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    Obama's Budget Speech: Live Stream and Peanut Gallery

    By Michael Wolraich on Wed, 04/13/2011 - 1:31pm | Politics

    Let the commentary begin...

    Topics: 
    Politics

    Comments

    Obama must have read Destor's post: http://dagblog.com/politics/attack-rich-9717


    by Michael Wolraich on Wed, 04/13/2011 - 1:58pm

    What's Obama's core rational for cutting Republican cuts? He fluctuates between social contract and fairness. I think that the former is a more coherent argument, but the latter is more compelling rhetoric. You don't want to try to explain what a social contract is in a 20 second soundbite.


    by Michael Wolraich on Wed, 04/13/2011 - 2:18pm

    Started strong, got vague on the details.

    But as I wrote before, I think that the main objective was to lay the groundwork for the coming debate, and the speech was best at the big picture level, but it's only a start. He has to hone his message and repeat it day in and day out.


    by Michael Wolraich on Wed, 04/13/2011 - 2:28pm

    Via Matt Yglesias, Brad DeLong’s summary of Barack Obama’s budget ideas is useful:

    — Restore high-bracket tax rates to Clinton-era levels: $1T
    — Cut tax-expenditure spending through the tax code: $1T
    — Cut health care spending: $0.5T
    — Cut other mandatory spending by: $0.4T
    — Cut security spending: $0.4T
    — Cut non-security discretionary spending: $0.8T
    — Those reductions will carry with them a reduction in net interest of: $1.2T

    I didn't catch where those health care savings are coming from, if that is over and above the savings already in the PPACA bill.

    Happily he didn't include in his starting negotiating position the arbitrary spending caps on entitlements.


    by Obey on Wed, 04/13/2011 - 2:56pm

    I didn't catch where those health care savings are coming from, if that is over and above the savings already in the PPACA bill.

    I think there are a lot of hopes invested in a stealth weapon: recess appointed Dr. Donald Berwick. He can do things that no one in Congress figures out happened until AARP figures it out and starts squawking.

    Not that this has anything to do with him, but I found out the other day checking out the Medicare website that Part B premium rates for higher income recipients had gone up considerably for this year as opposed to last year.  Personally, I think that there is probably more disinfo. about what is happening in Medicare on blogs than on most other topics, it's talked about like it's the Medicare of 30 years ago, and it's changed a great deal. I came across the increases for high income because someone was suggesting it as a solution on a blog. Well, tada, they are already doing it, doncha know. You only really see the changes if you start reading the story from the provider point of view, on websites dealing with helping providers deal with Medicare or specialized media (i.e., the changes in how hospitals are paid, etc.)


    by artappraiser on Wed, 04/13/2011 - 3:22pm

    Interesting. I was wondering how they were finding 500 billion. I thought it was all supposed to be fancy-pants delivery-systems reform or something, not just hiking premiums.


    by Obey on Wed, 04/13/2011 - 4:32pm

    Krugman, @ The Budget Speech on his blog, sez:

    ...The main thing, though, is the strengthened role of and target for the Independent Payment Advisory Board. This can sound like hocus-pocus — but it’s not.

    As I understand it, it would force the board to come up with ways to put Medicare on what amounts to a budget — growing no faster than GDP + 0.5 — and would force Congress to specifically overrule those proposed savings. That’s what cost-control looks like! You have people who actually know about health care and health costs setting priorities for spending, within a budget; in effect, you have an institutional setup which forces Medicare to find ways to say no.

    And when people start screaming about death panels again, remember: you can always buy whatever health care you want; the question is what taxpayers should pay for. And compare this with a voucher system, in which you have insurance company executives, rather than health-care professionals, deciding which care won’t be paid for....

    My bold. That is also, mho, what needs to be done to start moving away from the problem of "money driven medicine" that is causing medical costs to rise so rapidly (worldwide in some cases.) The "we'll cover anything a consumer decides in consultation with a single doctor that he wants" nature of fee-for-service Medicare is the main thing driving that.


    by artappraiser on Wed, 04/13/2011 - 9:35pm

    Boo on him for giving speeches while I'm at work.  Yay on him for some reasonable sounding suggestions.


    by Michael Maiello on Wed, 04/13/2011 - 3:03pm

    Lowering corporate tax rates?  And no specifics about changes to itemized deductions; lots possible in there (just finished our taxes...) 

    Timeline: And in early May, the Vice President will begin regular meetings with leaders in both parties with the aim of reaching a final agreement on a plan to reduce the deficit by the end of June.

    Several Blue Ribbons, weren't there?

    There's a fair speech, but discounting the 'folks in his party' who want to focus on jobs' or something, but to them I say...

    Nive stuff on 'what government should be about'.


    by we are stardust on Wed, 04/13/2011 - 3:22pm

    Now that the speech/liveblogging is over, can you do something about the video?  My browser gets hung up and will not load the front page.   I got here finally by coming in through a comment in my reader.

    Thought you would want to know.


    by EmmaZahn on Wed, 04/13/2011 - 4:24pm

    Same problem for me.


    by Obey on Wed, 04/13/2011 - 4:27pm

    Likewise


    by Elusive Trope on Wed, 04/13/2011 - 4:29pm

    Yeah, I finally got through by clicking on this post in "From the Dagbloggers," but still can't view the rest of the main page.


    by acanuck on Wed, 04/13/2011 - 5:02pm

    And the video won't play at all.


    by acanuck on Wed, 04/13/2011 - 5:04pm

    I couldn't post while it was on.  Kept telling me to Sign In.  Cool


    by we are stardust on Wed, 04/13/2011 - 5:19pm

    And Canuck won't ever play with me at all.


    by we are stardust on Wed, 04/13/2011 - 5:21pm

    Sorry. Better now?


    by Michael Wolraich on Wed, 04/13/2011 - 10:42pm

    Yes, thank you!


    by EmmaZahn on Thu, 04/14/2011 - 12:17am

    So nice to see the President come back.  I missed him.  FDR would have been proud of him.


    by Barth on Wed, 04/13/2011 - 9:12pm

    I thought he looked good too! Sounded good too!

    A lot of evil comin at him and us!


    by Richard Day on Thu, 04/14/2011 - 1:28am

    Hey, peeps; if you can't get in, try Firefox.  It works for me.


    by we are stardust on Wed, 04/13/2011 - 9:25pm

    I take it back; can't cut and paste or backspace.  Mmmm...Never MInd.


    by we are stardust on Wed, 04/13/2011 - 9:30pm

    I tried the Firefox, that didn't work either , sort of same problem for me!!!


    by Preston Dental (not verified) on Tue, 07/19/2011 - 5:55am