In an interview with Bloomberg BusinessWeek on newsstands Friday, Obama said a presidential budget commission needs to look at all options for deficit reduction - including tax increases and cuts in spending on such programs as Social Security and Medicare.
"The whole point of it is to make sure that all ideas are on the table," Obama said. "So what I want to do is to be completely agnostic, in terms of solutions."
Obama repeatedly vowed during the 2008 campaign to spare households earning less than $250,000 a year from tax increases.
When top economic officials last August suggested going back on the pledge, White House press secretary Robert Gibbs quickly reiterated the promise.Meanwhile, Obama Wednesday won over skeptical African-American leaders who agreed to join his effort to get Congress to pass a jobs bill.
At times, black leaders have criticized Obama for failing to address their community's hardships, but they insisted they put all that aside yesterday.
"I think he feels the gravity of the problem, and not exclusively as an African-American problem but as a problem for all people out of work. We need a jobs bill," said the Rev. Al Sharpton, who braved the blizzard here to attend the Oval Office session.NAACP President Benjamin Jealous compared Senate Republicans with the Dixiecrats who 40 years ago blocked civil rights legislation. "If the Senate Republicans want to kind of keep on using tactics ... from the last century that were used against black people in this century, against working people, then we're going to hold them to account," he said.
Sharpton noted unemployment has hit African-Americans harder, but said the meeting was not a gripe session to complain that Obama has forgotten his own.
"He's focused on lifting everybody equally. There's not going to be an African-American jobs bill," Sharpton said.
What purpose does it serve to have Sharpton at the Oval Office if this has nothing to do with race?
ReplyDeleteAnd is Jealous talking about using tactics from the last century (1900-2000) against black people in this century (2000-2100)? This guy makes the same amount of sense as every other dimocrat.
I can't wait to see how this shakes out for Hussein. Should be just like it did for H.W. Bush, remember that one? This time Hussein is going to try to blame it on a "Presidential Budget Commission", whatever that is. Sounds like this guy is once again trying to disavow any decision. Hussein never stops campaigning.
H Obama has turned out to be just another W Bush in his actions. But his words are as Progressive as you can get. Watch what this snake does not what he says. He has screwed up the Democratic party worse then any Republican ever could have. Obama is hope lost for many Democrats like me.
ReplyDeleteBill Clinton has been put into the hospital. I hope he is OK. That guy will put anything in his mouth so I'm sure he has blowbye.
ReplyDeleteClinton has mangina.
ReplyDeleteBruce Does "AGNOSTIC" mean He Feels Stongly BOTHG Ways!
ReplyDeleteJust What Qualifications Does AL Sharpton Bring to a Jobs Bill and Why Is He There! You Would Think Members Of Private Sector Would Be There to Give Nobama Advice! Cant Ask His Advisers MOST Have NO Private Sector Experiance! Wonder if There Could NEXT be a " COMMUNITY ORGANIZER BILL",NOW We Got Advisers For That!
The man is a pathological liar. You can take ANYTHING he says with a grain of salt.
ReplyDeleteI fear for this country's future, because together this moron and his friends in congress will make this recession last much longer than it should, with fewer jobs created in the end.