCOTUS and got them to remove campaign contribution limits (Jan 25, 2010) so that the GOP/TEA PARTY & Big Business (Brother) could buy the congress they want..

Read Jack London's "the iron Heel" and George Orwell's "1984".... for clues to the GOP/TEA PARTY mindset and plans for the future..

[bbglow]

Really, Really scary politicians ... maybe we could convince them to move to China to follow their actual job creation plans, then we can begin cleaning up their mess ...?

[bbglow]

Let's see ... cause the problem, then claim you know how to fix it ... hmmm, mighty clever.

[esq777]

Did Pretty Boy get his P90X workout in before or after his speech (or maybe during)?

[nearl451]

Even Reagan knew that you can either improve the economy or reduce thedeficit, but you can't do both when recession is looming or in progress.

[bbglow]

Improving the economy, creates more work, creates more income, more taxible income creates more revenue, more taxible income creates more tax revenue, more tax revenue reduces the deficit. Why do they want US to believe it's rocket science ...?