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[Barry Hufker]

15 things you should know about Obama's plan (but probably don't)

The plan:

  1. Makes a $634 billion down payment on fixing health care that will go a long way toward paying for a more efficient, more affordable health care system that covers every single American.3
     
  2. Reduces taxes for 95% of working Americans. And if your family makes less than $250,000, your taxes won't go up one dime.4
     
  3. Invests more than $100 billion in clean energy technology, creating millions of green jobs that can never be outsourced.5
     
  4. Brings our troops home from Iraq on a firm timetable, finally bringing the war to a close—and freeing up almost ten billion dollars a month for domestic priorities.6
     
  5. Reverses growing income inequality. The plan lets the Bush tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans expire and focuses on strengthening the middle class.7
     
  6. Closes multi-billion-dollar tax loopholes for big oil companies. 8
     
  7. Increases grants to help families pay for college—the largest increase ever.9

  8. Halves the deficit by 2013. President Obama inherited a legacy of huge deficits and an economy in shambles, but his plan brings the deficit under control as soon as the economy begins to recover.10
     
  9. Dramatically increases funding for the SEC and the CFTC—the agencies that police Wall Street.11
     
 10. Tells it straight. For years, budgets have used accounting tricks to hide the real costs of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Bush tax cuts, and too many other programs. Obama's budget gets rid of the smokescreens and lays out what America's priorities are, what they cost, and how we're going to pay for them.12

11. Stops unnecessary government subsidies to big banks, health insurance companies and big agribusinesses.13,14,15

12. Expands access to early childhood education and improves schools by investing in programs that make sure every child has a qualified, strong teacher.16

13. Negotiates for better prescription drug prices using Medicaid's tremendous bargaining power.17

14. Expands access to family planning for low-income women.18

15. Caps the pollution that causes global warming, and makes polluters pay to support clean energy innovation.19

Sources:

1. "Climate of Change," The New York Times, February 27, 2009
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/27/opinion/27krugman.html?em

2. "Obama Calls His Budget Sweeping, Needed Change," The New York Times, February 28, 2009
  http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51201&id=15687-3135466-g1Wy.kx &t=2

3. "Obama Offers Broad Plan to Revamp Health Care," The New York Times, February 26, 2009
  http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51202&id=15687-3135466-g1Wy.kx &t=3

4. "Obama Expects Fight Over $3.55 Trillion Budget Plan," Bloomberg News, February 28, 2009
  http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51203&id=15687-3135466-g1Wy.kx &t=4

5. "Energy Budget Is Sunlight After Eight Years of Darkness," Center for American Progress, February 26, 2009
  http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51204&id=15687-3135466-g1Wy.kx &t=5

6. "The Economic Cost of War in Iraq and Afghanistan," The New York Times, March 1, 2009
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/01/weekinreview/01glanz.html

7. "Tax Cuts," The New York Times, February 26, 2009
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/27/washington/27web-tax.html

8. "Energy Budget Is Sunlight After Eight Years of Darkness," Center for American Progress, February 26, 2009
  http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51204&id=15687-3135466-g1Wy.kx &t=6

9. "Student Loans," The New York Times, February 26, 2009
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/27/washington/27web-edu.html

10. "Obama unveils budget blueprint," CNN, February 26, 2009
http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/02/26/budget/

11. "Obama budget would boost SEC, CFTC, FBI," Reuters, February 26, 2009
  http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51205&id=15687-3135466-g1Wy.kx &t=7

12. "Obama's budget," Los Angeles Times, February 27, 2009
  http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51206&id=15687-3135466-g1Wy.kx &t=8

13. "Student Loans," The New York Times, February 26, 2009
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/27/washington/27web-edu.html

14. "Health Insurance Stocks Dive on Medicare Advantage Cuts," The Wall Street Journal, February 26, 2009
  http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51207&id=15687-3135466-g1Wy.kx &t=9

15. "Agriculture," The New York Times, February 26, 2009
  http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/27/washington/27web-agri.html

16. "Investing Wisely in Our Children," Center for American Progress, February 26, 2009
  http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51208&id=15687-3135466-g1Wy.kx &t=10

17. "Obama Offers Broad Plan to Revamp Health Care," The New York Times, February 26, 2009
  http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51202&id=15687-3135466-g1Wy.kx &t=11

18. "Obama Offers Broad Plan to Revamp Health Care," The New York Times, February 26, 2009
  http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51202&id=15687-3135466-g1Wy.kx &t=12

19. "Setting 'Green' Goals," The New York Times, February 26, 2009
  http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51209&id=15687-3135466-g1Wy.kx &t=13

[MDM,]

it all looks wonderful..

halving the deficit by 2013??



thing that leaves me perplexed is A) where is he gonna get the money to do all of this? B)How is he going to go against the wishes of the people who got 'us' here.

[organica]

if in a year or 2 we get hit with inflation like during the Carter years) , BO will be out quickly ....  wish him  luck .

re: thing 1 ;
Healthcare related ..... the source  credits  "thing one"  with no other action taken than spending money . what else is being done ,  what's the money for ....

here's some more good news from Jimmy Buffett's brother Warren

    http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/Berkshires-Buffett-cop     s-mistakes-likes/story.aspx?guid=%7B7DDFC3D1%2DE25A%2D4950%2 D819E%2DFA81BB9F9CBF%7D

[organica]

and here's another thing the government doesn't want you to know .

wake up and smell the coffee .

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/China-Argentina-settle -trade-yuan/story.aspx?guid=%7B9229A1CC%2D3B26%2D4694%2DA82C %2D1D24927C4433%7D

[compasspnt]

China is no longer an "emerging nation."

They now hold most of the cards.

[Barry Hufker]

And are not even a full member in the International Monetary Fund.  It's time to make them one so they can pony up some of the money for the rest of the world.

[MDM,]

barry,  isn't the IMF controlled by private banking entities?

China succumbing to the IMF might well happen but think about it

If the IMF goes through with the international currency they will control the worldwide economy with nobody watching over them

To me that is a recipe for disaster. There will be nowhere to escape whatever inflationary policy they dish out

[Barry Hufker]

President Obama stated just a few days ago he has no interest in a unified currency.  I see an opportunity where China becomes a major player but things are still under control.

[Berolzheimer]

The IMF has been the source of much evil in the world.  Read "The Shock Doctrine".

That said I think a global currency in itself might not be a bad idea.  Having all these different currencies on the world market, and the speculating on & trading of them, creates false value that has the effect of sucking money out of country's economies, & into speculator's  pockets- money that otherwise could be going to the workers in those countries that create actual value.  It's not unlike the hedge funds & other speculative devices that AIG & the other market vultures have been using to suck money out of our economy.  Unifying the global currency would just eliminate that artifice.

[Barry Hufker]

I understand "The Shock Doctrine" to be quite a fine book.

I can't say firsthand as I haven't read it.

OK, I haven't read any books in a long time.  Can you make it a one-minute youtube video?  If so, can you trim it down to 45 seconds just to eliminate "the fat"?

[cerberus]

here's something that artist drew friedman has noticed:


good ol' timothy geithner -  www.drawger.com/drewfriedman

jeff dinces

[YZ]

A unified currency is good.

Last week an acquaintance told me that his boss had made a wad of cash by trading currencies.

Over 4 days he got about 12% profit.

Not contributing anything to the economy of any place, not producing anything, not financing any development.

[Edvaard]

Quote:

President Obama stated just a few days ago he has no interest in a unified currency.

It's China that's making noise about a single currency, sort of;


     http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=a cneRCVQY09Y



"Central bank Governor Zhou Xiaochuan this week urged the International Monetary Fund to expand the use of so-called Special Drawing Rights and move toward a “super-sovereign reserve currency.” "


"The IMF’s Special Drawing Rights are monetary units valued against a composite of currencies. Zhou said they should be used for international trade, financial transactions and commodity pricing, rather than just between governments and international financial institutions. "


These are just units of account for now, not really a "medium of exchange" in the usual function of commerce, and not a store of value, so it's not money. It could be considered a template of sorts if a universal currency were desired, but I don't see that happening anytime soon.


"President Barack Obama affirmed support for the dollar at a press conference at the White House in Washington. “I don’t believe there is the need for a global currency,” Obama said.

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke told lawmakers at a House Financial Services Committee hearing that they rejected such a move. "


This is just China's 'central bank dude' doing a bit of chest puffing before the G-20 meeting, griping about the dollar while he's at it, ...


"Chinese central bank adviser Fan Gang said today that China had suffered “quite badly” from the dollar’s role as a global standard, without explaining how. "

One commentator stiffling laughter only partially successfully ...

" “The Chinese are a little disingenuous in saying that it’s so bad that we (Chinese) own all these dollars,” former Fed Chairman Paul Volcker, an adviser to Obama, said at the Wall Street Journal’s “Future of Finance” conference in Washington. “They own all the dollars because they chose to buy the dollars and they didn’t want to sell the dollars.”

Thus spake the The Volckster.


More humorous stuff in the article.

[MDM,]

YZ wrote on Mon, 30 March 2009 23:18

A unified currency is good. Last week an acquaintance told me that his boss had made a wad of cash by trading currencies. Over 4 days he got about 12% profit. Not contributing anything to the economy of any place, not producing anything, not financing any development.

A unified currency is NOT good..

the reason you can make money by trading currencies is because there is competition between them.

if you have a currency which is being devalued, you can get rid of that currency and buy another... or MOVE TO A DIFFERENT COUNTRY which has a better economic and monetary policy.

the IDEA of a unified currency is amazing, wonderful.. it's stupendous...

unfortunately,  in the REAL WORLD,  money is in the hands of power.. NO IFS, ANDS or BUTS...

when a handful of people will be able to inflate and deflate WORLDWIDE as they wish with nobody to check up on them, you will see money being worth less and less..

but perhaps the scariest part of international money is that it IMPLIES an international government... run by banks.



Barry,

I don't believe a word of what Obama says.. in the long run..

It's very hard for me to grasp that someone that was pulled out of college by Kissinger is going to revolutionize government for the better of citizens.

[MDM,]

I suspect that some of the motivating factors behind the entire world buying up US dollars have a strong political and military history behind them..