Thanks Jon, this speculation is worth what you paid for it, not sure if it factors into Cantor’s calculations. A lot of people on Social Security and receiving veterans’ benefits might be deferring spending until after August 2.

maybe because the big money goopers will be unhappy with cantor.
they hold the bonds and do the banking.

Again Cantor could just argue it was Obama who caused the default. He points them to the White House

If he is bluffing, isn’t it kind of dumb for him to say, “Eric, don’t call my bluff”? Am I missing something?

Right.

Cantor blew a big time opportunity to hang the president when he rejected Obama’s offer to cut SSI and Medicare. Cantor is too busy playing checkers to play a good game of chess. If Obama wants to cut these programs the republicans were foolish not to let him.

If Obama rejects the short term increase Republican will wash their hands and claim whatever bad happens to the economy because of a default is now totally Obama’s fault for unreasonably rejection their modest request for more time.

And they’d be right… that Obama will be blamed for this clusterfuck. This is what happens when you negotiate by ceding your most generous bargaining positions first. Any competent negotiator knows you always start small and give away little to nothing in the opening rounds. Big Zero does the exact opposite, which means that they are actually moving further apart to coming to the agreement he wants.

The other point is this: take away O’Sellout’s incompetency at Bargaining 101, or his delusional thinking about post-partisanship. Just take this out of the equation. He’s getting testy because he didn’t get what he really wanted: an agreement to gut SS and Medicare/Medicaid.

Actually, I think on this one your logic is faulty. They are not proposing to raise the debt limit. They are proposing to take ransom and then continue the hostage situation. They will move the limit up a little and then continue to ask for Draconian cuts to programs they have always hated. Say the deadline is extended a month. That means the hostage drama continues for another month the ransom increases, the markets get weaker and we are in a more dangerous negotiation because the Cantor people will feel justified and rewarded. At some point the President needs to hold the line, regardless. As his full statement made clear. He knows default could kill his Presidency, but that will be true a month from now, six months from now, all the way to the next elections. He should have held the line even earlier. Even if he wanted it to be a bluff, now he needs to play out the hand.

In an effort to further clalify BO’s position, let’s be careful not to paint Cantor in any sort of positive light. He’s a dirtbag who would stick a shiv in anyone’s back to further his own goals / objectives. Just another piece of shit corporate tool…

Cantor may win logically, but Obama holds a bigger bullhorn.

Interesting comment Obama made because I sure don’t seem him as being interested in “protecting his base” OR “solving real problems.” It seems all ego-driven on his part.

Very true about the republican hostage taking. That may be the only thing Big Zero has learned during this process.

Cantor may win logically, but Obama holds a bigger bullhorn.

When has he ever used that bullhorn during his Presidency?

To explain over and over how the US government is like the average household to support his claim that we have a budget crisis. I don’t agree, but it apparently worked pretty well, judging from some polls.

“I see no reason Cantor shouldn’t…call his bluff.”

Jon, speaking as a life-long lefty, I totally agree.

But, just to join in with the frabjous-day-talking-point-moderate-democrats who got semen stains in their jeans when Obama hollered at one of the shitbirds on whom he’s done world-class rehab and TO whom he’s sold us out for pennies on the corporate dollar, i DID get a little tingle up my leg, when he said:

“I’m going to the american people.”

Too bad that, with his political nads now sitting in that mayo jar on John Boehner’s desk, he didn’t “come to us” about two years ago.

Cantor is actually shorting T Bills in anticipation of a default.

On the other hand, the Repubs can claim they “saved” SS and Medicare from Obama’s cuts when they run against him. That would be rich, but they could do it.

Interesting comment Obama made because I sure don’t seem him as being interested in “protecting his base” OR “solving real problems.” It seems all ego-driven on his part.

Ain’t unrequited love a bitch? Obama has proven time and again he will roll over his “base” at the first opportunity. His worship of St. Reagan, his narcissistic attempts to be perceived as the only grownup in DC, his idiotic belief in “post-partisanship” practically scream out to the Repubs,”I’m one of you guys, please love me!”

And I thought Bush had daddy issues…

Copy that. See my #9 here:

http://firedoglake.com/2011/07/12/reading-the-tea-leaves-no-grand-bargain-just-a-clean-vote-to-raise-debt-ceiling/

He’s had the help of Repubs on that talking point for about 30 years. And Fox News hasn’t missed an opportunity to help him with the messaging since this whole mess started.

I think that some Republicans in swing districts (like Mike Fitzpatrick in PA-8) will have difficulty in sticking with Cantor. Not all the Republicans elected in November are members of the Tea Party faction and understand the dangers of default. There is a real split in the Republican Party that shouldn’t be underestimated.

“When has he ever used that bullhorn during his presidency?”

Stevo, you should be ashamed of yourself…dropping that big reality-turd into the chiffon congeal, just as some of the talking-point-moderates are starting to wave the “clap-louder, Dammit!” pom-poms. :o)

Obama:

“Eric, don’t call my bluff. The puppetmasters have made it clear that they want me to get the door to Social Security and Medicare cuts open before my one term is up and, dammit, I’m going to fight you until it’s open. I will not accept a short-term resolution.“

Threatening a veto seems like a very good way of putting the blame squarely on your shoulders.

I know!!! Oh, man. The whole thing is revolting.

“Just another piece of shit corporate tool”.

Well, lessee, counting Obama, that makes a pair…and I think that most of the posters on here are in no confusion about either piece of shit corporate tool. :o)

Don’t know if the drama at hand was meant to “entertain” the masses while our dear leaders cause more damage or ignore past and present damage elsewhere and the Teapers just didn’t play along or what, but I imagine it has a bit to do with all the many issues given attention here at FDL that many people just don’t register.

no, tan, brock’s point is sound, the bully pulpit can be used to good effect and totally dwarfs what a mere congressman can do from a messaging standpoint. I just have my doubts that Obama will ever use it for good.

At this point I see no good reason from a political perspective Cantor shouldn’t call Obama’s bluff.

Well, there is one political reason for Cantor to not call Obama’s bluff. Default would create real and badpolitical problems for everyone.

Eric, don’t call my bluff.

So he is bluffing. My $1 is on the Repugs, they will get everything they want and then most will not vote for the Bill. Nothing new here!

He’s getting testy because he didn’t get what he really wanted: an agreement to gut SS and Medicare/Medicaid.

And hang it on the republicans.

good points all around, but I gotta actually get to work. Thank you Jon, for another kick ass report.

Absolutely right. And there are still some “old-fashioned” Republicans who understand that.

I have to admit, I am truly starting to admire Cantor and his Tea pals. I vehemently disagree with their policies, but I got to hand it to them for their tactics. They are running circles around that Billion Dollar Clown in the White House. If Cantor holds his ground, O will look like an incompetent fool. Sure, the country will suffer for it, but Cantor will be able to pin the tail on the donkey…

Geesh! I thought it was d*mn bad during 8 years of WShrub having W & Cheney & their skeevy minions on the roam in Dee Cee.

Now we get even skeevier sleazier villians in the guise of the Obama v. Cantor Kabuki Show. Yowzah. What a “pair”… of steaming you know whats.

Loathsome & despicable, the both of ‘em. Buncha crap on a shingle.

The serfs are so screwed with that skeevy duo shadow boxing away.

The whole debt ceiling debate has devolved from sublime to ridiculous. Technically, the President, via the Treasury, could end it anytime they want: but withholding all Congressional salaries, including staff. They could do the same with any government supplier and contractor, picking and choosing as needed to force congressional action.

Why does Obama think threatening to withhold Social Security payments will generate more political capital for himself than threatening to cut off Congress?

It’s really quite bizarre.

I think you’re missing the fact that Cantor can’t hold his ground. After all, even the Koch Brothers would be seriously damaged by a default.

Yes, but (and this is not an exact science of course) it didn’t really start showing up in the polls until Obama started shouting. It could be argued that any President has the biggest bullhorn if they choose to use it and Obama may indeed choose to use it in this case, like he did with the govt=households argument. I’m not sure if you’re saying that Presidents can’t effectively use the bully pulpit or if Obama won’t use it. I gave an example where he did use it and I guess you’re saying that it didn’t have any effect? I’m not arguing in favor of Obama’s policies but he does have power to affect the discourse, as any President does.

Eh? Ever heard of the revolving villains. I think I get what you’re saying, but imo, Cantor’s “tactics” are yet more Kabuki show.

Whatever… Obama’ll huffnpuff and act all angry… and Cantor’ll be the skeevy weasle he is. And in the voters’ll get screwed. I don’t see much shred of daylight between the 2 of those CROOKS. JMHO, of course.

“Well, there is one political reason for Cantor to not call Obama’s bluff. Default would create real and bad political problems for everyone.”

I see how Obama vetoing could create bad economic problems for everyone, but I don’t see how Obama vetoing debt ceiling increase would create political problems for Republicans.

Yeah, that’s the way I see it, too. Weasle Cantor is just *reading the script* that the Koch brothers had their thinktank guys write for Cantor to read. Like: whatever… revolving villains.

They’ll all try to point fingers of blame at each other, which IS the goal, I’m suspecting (if we’re all getting into reading the tea leaves here).

IMO, it’s all about: 1) gutting Soc Sec & Medicare, and 2) distracting voters from realizing that it’s the upper 1% who’s twisting the shiv by engaging in phoney “Republicans” v. “Democrats” Kabuki Show.

R U kidding me?? The skeevy millionaires are all *BFFs* behind closed doors. Kabuki show.

“he does have power to affect the discourse…”

Very little power…

If he’d gone to the mat with these jerks two years ago, he wouldn’t have affected the discourse; he’d have owned it.

Watching the clap-louder-cheerleaders get glassy-eyed because of:

“Don’t call my bluff…”

“We have to eat our peas”…(my fave, coming from a preznint who’s been dutifully gnoshing on republican turds for 30 months.)

and “I’m going to the american people…”

is black-humor hilarious.

The difficulty Cantor has is that a sizable part of his party will not vote for a debt increase under any circumstances. The only way it passes is with Democratic support. The Democrats have gone on record against the wholesale cuts Cantor demands.

“…that skeevy duo shadow-boxing away…”

One of the better descriptions of this little opera.

Also, probably a harbinger of the next 18 months, or so.

He already used his bullhorn to devastating effect. His putting Medicare and Social Security on the table accomplished that.

I don’t like obama, but continuous, short term increases are a repuke strategy to get more concessions each time. Screw ‘em.

I respectfully disagree. Cantor can hold his ground by passing a temporary increase in the debt limit in the House, thereby holding O hostage for more concessions. It’s a brilliant plan actually and the Koch’s would be all for it, because it avoids default while keeping the hostage situation alive.

Republicans want deregulation and tax cuts. Where tax cuts lead, social security and medicare will follow, but they don’t need to go there now. They have zero incentive to facilitate O’s grand bargain because it would hurt them politically with people who favor that sort of thing. Meanwhile O is hurting himself with those of us who don’t.

The President is an idiot and it becomes more painfully obvious each and every day. His gambit was based only on the interest of establishment Republicans and establishment Dems (i.e., the Wall Street government). He never took into account the influence of the true believer Teapers in the House. How he could have not noticed them, given their previous hostage-taking is inexplicable. His political team is completely incompetent.

I think that the strategy of the Democrats was to say “we’re willing to put Medicare and Social Security on the table” knowing that the Republicans would refuse to bargain. What’s happening is that even the beltway echo chamber can’t ignore the lunacy of the Republicans now.

I don’t see how Cantor gets his Tea Party faction to vote for a debt limit increase under any circumstances. Without those votes he can’t do anything. I think Obama knows this. The leverage is actually on the Democratic side. House is split 240 R – 192 D.

I suppose he figures that argument only adds weight to his “we must cut it to save it” approach. After all, he’ll say, if we can’t afford to pay it now….

Why can’t Cantor call Obama’s bluff?

The US Senate.

Obama gave and gave and gave. Then he snapped. Only one way out, end the bogus war on terror. He has the power. If there isn’t enough money, he decides what to support. Call the Senate democrats in and craft a real kick-ass strategy. Close the military bases in the South and overseas.

Whether it passes with bipartisan support or just with the Democrats, I’m still not seeing how Obama vetoing it hurts the Republicans.

Latest from Reutors and Huffington and TPM is that both republicans and democrats say “Cantor’s got to go.”

And Reid and McConnell are hatching their own plan.

If it needs Democratic support, it’s not going to be short-term and won’t be vetoed. I think the Democrats are on the same page this time. It’s the Republicans who are divided.

That’s not how ‘the American people’ will see it but apparently he doesn’t have a clue about that. Michelle Bachman is already running full throttle with the idea that Obama is selling out seniors. (By the way, interesting comparison between ‘my base’ and ‘the American people’. What’s different about those two groups, and why, pray? Used to be they were one and the same pretty much. No longer.)

I go along with the idea expressed on another thread that Obama WANTS an austerity program that is straight out of the Shock and Awe handbook. And he thinks he’s running out of time to make that indelible mark on history. Neoliberalism in spades. It’s the only thing that makes sense out of his ‘seize the moment’ comments.

FDL: where “progressives” believe Eric Cantor’s take, and think Obama’s lying to them.

In a two party system is basically impossible to create a bad political situation for everyone. It is zero-sum. If all fall it only matters who falls farther.

How can they say with any credibility that they need more time to negotiate. They’ve already proven beyond any doubt that they’re simply not willing to negotiate at all.

If Obama actually stood for something other than serving the interests of the kleptocrat class, then the whole thing might be interesting. Unfortunately both he and the Republicans are right-wing ideologue shills. Nothing good could possibly come out of this for the people or the country.

His political team, indeed. As Matt Taibbi wrote recently,

Krugman seems to believe that Obama has basically purged all of his real economic advisors and is doing what Bush did on foreign policy — engaging in complex and portentous policy initiatives at the behest not of experts, but political advisors. Just as Bush had Karl Rove telling him when and how to launch military invasions and drop bombs on unsuspecting foreign human beings in order to establish electoral credentials, Obama might be playing chicken with the budget for the benefit of undecideds in Florida and Ohio:

Some of what we’re hearing is presumably coming from the political team, whose members seem to believe that a move toward Republican positions, reminiscent of former President Bill Clinton’s “triangulation” in the 1990s, is the key to Mr. Obama’s re-election. And Mr. Clinton did, indeed, rebound from a big defeat in the 1994 midterms to win big two years later. But some of us think that the rebound had less to do with his rhetorical move to the center than with the five million jobs the economy added over those two years — an achievement not likely to be repeated this time, especially not in the face of harsh spending cuts.

The blindness of the DLC-era “Third Way” Democratic Party continues to be an astounding thing. For more than a decade now they have been clinging to the idea that the path to electoral success is social liberalism plus laissez-faire economics – in other words, get Wall Street and corporate America to fund your campaigns, and get minorities, pro-choice and gay marriage activists (who will always frightened into loyalty by the Tea Party/Christian loonies on the other side) to march at your rallies and vote every November. They’ve abandoned the unions-and-jobs platform that was the party’s anchor since Roosevelt, and the latest innovations all involve peeling back their own policy legacies from the 20th century. Obama’s new plan, for instance, might involve slashing Medicare and Social Security under “pressure” from the Republicans.

Yes how dare progressive cite Huffington post.

FDL– where the obamabots get ticked off daily because EVERYTHING is taken with a grain of salt regardless of party.

Yes, he’s a supreme disappointment.

I think you’re onto something with the dichotomy between “my base” and “the american people”. The Republican party’s base has shifted so far to the right that the bulk of the electorate (who are independents or loosely affiliated to a party) are defecting in droves. I think that Obama knows this. The difficulty is that most americans aren’t as liberal as most of the visitors to this site either. So the fact that he isn’t as liberal as that causes people to paint him as a Neoliberal. If he were, the admittedly flawed healthcare act wouldn’t have been an agenda item.

VA benefits for existing veterans already receiving benefits go out on the 1st of each month. September would be problematic, not August.

Agreed. This WH could paint itself into a corner in the middle of infinity. Happy Bastille Day everyone!

Logically, if President Obama offers a clean bill and the Republicans refuse it, they are then liable for all the bad consequences.

Everything talked about is short-term just it is a question of how short a term. The Democrats are neither proposing balanced budgets nor are they proposing a $10T increase, so that means we’ll be back to this again and again under all proposals out there.

I really don’t think he cares who he hangs it on. I think all he cares about is the end game- that he cuts those social programs.

The difficulty is that most americans aren’t as liberal as most of the visitors to this site either.

No, that’s not the difficulty. The difficulty is that Obama is to the right of the average Republican.

The odds of him offering a clean bill are pretty slim when you consider raising medicare age was his own brainchild.

If he didn’t have a history of lying then people might believe him.

Starting with Guantanamo, public option, transparency and keep going down the line and you understand exactly why no one here believes him.

Intelligent people look at words and actions when questioning veracity.

Cantor, a legend in his own mind. Cut aid to Israel and see how quickly he folds.

That ain’t necessarily good considering Reid made a statement the other day saying Social Security was on the table.

http://www.lvrj.com/news/reid-open-to-social-security-changes-if-part-of-big-compromise-125442753.html

I trust Reid as far as I can throw him and I don’t have a great throwing arm.

Why would Cantor or anyone want to short T Bills because the U.S. government might default? Think about it. If the U.S. defaults the interest rates on T Bills will soar dramatically. They won’t just become worthless because sooner or later we’ll raise the debt limit, but by then they’ll have much higher interest.

Most people start to learn to negotiate when they are children, when they are almost completely at a disadvantage on every count.

Apparently, the President never got the car from his mum to go out with his friends on Friday night.

I don’t trust obama or the republicans to do the right thing at this point. After the health care debacle, bank reform, etc. I wonder just how much of this whole pile of crap was staged for the purpose of appeasing voters in both parties. I would not put it past them to be colluding to pull the wool over our eyes in order to do what their corporate overlords want them to do—–to us.

Malinowski I have to clap for you also.

You heard Obama say he was going to do the following. You attended all of the speeches where Obama said he would do what is listed below.

Again I clap for you

the professional left, considers OBAMA a liar, base on the list below

1. Reneged on pledge to filibuster FISA Amendments Act (July 2008)
2. Lobbied for $700 billion Paulson TARP bank bailout
3. Pushed for no sanctions against Lieberman despite his support for John McCain
4. Nominated healthcare company lobbyist Tom Daschle as Secretary of HHS
5. Had neoliberal Robert Rubin as his chief economics adviser
6. Then had the equally neoliberal Larry Summers assume this role
7. Chose the failing upwards Timothy Geithner to head Treasury
8. AIG bonuses and money to Goldman under Obama
9. Doubling down in Afghanistan
10. Delay and reduction of withdrawal from Iraq
11. Moving Guantanamo activities to Bagram
12. Military commissions for some detainees
13. Support for indefinite detention
14. Refusal to release torture photos under FOIA
15. Refusal to investigate and prosecute Bush era criminality
16. Geithner’s DOA economic rescue programs: the PPIP and TALF
17. Minimal help for homeowners and no cramdowns
18. Treatment of Chrysler and GM with bankrupcy compared to bank no fail “stress tests”
19. Kabuki of TARP repayment by banks while still dependent on government credit lines
20. Extra-Constitutional use of the Fed by the Executive for fiscal policy
21. Credit Card bill without usury caps and with 9 month delay for other reforms
22. Business friendly Mary Schapiro named to head SEC
23. Gary Gensler who helped deregulate derivatives named to head CFTC
24. $787 billion stimulus: too little, too late, poorly structured
25. Use of financial crisis to attack Social Security and Medicare
26. The great healthcare non-debate
27. Continued use of state secrets argument in ongoing Bush era cases
28. Use of signing statements, including one to punish whistleblowers
29. Vetting process problems, especially tax related ones
30. Leaving Dawn Johnsen’s nomination to head OLC twisting in the wind
31. Eric Holder, failure to reform DOJ, not removing worst of Bush USAs
32. Failure to move against new oil bubble
33. Retention of Bush Defense team: Gates, Patraeus, and Odierno
34. Continued missile strikes inside Pakistan
35. Keeping Bush’s domestic spying programs and adding a new one, cybersecurity
36. Choice of Elena Kagan who favors expansive Presidential powers as Sollicitor General, her subsequent nomination to the Supreme Court
37. Leaving EFCA (to help counter anti-union companies) to wither in Congress
38. Welcoming Arlen Specter who brings nothing to the Democrats into the party
39. Weak ineffective proposals for financial reform
40. Obama wanted John Brennan at CIA but settled for making him his counter- terrorism adviser
41. Chas Freeman with broader Mideast perspective done in by AIPAC
42. Dennis Blair made DNI; failed to act to stop atrocities in East Timor
43. Choice of McChrystal involved in torture in Iraq to head Afghanistan command
44. Obama threat to suspend intelligence cooperation with UK over Binyam Mohamed case
45. Efforts to keep Bush and Obama White House logs secret
46. Playing games with “Don’t ask, don’t tell”
47. Filing a brief to overturn Jackson (access to lawyer) in the Montejo case
48. Not withdrawing Bush brief in Osborne DNA case
49. Egregious brief in challenge to Defense of Marriage Act
50. The Supplemental which made Iraq and Afghanistan Democratic wars
51. Choice of Rahm Emanuel as the President’s Chief of Staff
52. Choice of Dennis Ross as Iran envoy and then his move to the White House
53. Politically embarrassing processes to fill Obama and Clinton’s Senate seats
54. Choice of Bill Richardson, then Judd Gregg to head Commerce Department
55. Reneging on pledge to re-negotiate NAFTA
56. Obama’s throwing his pastor Jeremiah Wright to the curb, then reaching out to religious conservative Rick Warren
57. Continued challenges to habeas corpus petitions over indefinite detention, the Janko case
58. The Obama White House website
59. Continuing an ineffective program that Iran can exploit politically
60. Going slow on climate change when there is no time to
61. Not withdrawing a Bush-era amicus brief in the Ricci v. DeStefano reverse discrimination case and supporting a rollback of Title VII
62. Appointment of a CIA General Counsel who doesn’t know if waterboarding is torture
63. Appointment of a DNI General Counsel who doesn’t know if waterboarding is torture
64. CIA delay in a FOIA request concerning torture
65. The influence of Goldman Sachs in the Obama Administration
66. Attempt to keep secret the Cheney interview on the Plame affair
67. Mountaintop removal under Obama
68. Attempt to restrict Congressional notification on intelligence matters
69. Opposition to a second stimulus
70. Another egregious attempt to fight a habeas corpus petition in the Jawad case
71. Continuing charter schools and standardized tests
72. Holder’s decision to support a weak, narrow review of torture
73. Re-appointment of Ben Bernanke as Fed Chairman
74. Continuing renditions
75. Politically dubious company was used to vet reporters in Afghanistan
76. Judge vetoes a too weak SEC plea bargain with Bank of America
77. Justice’s argument for making Bagram a new Guantanamo, the al Maqaleh case
78. Defense to turn over databases to poorly controlled fusion centers
79. Obama changes but keeps Bush’s Star Wars program
80. Failure to win an Israeli freeze on settlements
81. White House refuses to back its own staffer environmentalist Van Jones
82. Politicized US Attorney in the Siegelman case cleared by Office of Special Counsel
83. Criticism of Iranian nuclear program; support of Israeli nuclear weapons
84. Support for a weakened reporter’s shield law
85. Use of the Zazi case to retain broad Patriot Act surveillance provisions
86. Wilner v. NSA, continuing the coverup of warrantless surveillance of communications between attorneys and detainees
87. Attempt to spike the Goldstone report on Israeli-Hamas war crimes in Gaza
88. Slowness in filling federal judgeships
89. Inadequate aid to overwhelmed state budgets
90. Attempting to dodge the Supreme Court deciding whether innocent Guantanamo detainees can be resettled in the US
91. Allowing drilling in the waters off the north coast of Alaska
92. Keeping detainee accounts of CIA torture secret
93. Current FBI manual allows for widespread domestic spying
94. Securitization invalidates most foreclosures
95. Geithner wanting unlimited powers to save large banks
96. Another state secrets defense to conceal domestic spying
97. Circuit Court dismissal of Maher Arar suit
98. Weakening Sarbanes-Oxley and calling it financial reform
99. Unemployment
100. Inspector General for Fannie and Freddie ousted for investigating fraud
101. Gaming courts to convict Guantanamo detainees
102. White House counsel removed for his principled stands on torture and Guantanamo
103. US seizes mosques claiming Iranian connection
104. Howard Dean removed as head of the DNC
105. Scientist with close ties to Monsanto put in charge of all governmental agricultural research
106. Pesticide lobbyist nominated as Chief Agricultural Negotiator for trade
107. Effort to let some government contractors avoid paying taxes
108. A bad US Attorney nomination for Northern Iowa
109. Hunger in America
110. The breast cancer recommendations fiasco
111. Ongoing confusion and disorganization in the military commissions process
112. Phillip Carter another official in closing Guantanamo resigns
113. Refusal to sign anti-land mine treaty
114. The Ghizzawi case and the legal limbo of “cleared for release”
115. Black prisons at Balad and Bagram
116. Delay in declassifying historic documents
117. Max Baucus’ conflicts of interest in healthcare and with his girlfriend
118. Major security breach at a White House party and a ridiculous assertion of “executive privilege”
119. Dana “Pig Missile” Perino nominated to the Broadcasting Board of Governors
120. Cass Sunstein, an anti-regulator in a regulatory position
121. Warrantless for profit electronic surveillance by telecoms and search engines
122. The government sides with torture lawyer John Yoo and attacks Bevins actions again
123. The TSA publishes its security manual online
124. Toxic legal arguments in al Zahrani v. Rumsfeld, yet another Bevins action
125. The Nobel Peace Prize and a neocon acceptance speech
126. Blackwater’s involvement in military and CIA assassination and drone programs
127. Congressional Research Service censorship in the firing of Morris Davis
128. AIG writes off $25 billion in debt and sticks taxpayers with the bill
129. The Administration plays hardball to kill an amendment that would lower drug costs
130. A poorly considered blank check to Fannie and Freddie
131. Continuing a Bush botch in the Nisoor Square massacre case
132. Jonathan Gruber, a major defender of Obamacare was also a paid consultant for it
133. A Geithner related cover up of the AIG at par payments on swaps
134. Adoption of stealth signing statements
135. al Bihani, more bad legal reasoning in another Guantanamo habeas case
136. Cutting Medicare and Social Security by deficit commission proposed
137. A 3 year non-freeze budget freeze proposed
138. NASA flights privatized
139. OPR report on Yoo and Bybee watered down and its relation to the Padilla case
140. Government targeting of US citizens for assassination
141. Abuse of informants by ICE agents
142. Obama leaves Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board empty
143. Obama backs firing of teachers in Rhode Island
144. Irish human rights advocate Edward Horgan has US visa pulled
145. Threatened veto of 2010 Intelligence Authorization Act over Congressional notifications
146. Obama Administration intimidation of whistleblowing site: wikileaks
147. Fish and Wildlife Service continues to ignore science on endangered species
148. Senate vacation more important than jobless benefits
149. Government seeks to compel turnover of emails without a warrant
150. Obama goes after an NSA whistleblower: the Thomas Drake case
151. Obama goes after a CIA whistleblower: the James Risen case
152. Weakening Miranda rights in national security cases
153. Advocating the privatizing of public housing
154. Another step in making Bagram the new Guantanamo, the al Maqaleh case, the appeals court edition
155. Massey mining disaster, 29 die because of corporate greed and poor regulation
156. Obama proposal for a line item veto
157. A military commander allowed to use military forces for intelligence operations without Presidential approval
158. Political pandering in sending 1200 National Guardsmen to the Southwest border
159. A sad record on resisting Guantanamo habeas petitions
160. Israel attacks an aid convoy for Gaza; Obama punts
161. A further erosion of Miranda: Berghius v. Thompkins
162. Naming James Clapper, a Bush appointee, to be the next DNI
163. DOJ seeks to protect Vatican in sex abuse scandal
164. Yahya Wehelie, an American exiled without charge
165. Failure to replace National Labor Relations Board members means hundreds of decisions must be reviewed
166. SCOTUS opts for overly broad definition of material support to terrorist groups
167. Speaker Pelosi backstabs Social Security
168. Complaints by government scientists of political interference at Bush era levels
169. Flip flop on free trade agreement with Colombia
170. SEC declares major victory but lets Goldman off easy
171. Private contracting of intelligence continues under Obama
172. Two Guantanamo prisoners to be deported back to Algeria against their will
173. The Shirley Sherrod affair: trumped up charges of racism and a bungled response
174. Whitewash report on Bush era US Attorney firings
175. Despite its record, Blackwater still gets big US government contracts
176. Wikileaks releases government files showing Pakistan involvement with Taliban and admission that things are going poorly in Afghanistan
177. Obama seeks to get access to everyone’s web histories without a court order
178. Teacher funding sacrificed to keep Education Secretary Arne Duncan happy
179. State’s top Iran hand resigns over Obama’s Iran policy
180. Citizens United: validation of unlimited corporate political funding
181. Push to expand US arms sales around the world
182. Project Vigilant, Infragard and “volunteer” corporate spying for the government
183. Obama’s approval hits Bush levels in Arab world
184. Effort to pre-empt state environmental lawsuits involving green house gases
185. Justice’s Anti-trust division asleep at the wheel
186. Kagan’s recusals render her even more ineffective on the Supreme Court
187. Poverty level highest since 1994
188. Courts run interference for corporate violators of international law
189. Warren named to set up but not to run Consumer Financial Protection Board
190. Chief economic adviser Larry Summers leaves; Obama looks for someone even more pro-business to replace him
191. DOJ IG report goes soft on Bush era surveillance against peace groups and other activists; meanwhile the Obama Administration conducts raids against similar groups
192. Move to put backdoors in the internet to facilitate spying and more requirements on banks on international money transfers of any size
193. HHS Secretary Sebelius delays for at least two years required insurance coverage for contraception
194. Americans on Medicaid increased to 48.5 million in 2009
195. Big home lenders suspend foreclosures as their documentation gets challenged in court
196. HR 3808, a bill passed by Congress, to facilitate the acceptance of false documentation by banks in foreclosure proceedings
197. ICE raids and deportations increase under Obama
198. Social Security COLA frozen for second straight year; no action taken
199. Waivers for military aid to countries with child soldiers
200. Big and deserved losses in the 2010 elections

I really don’t like Eric Cantor, but him asking OBAMA to write down his entitlement cuts, was priceless.

malinowski? you also believe that OBAMA can discuss cutting Social Security, Medicare, and Medicade and win in 2012. yet again I clap for you

Do you believe in Fairy Tales malinowski? because the idea of the first black president attacking the new deal and winning is a fairy tale.

> The odds of him offering a clean bill are pretty slim
> when you consider raising medicare age was his own brainchild.

Ya, and when you consider it should have been his first, and final, offer.

What he should have said is:

“Eric, I’m not bluffing.”

His actual statement could be read as:

“You’re right, I’m bluffing, but pretty please with a cherry on top, please don’t call me on it. It will be bad for the country.”

Of some interest is that Boehner is using Cantor as surrogate trasher-of-the-president. Tan-John doesn’t want go too far over the line, and saying that negotiating with the white House is like negotiating with jello, is about as far as he’ll go, until and unless the polls show Obama starting to slide, at which point, he’ll take over from Cantor and rattle Obama’s own balls at him, to remind him who’s boss.

spot on

Sweet Jesus, if there’s one thing that I’m sure of, it’s that Barack Obama has lied to us, early and often.

“…but him asking Obama to write down his entitlement cuts was priceless…”

Man, I hadn’t heard THAT. It is priceless.

Is there anything about all this bad comedy that more clearly indicates just how little the republicans respect and fear Barack Obama? Jed, you didn’t make that up did you? It’s really wicked. :o)

PEOPLE! I want to encourage all of you to STOP taking all this seriously. This is a Big Con. The end of the con was fixed a long time ago. It will be a “compromise” with nothing but cuts, probably about 1.75 trillion dollars. Obama gives up his revenue increase, but sells it as still having tax increases in 2013. The Republicans give up their one to one on cuts to increasing the debt limit, but sell it as serious cuts. The so called Progressives in congress and the punditry sell it as not cutting medicare or social security.

Paying attention to the back and forth until the final end game is letting them play us with their redirection.

All of this stuff between Cantor and Obama or between McConnel and Obama and which one’s winning and which one’s losing is just part of the redirection.

It was the first thing I thought. This is a bunch of crap aided by republican media villagers. I have had my issues about the President, and his ‘negotiating skills’, but I don’t believe for a minute the President said ‘Don’t call my bluff’.
I really feel thys meme should be stepped on for the disinformation/misdirection that is is.
cantor is an annoying obsequious little weasel and I’m sure the President reached the end of his willingness to suffer that little fool for the day.

“I really feel thys meme should be stepped on for the disinformation/misdirection that is is”

Obama has already publicly said he’d veto a debt limit increase, so whether or not he said those specific words to Cantor it is merely an addendum to his indisputable public statements.

Nope? I can’t make this stuff up

Grover repeated this on NPR this morning to Diana

Eric Cantor wants Obama to put his cuts in writing.

GOP strategist know, Obama can’t do it, because it would it kill him in 2012.

this is why, I think Obama will be seeking the exit soon, to end this shock docrine plot gone wild. for LOL

Dem senators have got to be very, very, nervous, cutting Social Security would end their careers quick, due to the Gov. Walker effect.

Nancy Pelosi has went hard left due to the Gov. Walker effect.

What is the Gov. Walker effect, Obama was aiming to depress Dems in 2012, and keep Unions on the side line, to make the election look like Clinton second election.

However, Gov. Walker and the other GOP crazy governors, are making 2012 look like 2008, which means UNIONS will be involve big time, and not really looking to help OBAMA, which is very funny.

when the dust settles in Nov 2012
House goes Dems
Senate goes Dems
white house goes GOP

Nancy knows this, and she can’t be playing ball with OBAMA, who most new Dems will hate.

They ain’t redirecting me at all.

The point is to try and control the end game by appealing to the self interest of the plutocrats in Congress, barring that you elect his opponent(and work to create a system that is better than just 2 bad choices.)

Reid may screw the pooch on this one.

He’s put cuts to programs on the table(of course it isn’t his neck on the line this go around).

“…is just part of the re-direction.”

I don’t think so.

I don’t believe that this would be coming out as part of script, except, that the repubs had scripted their tactics when they went in, and they obviously included having this little dog-turd flunky of a congressman beard the president of the United States by asking him to write down the entitlement progams he’d be willing to cut to placate them.

It’s not rocket science; we’re watching the GOP neuter Barack Obama.

Their only fear is that if they take too much advantage of the rehab job he did on them, they can reduce him to the status of a puddle of bi-partisan urine, and if they do that, they might turn him into a sympathy figure for 2012.

Of course, if the economy is still sinking in the swamp, and the wars are still going strong, etc, it may be that utterly ruining him will be political euthanasia, and ollie-ollie-in-free for the White House…
which looks to be the case, anyway.

BTW, thanks Jed, for the follow-up. Not sure about the dems taking both houses. If Obama goes down, I think he’s going to take a shitload of democrats with him.

The GOP will be defending 10 seats in the Senate. The Democrats 20. There is a real good chance the Senate may go red considering how it’s split now.

FDL: where “progressives” believe Eric Cantor’s take, and think Obama’s lying to them.

It’s the Professional Left (PL), you know, and “it” seems filled with cynicism. Accusing Obama of being cynical is apparently projection from the PL on steroids.

Obama did not say anything close to “Don’t call my bluff, that’s just Cantor (here’s that word again) projecting what he’d wished Obama had said so he could look better.

Obama is really a whipped dog, but what can you expect if you roll over for the pukes everytime.

A bit of a rare moment, but I agree with Jon completely. Obama should never have said he’d veto a short extension. He compounded his error by saying, “Don’t call my bluff,” basically announcing that, as everyone suspected, he was in actuality bluffing.

Not exactly the sharpest knife in the drawer.

The President is only an idiot and his political team incompetent, if you’re working from the assumption that he’s representing the majority of US citizens, rather than the plutocracy. His actions refute that assumption.

The Republicans are already trying to shift the responsibility for the debt ceiling unto Obama. From their perspective, I see no reason why, on July 29th, the GOP shouldn’t bring to the floor a 30 day increase paired with a small amount of some of the most politically palatable budget cuts. They could message such a move with something like, “we need more time but we are unwilling to risk the full faith of the US credit.”

If Obama rejects the short term increase, Republicans will wash their hands and claim whatever bad happens to the economy happened because of a default that is now totally Obama’s fault for unreasonably rejecting their modest request for more time.

Either Obama will be forced to break his veto promise, forced to prove he lied about August 2nd being the drop dead date, or risk allowing the GOP to have a believable story for why Obama should be solely blamed for the bad economic consequences of default.

At this point I see no good reason, from a political perspective, why Cantor shouldn’t call Obama’s bluff.

I don’t agree with much on Firedoglake, but I think you have this pretty much spot on. From a STRICTLY POLITICAL standpoint, Cantor should present a short-term debt ceiling hike. Perhaps not as short as 30 days… if I were in Cantor’s position and only concerned about the political impact, I would push for something more along the 6-12 months that a debt ceiling raise normally covers.

Of course Canter will call his bluff. He has little to lose. Obama has allowed, or with his mastered planned, to be painted into a corner. And not just any corner, this particular corner where everything comes down to the services of the little people which they actually prepaid or the big bad hairy debt ceiling that has been there since they started on their never ending war and pillaging wingding..

A bit of reality that has been dismissed from this phony fallacy that has been massaged into place by the elite running GovCorp that demand the control of a new windfall of funds. Their next mother lode at the expense of the American people. And I’m sure the bankers are drooling over all the grandmas’ houses they will be able to shove in their bulging portfolios as well. Can’t skip desert, not these fat cats.

There are about a zillion areas that the government could go in and cut other than SS. This whole little script is almost comical, if it wasn’t real, that the wealthiest fat cats want the old people on SS to be the place where the money is taken. It’s like something out of freaking Batman comic book. These story lines gravitate to the most preposterous black and white injustices and juxtapositions. This just shows how sick these Republicans and DINOs are. F’ing ridiculous.