Paul Ryan Wants Budget Conference (Updated)

Updated 3:42 p.m. ET | House Budget Chairman Paul D. Ryan, R-Wis., told reporters Thursday morning that he intends to go to conference on the budget, signaling the end to one of the year’s greatest impasses between the two parties and chambers.

“We’re gonna start negotiations,” Ryan said. “I intend to go to conference.

“I think when Leader Pelosi said that they would remove all the motions to instruct, that was a good-faith effort to get serious negotiations going,” he continued. “We intend to go to conference on that. As you know, a budget resolution is not sufficient to do all that we need to do, but it’s a step in the right direction.”

Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., flanked by other members of Democratic leadership, announced Oct. 5 that her party was prepared to forfeit its right to offer “motions to instruct” should Republicans name conferees to merge the House and Senate budgets. That removed the threat of forcing Republicans having to take numerous politically difficult but nonbinding votes.

Speaker John A. Boehner made mention of a budget conference as part of an overall offer to President Barack Obama that would extend the debt ceiling for six weeks but not reopen the government.

“What we’re going to do is offer the president the ability to move a temporary increase in the debt ceiling [and] an agreement to go to conference on the budget for his willingness to sit down and discuss with us a way forward to reopen the government and start to deal with America’s pressing problems,” the Ohio Republican said.

Senate Democrats have held the position that both the debt ceiling and the current government shutdown must be addressed before moving into broader negotiations on the top-line spending levels for fiscal 2014 and other budgetary changes.

“We think the only way out of this cycle of constant crises is for the two sides to work together, make some compromises, and get to a fair and responsible long term deal,” Senate Budget Chairwoman Patty Murray said Wednesday. “But it just doesn’t make sense to do that while families and communities are being hurt by this government shutdown and while the threat of a default hangs over our head.”

The Washington Democrat made the comments on the Senate floor while making yet another request for a budget conference committee upon action to avert a default and get the government funded.

Via: Roll Call

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Paul Ryan’s Missing Op-Ed

Congressman Paul Ryan penned an op-ed in today’s Wall Street Journal forging a path to “ending this stalemate.”  What is amazing about this op-ed is what it fails to mention.  Amidst the garrulous piece on Medicare reform, Social Security, and tax policy, there is not one word about the very impetus for this so-called stalemate – Obamacare.

Ryan rightfully notes that this is “our moment to get a down payment on the debt and boost the economy. But we have to act now.”

There is nothing that affects the debt and economy more than the consummation of a new entitlement into our welfare state.  What better way to jump-start the economy than by pre-empting the worst piece of legislation from taking effect?

This op-ed is a confirmation of our worst fears.  Over the past few days, many in GOP leadership have been privately and publicly shifting the focus of this battle from Obamacare to a grand bargain over tax policy and entitlement reform in the abstract.  This is the road to cave city.  It is simply absurd to suggest that we ignore Obamacare yet fight on other things for a number of reasons:

1)      Social Security has been around since the ‘30s; Medicare has been around since the ‘60s; the tax system has been around for decades.  We’re not getting rid of any of this any time soon.  We are left with just a few ideas to tweak these programs.  That opportunity is not going away any time soon. Obamacare, on the other hand, is just taking root now.  Why would we ignore the most imminent threat for a long-term policy problem?

2)      Social Security and Medicare are very popular, and people are leery of any changes, even ones that we think are positive.  So we are going to ditch the fight over Obamacare, which is extremely unpopular, to fight for Medicare reform?  Really, Paul Ryan?  And they think we are politically stupid?

3)      How in the world are we going to implement Medicare premium support on top of a healthcare system built on Obamacare?  If you are a Republican who believes the fight against Obamacare is lost, which is presumably the view of Paul Ryan, then stop deluding yourself into thinking we will implement Medicare reform.

Via: Red State

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Need health care coverage? Just dial 1-800-F**KYO to reach Obamacare’s national hotline

Need health insurance? The Obama administration has you covered. Simply dial 1-800-FUCKYO to reach the next available health-care provider.

Far from being a mistype, that’s the official number that Health and Human Services wants Americans to dial when seeking health care. Obamacare’s national call center really did list its number as 1-800-318-2596, helpfully spelling out President Barack Obama’s tendency to blatantly flip the bird in plain view.

After allowing for the lack of letters attached to 1 on a traditional American telephone keypad, the number spells out a clear message. For every duped voter, every young invincible weighing the cost of a penalty versus a newly tripled yearly deductible, every ailing old granny in a wheelchair (whom, remember, Paul Ryan wants to push off a cliff) who needs adequate and affordable health care, Obama’s message is:

1-800-3(F) 8(U) 2(C) 5(K) 9(Y) 6(O).

That’s 1-800-FUCKYO. Sadly, the Obama administration failed to swap the useless 1 for a more functional 8 to complete the heartfelt message, perhaps in consolation to former White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel’s tragically shortened middle finger.

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius launched a media campaign this week to propagandize the transformative health-care overhaul. She compared the sweeping, coercive law that gives government huge power over the health-care industry to an iPhone system update.

“Everyone just assumes, “Well, there’s a problem, they’ll fix it, we’ll move on,’” Sebelius said about Apple’s iOS updates. “And like many of their customers, I put the ‘new’ system on my phone and went on my merry way, but it was just a reminder that we’re likely to have some glitches. We will fix them and move on. Is this a sign that the law is flawed and failed? I don’t think so. I think it’s a sign that we’re building a piece of complicated technology. We want it to work. We want it to work right. We’ve got an incredible team working 24/7 to do just that.”

“Hopefully they’ll give us the same slack they give Apple,” Sebelius said, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Via: Daily Caller

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Yes, Americans Like the Debt Ceiling – And it Matters

According to reports, House budget chairman Paul Ryan has been urging his colleagues to back off on the budget fight and focus on a debt ceiling showdown. In exchange for an increase in the legal limit on federal government borrowing, Ryan believes the GOP can demand a series of items in return; starting with a delay of Obamacare, the construction of the Keystone pipeline and other spending reforms.

It’s still doubtful Republicans will be able to extract any meaningful concessions on Obamacare, but the president’s “I will not negotiate” over the debt ceiling position is undermined by the inconvenient fact that he already did in 2011.  And, at the very least, depicting the conservative opposition as crazed nihilists becomes slightly more precarious for Democrats due to public opinion.

A new NBC/Wall Street Journal poll released last week finds that 44 percent of respondents are against raising the debt ceiling and only 22 percent believe it should be raised so the U.S. avoids “going into bankruptcy and defaulting on its obligations.” A third of those who answered are unsure.

A Reason-Rupe poll finds that 55 percent of Americans say they do not support raising the debt ceiling even if it causes the U.S. to default. With dollar-to-dollar spending cuts, 45 percent say they’d support raising it and 46 percent would still oppose.

Via: The Federalist

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Washington Builds a Bugaboo

How does Senator Ted Cruz tick off liberals? Let us count the ways.

Several times a day, especially if he’s out travelin’ and talkin’ to folks, as he always is when the U.S. Senate isn’t in session, Ted Cruz will stand before an audience and reflect, seemingly for the first time, about the generational shift taking place in the Republican party. 

Among that tiny fraction of Americans who are paying attention to such things, Cruz seems to be the only person who is forgetting Ted Cruz’s name. “I call them the Children of Reagan,” he says. He means the rising group of Republican officeholders who came to political consciousness during President Reagan’s two terms. He rattles off their names: “young leaders” like Paul Ryan, Rand Paul, Nikki Haley, Mike Lee, Scott Walker .  .  . and then sometimes he’ll pause, letting you wonder if he’s leaving out any of the Children’s names. Sometimes a helpful fan in the audience will volunteer it, to general appreciation from the crowd.

“Americans who worry about democracy need to keep on this guy,” warned a reporter for the New Republic back in February. And no wonder! Skim the tweets or scan the blogs or, if you’re older than one of Reagan’s Children, read the actual newspapers, and you’ll soon discover that Ted Cruz is far more than the freshman senator from Texas, only eight months in office. He is also the “scary” “McCarthyite” “Taliban” “bully” and “bomb-thrower” known for his “extremism” and his “arrogant” and “nihilistic” “disregard of facts.” 

When you follow him around, however—for he is in constant motion, from Iowa to New Hampshire to every corner of Texas—this nasty fellow you’ve been reading about, the caricature Cruz, never appears. If “Ted Cruz” didn’t exist, professional Democrats and the mainstreamers in the Washington press corps would have to invent him. 

Via: Weekly Standard

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Eleven Major Newspapers Switch To Romney, Only One To Obama

According to the University of California, Santa Barbara American Presidency Project study of the top 100 newspaper editorial endorsements, Mitt Romney has seen a vast wave of switches from 2008 Obama endorsers. Obama, meanwhile, has seen only one newspaper that endorsed John McCain come around to endorse him. At the same time, many newspapers have also switched from Obama to “no endorsement.”

Here are the stats. As of today, 11 newspapers that endorsed Obama in 2008 have now endorsed Mitt Romney:

• The New York Daily News;
• Long Island Newsday;
• Houston Chronicle;
• Fort Worth Star-Telegram;
• Orlando Sentinel;
• Ft. Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel;
• Nashville Tennessean;
• Des Moines Register;
• Illinois Daily Herald;
• Los Angeles Daily News;
• Los Angeles Press-Telegram.

The only newspaper that endorsed McCain in 2008 and has switched to Obama now is the San Antonio Express-News. Meanwhile, another seven papers that endorsed Obama in 2008 have switched to no endorsement.

Via: Breitbart

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Daily Presidential Tracking Poll Sunday November 4, 2012

The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Sunday shows the race tied with President Obama and Mitt Romney each attracting support from 49% of voters nationwide. One percent (1%) prefers some other candidate, and another one percent (1%) remains undecided. See daily tracking history.

These figures include both those who have already voted and those likely to vote. Obama leads among those who have already voted, while Romney leads among those deemed likely to vote. Thirty-nine percent (39%) of voters are projected to be Democrats and 37% Republicans. Both candidates do well within their own party, while Romney has a nine-point advantage among unaffiliated voters.

One key to the outcome on Election Day will be the racial and ethnic mix of the electorate. In 2008, approximately 74% of voters were white. The Obama campaign has argued that this will fall a couple of percentage points in 2012 with an increase in minority voting. Others have noted the increased enthusiasm among white voters and the decreased enthusiasm among Hispanic voters and suggest that white voters might make up a slightly larger share of the electorate this time around. It is significant because Romney attracts 58% of the white vote, while Obama has a huge lead among non-white voters.

If the white turnout increases on Election Day, it will be very difficult for the president to win. If it decreases, it will be very difficult for him to lose. Rasmussen Reports currently estimates that white turnout will be similar to the 2008 totals. Black voters, however, are far more likely to have voted already than any other segment of the electorate.

Matchup results are updated daily at 9:30 a.m. Eastern (sign up for free daily e-mail update). 

Just over one-out-of-four Americans (27%) say the upcoming election has negatively affected their personal relationship with a friend or family member.

The Rasmussen Reports Electoral College projections now show the president with 237 Electoral Votes and Romney 206. The magic number needed to win the White House is 270. Eight states with 95 Electoral College votes remain Toss-ups: Colorado,   Florida, Iowa, Nevada, New Hampshire, Ohio,Virginia and Wisconsin.



Via: Rasmussen Reports

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Ohio Union Goons Charged With Stealing Romney Yard Signs…

Perrysburg police today issued misdemeanor citations to four men for allegedly being in possession of stolen political signs.

Those charged with receiving stolen property included John Russell, 39, of Toledo, and Chris Monaghan 41, of Rossford, who are both listed on the Sheet Metal Workers Local 33 Web site as business agents for the union’s Toledo district.

The men were in a pickup truck registered to Local 33 in Parma, Ohio, police said.

Also cited were Corey J. Beaubien, 37, and Sean Bresler, 33, both of Toledo.

A Tea Party Web site reported Friday the truck was loaded with the campaign signs of GOP Presidential nominee Mitt Romney and running mate Paul Ryan. Perrysburg police did not confirm that, but a police incident report said that the summonses were issued about 12:30 a.m. in the 11100 block of Fremont Pike “after several reports were taken of political signs being stolen in the city of Perrysburg.”

Via: Toledo Blade

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BIG MO: RYAN TO MINNESOTA SUNDAY

This morning, the Romney campaign announced that Paul Ryan would go to Minnesota on Sunday for a pre-election campaign rally. Its a clear sign that the Romney campaign thinks Minnesota is winnable.  Where campaigns spend their time in the closing days of a race says much more about their view of the election than words repeated by campaign flacks. Candidates' time is a campaign's most precious resource, and it is deployed only if it's needed or can have an impact. 

You don't waste a candidate's time on a bluff in the final 48 hours. 

Last night, the campaign announced that Mitt Romney would go to Philadelphia on Sunday for a campaign rally. It is telling that both Romney and Ryan are spending some of the campaign's final hours in a bid for states that haven't voted GOP for president in decades. 

The Obama campaign has dismissed this as a sign the Romney campaign is "flailing." Yet, they have matched the GOP ads buys in the state and have dispatched Biden and Clinton to Pennsylvania and Minnesota. They have to be at least somewhat concerned that Romney could steal these states from them if they don't respond. That's a tell. So to that end, Obama will spend this weekend doing at least five events in Wisconsin and Iowa, two states he won by double-digits in 2008. 

Remember, in the closing days of the 2008, Obama devoted lots of time to states that had traditionally voted Republican. That wasn't a campaign "flailing", but rather one riding a wave of momentum and deep dissatisfaction with the Bush Administration. 

We'll know Tuesday if Romney will be able to repeat history.

Via Breitbart

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TRANSCRIPT: Mitt Romney Delivers Speech on the Economy

Today, Mitt Romney delivered remarks on the U.S. economy in Ames, Iowa. Read a transcript of the remarks below, as prepared for delivery:

Thank you all. It’s great to be back in Iowa. And don’t think that this is the last time you are going to see Paul Ryan and me, because you Iowans may well be the ones who decide what kind of America we will have, what kind of life our families will have.

The choice you make this November will shape great things, historic things, and those things will determine the most intimate and important aspects of every American life and every American family. This is an election about America, and it is an election about the American family.

All elections matter. This one matters a great deal. Over the years of our nation’s history, choices our fellow citizens have made have changed the country’s course–they were turning points of defining consequence.

Via: Fox news Insider

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Romney Jumps to 5-Point Lead in Gallup Poll

All registered voters are asked: "Suppose the presidential election were held today, and it included Barack Obama and Joe Biden as the Democratic Party's candidates and Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan as the Republican Party's candidates. Who would you vote for [ROTATED: Barack Obama and Joe Biden, the Democrats (or) Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan, the Republicans]?" Those who are undecided are further asked if they lean more toward Obama and Biden or Romney and Ryan and their leanings are incorporated into the results.

These results are for likely voters, who are the respondents Gallup deems most likely to vote based on their responses to a series of questions asking about current voting intentions, thought given to the election, and past voting behavior. Each seven-day rolling average is based on telephone interviews with approximately 2,700 likely voters; margin of error is ±2 percentage points.

Via: Gallup

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Paul Ryan: How Conservatism Helps the Poor

When it comes to explaining how their policies would help the poor and the disadvantaged, conservatives can all too often be likened to a football team that drives all the way to the one-yard line and then just kneels down. Rock-solid principles and policies drive them forward, but they fail to take that last extra little step and explain how these policies would help all Americans—especially those at the bottom who most need a hand up and a way out.

And because of this, the left’s grotesque claims that capitalism allows the 1 percent to fleece the 99 percent or that conservatism is a ploy to justify government of the rich, by the rich, and for the rich are left standing.

How exciting and invigorating, then, to see a prominent conservative clearly explain how conservative policies sustain the American Dream for all Americans. Yesterday in Cleveland, Representative Paul Ryan (R–WI) delivered one of the best speeches in recent memory that articulated the conservative vision of an America where prosperity and opportunity flourish and the “engines of upward mobility” are on full throttle.

It’s a must-read for those who want to learn how to make a compelling case for conservatism.

Via: The Foundry

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CHART: Paul Ryan Lays Out a Vision for Reforming Welfare, Fighting Poverty

In his speech today at Cleveland State University, Representative Paul Ryan (R–WI) laid out a vision for reforming the nation’s approach to poverty.

“With few exceptions, government’s approach has been to spend lots of money on centralized, bureaucratic, top-down anti-poverty programs,” Ryan stated. “The mindset behind this approach is that a nation should measure compassion by the size of the federal government and how much it spends.” This has “created and perpetuated a debilitating culture of dependency, wrecking families and communities.”

He’s right. Since the “War on Poverty” began five decades ago, the federal government hasspent nearly $20 trillion (adjusted for inflation) on what is now a welfare system consisting of over 80 programs. Total annual spending is now approaching $1 trillion. See our newly updated chart: (continues below chart)

The Foundry

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VP hopeful Paul Ryan energizes Moon crowd with campaign appearance

Republican vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan attacked President Obama’s policies on jobs and energy on Saturday morning during a quick stop near Pittsburgh International Airport.

The rally between appearances in the election battlegrounds of Florida and Ohio highlights what analysts consider a renewed emphasis on Pennsylvania as polls show the gap narrowing between Obama and Republican nominee Mitt Romney.

Ryan made a dramatic entry, walking on stage right off the plane at Atlantic Aviation in Moon and saying: “We are going to win Pennsylvania, and we are going to win this election.” Supporters twirled yellow Romney-Ryan towels in Terrible Towel fashion. The Secret Service estimated the crowd at 1,000.

The seven-term congressman from Wisconsin warned that Obama’s energy policies were hurting Americans, telling supporters to look no further than the gas pump for evidence.

“Look, gas prices are more than double what they were four years ago. Who knows what they’re going to be if he got four more years,” Ryan said.

“Not only are these policies wrong, not only do these policies cost us jobs, not only do they mean that American energy dollars go to the Middle East; they are keeping us from having a boon,” he said. “They are keeping us from having jobs. They are keeping us from making our paychecks stretch farther.”

Democrats responded before Ryan even landed.

“If we’ve learned anything over the last few weeks, we have learned that Mitt Romney will say anything to get elected,” Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald said as he stood with fellow Democrats at a small rally in the Airside Business Park. About 20 people attended the rally 90 minutes before Ryan spoke.

“Trying to cover up his own record, because over the last six years, he ran as a severely conservative candidate, and now just a few weeks before the election, he’s trying to turn himself into ‘Moderate Mitt.’ ”

Via: Trib Live

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