$726 Billion.
By on Feb 10th, 2006 at 10:36 pm
$726 Billion.
The U.S. trade deficit for 2005, an all-time record. “[P]erhaps the most important factor behind the swelling deficit last year was the rising cost of importing oil…”
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Does that come as a surprise to anyone with BigDaddyBushCheneyOil companies posting record profits?
When will we ever learn?
February 10th, 2006 at 10:46 pmDon’t forget this:
MSNBC
February 10, 2006
Malaysian linked to 2002 Calif. terror plot
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11266564/from/RS.3/
Officials say al-Qaida recruit pulled out after witnessing Sept. 11 carnage
So, this had nothing to do with the United States and it had nothing to do with any type of weiretap, legal or not.
Bush was trying to take credit for nothing. NOTHING.
February 10th, 2006 at 11:07 pmThomas Paine believed trade deficits were good things. The real kicker with this story, of course, is the price of gasoline and the record profits and tax breaks to gas companies because of the destruction of the still abandoned gulf coast.
February 10th, 2006 at 11:08 pmWOuldn’t it be cool, spudge, if we could nail Bush on violating the anti-propaganda laws? Feinstein brought this up to Abu Gonzo at the NSA hearings…
February 10th, 2006 at 11:11 pmEliminate the defense budget, war in Iraq, et cetera. The added bonus to this strategy would be the ensured downfall of companies like Halliburton, various mercinary brigades, and…no more wars.
Savings ~$726 Billion – $Infinity
February 11th, 2006 at 12:20 amSince Clinton actually balanced the budget, something the Republicans could only dream of doing, the loglical conclusion is this equates to &726 Billion in tax cuts, mostly to the rich and corporations.
February 11th, 2006 at 12:31 amWrong. The rising cost of oil is more of a nuisance than a major problem. After all, Europe, Japan, etc. have been paying much higher prices than we have at the pump for decades. The real problem is the Bush tax giveaway to the rich. There wouldn’t be any deficit at all if Bush hadn’t pulled this scam and then compounded it by handing over the remaining tax dollars in the US Treasury to Halliburton and other assorted war profiteers.
February 11th, 2006 at 1:39 amYou mean he lied?
February 11th, 2006 at 3:32 amAnd Harry Reid is the new Bill Clinton. Sheesh, I know they need to lie about everything, but how about a new angle on The Liberal Evildoers fantasy? I am getting SOOOO bored….
February 11th, 2006 at 3:47 amThe bottom line on the bourse is this; the dollar is underwritten by a national debt that now exceeds $8 trillion dollars and trade deficits that surpass $600 billion per year. That means that the greenback is the greatest swindle in the history of mankind. It’s utterly worthless. The only thing that keeps the dollar afloat is that oil is traded exclusively in greenbacks rather than some other currency. If Iran is able to smash that monopoly by trading in petro-euros then the world’s central banks will dump the greenback overnight, sending markets crashing and the US economy into a downward spiral.
The Bush administration has no intention of allowing that to take place. In fact, as the tax-cuts and the budget deficits indicate, the Bush cabal fully intends to perpetuate the system that trades worthless dollars for valuable commodities, labor, and resources. As long as the oil market is married to the dollar, this system of global indentured servitude will continue.
Battle Plans
The Bush administration’s attention has shifted to a small province in southwestern Iran that is unknown to most Americans. Never the less, Khuzestan will become the next front in the war on terror and the lynchpin for prevailing in the global resource war. If the Bush administration can sweep into the region (under the pretext disarming Iran’s nuclear programs) and put Iran’s prodigious oil wealth under US control, the dream of monopolizing Middle East oil will have been achieved.
Not surprisingly, this was Saddam Hussein’s strategy in 1980 when he initiated hostilities against Iran in a war that would last for eight years. Saddam was an American client at the time, so it is likely that he got the green light for the invasion from the Reagan White House. Many of Reagan’s high-ranking officials currently serve in the Bush administration; notably Rumsfeld and Cheney.
Khuzestan represents 90% of Iran’s oil production. The control over these massive fields will force the oil-dependent nations of China, Japan and India to continue to stockpile greenbacks despite the currency’s dubious value. The annexing of Khuzestan will prevent Iran’s bourse from opening, thereby guaranteeing that the dollar will maintain its dominant position as the world’s reserve currency. As long as the dollar reigns supreme and western elites have their hands on the Middle East oil-spigot, the current system of exploitation through debt will continue into perpetuity. The administration can confidently prolong its colossal deficits without fear of a plummeting dollar. In fact, the American war-machine and all its various appendages, from Guantanamo to Abrams Tanks, are paid for by the myriad nations who willingly hold reserves of American currency.
February 11th, 2006 at 5:59 amIronically, Bush only ever thought he would be able to halve the deficit by 2006 (as promised in July 2003) because the little voices told him that revenues from all that Iraqi oil would by now be flowing into his coffers…
What’s a tonne of rose petals worth these days???
February 11th, 2006 at 6:11 am#4 Are you talking about when the President or the VP uses the military crowds as a backdrop and then proceeds to counter POLITICAL opponents in his subsequent speech?
February 11th, 2006 at 6:46 aminteresting take on this in the new book by Begala/Carville (a terrific book by the way) the recommend Progressive’s take the tact of setting a message similiar to Pres Kennedy’s call to go to the moon, make our country independent of foreign fuels. I didn’t know that building a pipeline in an already developed area for transporting Natural Gas could dramitically safe on that importation and be respectful of the environment.
they both think that the US citizenry would respond to the call for conservation, research and development of alternatives, innovation and self sacrifice for the common good, I tend to agree because many generations of US citizens have done just that and the volatility of the mid-east, Venezuela and China’s driving demand for more oil will only increase prices in the future….now that my son is older we are switching to a more ‘family’ oriented sedan vs the SUV we’ve had for 3 years.
February 11th, 2006 at 7:48 am#12 Have you the book Behind The War On Terror its all about what you are saying. We have been in Iran for a long time now and its all about taking control of the Richest Oil producing Nations thats also why bushco is trying to bushwack Pres Chavez since they are number 5 in Oil production .This bastard is trying to overtake the world for himself and his big oil assholes.
We as Americans are beinging supressed its cutr the throats of the Poor and the Middle Class and build bigger guns to take over and remain in control of the Oil/Natural Gas Fields I wish to hell someone in Washington and us as the Real Power would dump this cabal in the Ocean and not throw them a life line.
This Cabal is our Nightmare not any Insurgent group notice I didn’t say Terriost and the reason for that is ,these people has a right to fight against bushco for their “HomeLand” just like we would be if we were Invaded ,now you sinkin’ redstatecommies who suck bush dick ,have a field day on what I said…
February 11th, 2006 at 8:02 amGW & Co.: The bizarro world Robin Hoods
February 11th, 2006 at 10:23 amWelcome back Ryan Neat, you were missed. Good posts progressives….Blessings
February 11th, 2006 at 10:38 amThe Democrats, I am sorry to say, are definitely asleep at the wheel.
One proposal in the Byshlandia budget calls for the Social Security Administration to cut out the $255 death benefit from that program. This benefit, not nearly enough, has been a lynchpin of social security since the beginning.
The dems should have grabbed onto this and howled across this nation, but where did I hear about it?
Senator Grasslie issued a statement saying more or less that he would not touch that with a ten foot pole.
Come on dems, get you act together.
February 11th, 2006 at 10:39 amOff topic. Whats with the posting numbers.? Are these needed>/ ?????? cumbersom for my old iMac and I to deal with.
February 11th, 2006 at 10:42 amPaul, that’s just the tip of the iceberg, or bushberg. With Pambo at his side Bush want’s to seel off all our public lands suposidely for rural schools. Yah right! What this bunch in office want’s to do is cut it, drill it or kill it everything in sight. By hook or by crook. Their intent is to put us all in servitude to their industrial war complex, bury us in debt and make sure we all walk in relegious lockstep bull s*** to their liking. More babies to grow up and fight their wars. Our babies not theirs. Bush also sliped in his Social Security privatation act into the bill he submitted last Monday. Think that is why he was squirming so at Corettas funeral, no one knew at that moment what he had done. Well the little people didn’t know..Lieing caniving bastards, all of them. The Dem’s better get their s*** together or I”m outta here after 44 years of hard work and social progress….Blessings
February 11th, 2006 at 11:49 amYet we have no jobs….
http://www.counterpunch.org/roberts02112006.html
job growth over the last five years is the weakest on record. The US economy came up more than 7 million jobs short of keeping up with population growth. That’s one good reason for controlling immigration. An economy that cannot keep up with population growth should not be boosting population with heavy rates of legal and illegal immigration.
Over the past five years the US economy experienced a net job loss in goods producing activities. The entire job growth was in service-providing activities–primarily credit intermediation, health care and social assistance, waiters, waitresses and bartenders, and state and local government.
US manufacturing lost 2.9 million jobs, almost 17% of the manufacturing work force. The wipeout is across the board. Not a single manufacturing payroll classification created a single new job.
The declines in some manufacturing sectors have more in common with a country undergoing saturation bombing during war than with a super-economy that is “the envy of the world.†Communications equipment lost 43% of its workforce. Semiconductors and electronic components lost 37% of its workforce. The workforce in computers and electronic products declined 30%. Electrical equipment and appliances lost 25% of its employees. The workforce in motor vehicles and parts declined 12%. Furniture and related products lost 17% of its jobs. Apparel manufacturers lost almost half of the work force. Employment in textile mills declined 43%. Paper and paper products lost one-fifth of its jobs. The work force in plastics and rubber products declined by 15%. Even manufacturers of beverages and tobacco products experienced a 7% shrinkage in jobs.
The knowledge jobs that were supposed to take the place of lost manufacturing jobs in the globalized “new economy†never appeared. The information sector lost 17% of its jobs, with the telecommunications work force declining by 25%. Even wholesale and retail trade lost jobs. Despite massive new accounting burdens imposed by Sarbanes-Oxley, accounting and bookkeeping employment shrank by 4%. Computer systems design and related lost 9% of its jobs. Today there are 209,000 fewer managerial and supervisory jobs than 5 years ago.
February 11th, 2006 at 1:35 pmThank You Mr. Ho for putting up the fact’s to back up what I figured was true…..I appreciate your contribution’s….Blessings
February 11th, 2006 at 1:56 pmSo, this had nothing to do with the United States and it had nothing to do with any type of weiretap, legal or not.
Bush was trying to take credit for nothing. NOTHING.
Comment by Spudge_Boy — February 10, 2006 @ 11:07 pm
Bush did this most of the time as a Tx Gubernor as well. In Texas the Lt. Gov. does most of the Work.
February 12th, 2006 at 8:33 pmsites buggy today
February 12th, 2006 at 8:36 pm