WASHINGTON, D.C. – In spite of the fact that entitlement programs account for almost half of the entire Federal budget, President Obama proclaimed in his inaugural address yesterday that Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security “free us to take the risks that make this country great.” For the past several political cycles, the question of how to ensure the future of such programs while dealing with the mounting national debt has gone largely unanswered. And it doesn’t look like that’s going to change over the next four years. President Obama said “we must make the hard
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WASHINGTON DC – The White House and Democrat leaders blasted Representative Paul Ryan’s (R) latest budget plan as unrealistic. Jay Carney, White House Press Secretary, went so far as to say that anyone who supports it must be “deliberately ignorant” and have “severely diminished capacity.” Escalation of liberal rhetoric concerning Ryan’s budget proposal included numerous Democrats and people in the media using terms like “extreme,” and “damaging” to describe it. A statement from House Democrats called it “a vicious plot to destroy our nation’s promise.” But with Democrats rushing to best one another with budget
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WASHINGTON D.C.—President Obama’s 2013 budget plan calls for a hike in the dividend tax rate from the current 15% it is now to a higher personal income tax rate of 39.6%. Once deductions and exemptions that are being phased out are factored in, the new tax rate would be 44.8%, according to the Wall Street Journal. Those that will be hurt the most are retirees and seniors who depend on dividends as part of their retirement income. Over half of the people over 65 depend on dividend income, and nearly three-quarters of retirees over 55
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Working across party and capitol lines, Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) announced an extraordinary reform deal. This comes in spite of President Obama assertions that progress cannot be made with Medicare because of Republicans’ unwillingness to act. The Washington Post reported: “Working with Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden (Ore.), the Wisconsin Republican is
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Paul Ryan has dared to take on a political untouchable – Medicare. As a result, the airwaves are filled with an endless chorus of talking heads chittering away at all hours about the effects of his proposed changes. It’s been called everything from the one possible savior of the fiscal health of the nation to
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