We have a visitor in Oldsmar today!

[Not_liking_FL]

Originally Posted by BucFan

The Washington Post's FactChecker, however, gave that Marketwatch article "3 pinocchios" for its lack of being truthful.

PolitiFact Wisconsin | President Obama 'built' nation's $16 trillion debt, GOP Rep. Reid Ribble says

We could probably keep doing this all night, but I think your original statement is wrong. This is part of the article above.

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2. Obama budgets and spending up each year

A May 2012 analysis by The Washington Post Fact Checker found that Obama's budgets have increased each year, from $3.27 trillion in 2009 to $3.65 trillion in 2012; and that Obama proposed more in spending each year than Congress ultimately approved.

So, the debt has increased significantly under Obama. But, despite Ribble’s claim, the responsibility goes far beyond the White House.

Other factors

When Republican New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said at the GOP convention that $5 trillion in debt had been added over the past four years, PolitiFact National rated his statement Mostly True. Our colleagues pointed out that while the figure was on target, the blame is bipartisan. Democrats had majorities in the Senate and House for two years of Obama’s presidency, but Republicans have controlled the House since January 2011. Moreover, our colleagues noted, much of the debt stems from entitlement spending policies that were set under past presidents and Congresses.

PolitiFact Ohio made similar points in June 2012 when it rated as Half True a statement by Rep. Jim Renacci, R-Ohio, that debt under Obama had risen $5 trillion -- more than any other president.

Our Buckeye colleagues noted that although Obama approved the stimulus bill and a deal to extend tax cuts, both of which contributed to the debt, Obama’s administration has cited decisions made under GOP President George W. Bush -- including tax cuts, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the Medicare prescription drug program -- as major contributors to the debt.

Our rating

Ribble said Obama "built this $16 trillion debt." His spokeswoman said Ribble meant that the debt had reached that level because of Obama.

But Ribble used the $16 trillion figure, not the roughly $5 trillion that the debt has increased under Obama. Moreover, the debt grew not only due to Obama’s actions, but those taken by present and past presidents and Congresses.

We rate Ribble’s statement False.

[thession]

Volunteered for the president when he came to Seminole. 10000 people packed into a small area. You would have thought mass kaos would ensue. I was very impressed on the way the people handle them selves. The poor, the young ,the elderly. the handicapped, the middle class all working together to make sure this event went off without a hitch. Proud to be a part of it .

[user8]

Originally Posted by Annie of Oldsmar

GOP VP candidate Paul Ryan to speak in Oldsmar today

People actually like him?

Holy crap. This country is doomed.

[thethinktank]

Originally Posted by BucFan

Thought we were told not to bring politics into the forum, but since several posters have, I'm wondering what our national debt will be in 2016 after another 4 yrs of Obamaspending. Any guesses? I say $20 trillion. Nice gift to leave our future generations. By the way, the higher the debt, the more money is going to be printed to pay it off, the less your savings accounts and 401(k)s will be worth due to inflation.

You just might want Paul Ryan in office some day to fix the mess we're in.

Here's a non-partisan look at the truths about Obama spending from data from the Congressional Budget Office. FactCheck.org : Obama’s Spending: ‘Inferno’ or Not?

The same CBO, ran by republicans and democrats in congress, totaled the amount added by the Bush tax cuts as $1.6 trillion prior to renewal. The same CBO totaled the amount spent in the Iraq war as $1.9 trillion. The same Iraq war where we didn't find those pesky WMDs that didn't exist.

You might be complaining about the TARP spending. Oh, wait, that was initiated by Bush.

You must be complaining about the stimulus. Oh wait, Bush did that back in 2002, and Paul Ryan encouraged congress to approve it.

Was it the auto bailouts? Those too were shared by Bush and expanded by Obama. And they worked.

I don't get what the crazy debt finger pointing is all about. Apparently, the only thing conservatives are liberal about is their memories.

[cupper3]

As a bit of an outsider (OK, I'm a Canadian looking to establish a base in the Tampa Bay area), I truly am concerned that this election is being discussed in terms of gays, abortion, religion, and societal values, when the huge elephant in the room is the national deficit. Your dollar is shrinking (good for me), you have a cluster cluck of a healthcare system, your SS is edgy (so is ours, BTW), yet no one is seriously discussing what needs to happen to address that elephant.

It is my sense that the politicians sense that the electors really only care about immediate issues, and not the longer term one. The USA deficit now exceeds your GDP, and the national debt will be in worse shape by 2020 than Greece is now.

What that means is that others, outside your country, will make the monetary decisions for you. I see that as a disaster. I truly wish there was a national uproar by the electorate THIS time around, and vote in any politician who is willing to get ahead of that parade.

I don't see it happening. Spin, denigration, cheap 'gotcha's' and assorted other utterances will be there in spades, but not anything substantive.

I truly wish you would look north, take a look at what Canada did in the early to late 1990's, and adapt that which you can in your circumstances. We had a lot of pain, but in the end, we are now fiscally and economically at the top of G8 countries, with the best banking system, and on track to be back in surpluses by 2015. The USA keeps raising this silly debt ceiling instead.

I truly wish this election mattered. I don't see it.