The Paddock

The Dow is up 63% since Obama took office. That ranks 5th among all Presidents up to this point. FDR, Coolidge, Ike, and Clinton only ranked higher. I'm results oriented. This news added to the jobs reports, car industry saved, Bin Laden dead, a LOT of the enemy dead I may rethink not voting for him. I like how things are going. I think any of the Republican nominees would do the same things Bush did which would cause the exact same problem, a collapse. Santorum would cause worldwide armageddon lol But he'll never be President. Never. His last election he lost by 19 points. An incumbent losing by that much is unheard of. I think Santorum is getting a lot of frustration bumps in the polls. When people get in the booths I don't think the results will be as solid as the polls indicate. Just a gut feeling.

Santorum is being kept afloat by a small percentage of the electorate. He has yet to win, or even be runner up, in an actual primary. He's doing well in caucuses, but that won't necessarily transfer to broader votes.

Every political expert I've heard agrees that the way for Republicans to win is to make the election about the economy. Santorum takes the race in a direction the Republicans can't succeed at.

Which Obama states from 2008 can you see Santorum winning? Maybe NC and VA. PA is iffy at best.

Wow. I'm shocked. I honestly don't know what to say. You are the last person I would ever guess who would vote for BHO.

I like it JJ. For conservatives, we could have depictions of inbred racist rednecks holding onto their guns and their women barefoot and pregnant, and for Liberals, we could have tree-hugging hippies who are flipping off God and mowing over babies to make room for their wind-mill farms.

my taxes have not gone down 1 penny under Obama. FACT!

Gas has gone from roughly $1.80/gallon to an overage of over $3.00 + under Obama and is likely to hit $6 before the elections.
The value of the dollar has dropped dramatically and is the biggest reason for the increase in gas.

Obama has increased the cost of everyones heating and electric bills because he has placed unnecessary and outlandish new regulations and requirements on Coal companies.

The reason why the DOW is doing better now is because the rest of the world is in shambles also and they are looking to invest that money somewhere.

Unemployment is over 9% when he promised it wouldn't go over 8%. The real unemployment rate when you look at the long term unemployed and those who flat stopped looking is over 18%. Even the CBO stated it was really over 15% currently just a week or two ago.

Most of the new drilling and thus the reason why we have raised our domestic drilling is from permits that were granted under Bush. Funny how Obama doesn't blame Bush for that but instead takes the credit...

Another reason why we have managed to improve our reliance on foreign oil is because the economy sucks and we aren't using as much. And despite this gas has remained over $3.00 for the vast majority of his term.

Everybody who works got a cut in their social security.

Get a job, hippie!

You are both wrong. I have an excellent job and I DO NOT PAY SOCIAL SECURITY!

Plus, Social Security was originally argued for as a "Social Security Insurance". Only in the last decade has it become known for what it truly is and that's a tax. You libs used "It's an insurance plan" to get it enacted and now claim it for what it is... a tax.

It's stupid to give this supposed break cause all it's doing is already underfunding a program that is going bankrupt. In the near future they will increase the amount you pay into SS to offset this current 'break' that you all are getting. That and they will cut what they pay out and/or when you can become eligible.

Ron Paul is a conspiracy theorist that wants to go back to the gold standard and let everyone have a nuke. He's a loon.

I'm sorry I called you a hippie. You're obviously an illegal alien.

And I do apologize that I was unaware that anyone was exempt from FICA. I'm not asking you to tell me--but maybe it's clergy or military--or working on the railroad (I know they had something funky and one time). Regardless, FICA is the biggest single government remittance (I have no problem calling it a tax) that millions of Americans pay. So, to say you didn't get a tax cut because you didn't pay it in the first place is pretty weak. It'd be like me complaining that my assistant got a bigger percentage cut than me, because I don't pay FICA on my income after it hits a certain point.

Your comment about the stupidity of the tax cut could be applied to every tax cut. Unless we're operating from a budget surplus (something we arguably have not seen in our lifetimes and have very little prospect of seeing in the future), all tax cuts have to be offset with either a reduction in services or an increase in taxes down the road--unless the tax cut has a stimulative effect. I think this particular cut works to that effect, but there's no way to ever know.

I'm interested in learning more about this. I'll have to check out that book.

That's really the big economic divide, and it really depends on the economy. I think this money is clearly keeping the economy greased. If you cut it off (I.e. Let the rate go back up) that much spending and the multipliers that go with it dry up

Supply eiders disagree and think it's better to stimulate investment. I don't disagree, but just think there's no practical way to do so in today's environment....low interest rates, cheap labor, low taxes. A reasonable person must assume that what we're missing is demand and the only way govt can impact that is tax cuts to the spenders and actual government spending

The President has nothing to do with gas prices.