Smallscreen News
CNN Sunday chat: Sen. Judd Gregg, Obama budget 'unconscionable'
By April MacIntyre Mar 22, 2009, 17:25 GMT
U.S. Republican Senator Judd Gregg of New Hampshire listens to testimony by Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner (not pictured) at the Senate Budget Committee hearing on \'the President\'s Fiscal Year 2010 Budget and Revenue Proposals\', on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, USA, on 12 March 2009. EPA/MICHAEL REYNOLDS
Appearing this morning on CNN's "State of the Union" smallscreen news show with John King, Sen. Judd Gregg of New Hampshire categorized President Barack Obama's massive budget proposal as "unconscionable" and claimed the bailouts will bankrupt the country.
Gregg spoke of withdrawing his nomination to become commerce secretary with King, because he could not back the administration's economic policies.
Gregg spoke at length to John King on CNN's "State of the Union."
The senator said Obama's spending plan in the midst of a prolonged recession would leave the next generation with a bankrupt country, and added, “It is as if you were flying an airplane and the gas light came on and it said ‘you 15 minutes of gas left’ and the pilot said ‘we’re not going to worry about that, we’re going to fly for another two hours.’ Well, the plane crashes and our country will crash and we’ll pass on to our kids a country that’s not affordable.”
“The practical implications of this is bankruptcy for the United States,” Gregg said of the Obama’s administration’s recently released budget blueprint. “There’s no other way around it. If we maintain the proposals that are in this budget over the ten-year period that this budget covers, this country will go bankrupt. People will not buy our debt, our dollar will become devalued. It is a very severe situation.”
Gregg has a reputation of what CNN described as the "keenest fiscal minds on Capitol Hill."
He told King that he thought it was “almost unconscionable” for the White House to continue with its planned course on fiscal matters with unprecedented actual and projected budget deficits in the coming years.
Not all of Gregg's commentary was critical of Obama's administration. CNN noted that he praised Obama’s top economic chiefs' efforts to nurse the sick banking system back to health.
“They’re doing the right things,” Gregg referred to Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and White House economic adviser Larry Summers. “They haven’t done it as definitely as they should have . . . but they are moving in the right direction and the Fed is moving in the right direction,” Gregg said on CNN’s State of the Union.
COMMENT
blog comments powered by DisqusLatest Headlines in Smallscreen
- 1. HLN’S Evening Express programming for week of June 4
- 2. FX's 'Anger Management' latest preview, 'Confessional' (VIDEO)
- 3. Oprah’s Book Club 2.0 launches Monday, details (VIDEO)
- 4. TV Land's 'Happily Divorced' finale with Ralph Macchio (VIDEO)
- 5. 'Hell's Kitchen' back for season 10, Ramsay still hot under collar (VIDEO)
Older Talkback
page: 1
Since you seem to be quite omnipotent, perhaps you could explain your theory of how raising taxes during a recession will help increase overall revenue to the government and get us out said recession? Include the 1930s in your theory please.
Maybe you're not as smart as you think you are?
No Bonehead, Bush Bankrupted the Country!
Even though he refused to count it on the books, it was George W. Bush and the Republicans who sent this country into huge deficits with spending on the war in Iraq. And he did so by privatizing the military and giving huge contracts to his Texas friends at Haliburton and Kellog Brown and Root so they could make outrageous profits off the war.
Senator Gregg and the Republicans are now so spineless, so directionless, so purposeless that all they can do is provide shallow negative commentary and wish for the country to go into ruin in order to cover its horrible record while in control of the White House and Congress.
Even though he refused to count it on the books, it was George W. Bush and the Republicans who sent this country into huge deficits with spending on the war in Iraq.
========================
Sigh more clueless posters. The Iraq war is somewhere between 800-900 billion dollars. Obama has spent almost the same amount with the 'stimulus package.'
'The great minds including Nobel prize winners' what a joke. Are you really that blind to economics? Keynesian economists are the only ones who say increasing government spending is a good solution.
Since you obviously know that 'republicans don't have a single good idea' please elaborate on even once in US or world history when Keynesian economics have been successful for a democratic or republic while in a recession.
Senator Gregg and the Republicans are now so spineless, so directionless, so purposeless that all they can do is provide shallow negative commentary and wish for the country to go into ruin in order to cover its horrible record while in control of the White House and Congress.
==========================
Actually the economy was good through early 2008.
'The last 8 years' is a good talking point but short in realism. Democrats and republicans didn't have a clue of the upcoming disaster. Up to Feb 2008 democrats wanted to further deregulate Fannie/Freddie because they were being beat by 'competition' (private industry).
Which party had control of congress from 2007 on?
Which party once in control had time to lecture baseball players for days but did not try to pass ANY regulatory bills?
Which party blocked Fannie/Freddie regulations over 20 times between 2003-2006?
I could go on and on but to think the economic problems are not due to both parties and the general public is simpleminded.
People thought it was a noble idea to get poor people homes so democrats sued for 20 years to get it. Fannie/Freddie were hiding the default rates of CRA loans by packaging securities to continue to get people homes. Banks took the poor standards forced upon them and ran them up the line introducing the risk across all income levels. It's obviously more complicated but simply poor loan standards forced by the government and overleveraging combined into a nasty combo.
page: 1
bertMar 23rd, 2009 - 05:39:35
But 1.5 trillion for a brutal, pointless war, and an equal amount in tax cuts for people who don't need the money: no questions asked. The best economic minds in the world, Nobel prize winners among them, are recommending this course of action. But these Repubican buffoons, without a constructive idea among them, do nothing but criticize day after day. If I thought any of them had a slightest idea about getting the country out of the mess they made, than they might be worth listening to them. But like Dubya, they haven't a clue.
Report this comment