Mike Johnson is coming for the Boomer generation

baltimorened

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May 29, 2001
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You are either being obtuse, or a complete moron. Either way, kudos to you for keeping me guessing up to this point.
wow, that was really an intelligent statement. So since I'm such a moron, which part of my post was so stupid.
he did say fix
we have known about this since 1989
without a fix there will be a reduction in benefits starting in 2032
without a fix we will need either adjusted payouts or more money
and we are coming into the boomer years where there will be more payouts both in SS and Medicare.

so which of these is inaccurate?
 

Sullivan

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One solution is to put a 50% tax on foreign workers in the U.S, without the ability to collect from the system.
 

baltimorened

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Democrats would never agree to those things either.
  • The SS tax cap goes up every year and is now $184,500. Is that what you call a billionaire?
  • The original SS tax rate was 2.0%. Now it's 12.4%. Do you really think either party is willing to make that 14.4% for all income levels? Not a chance.
  • There's already a supplemental tax on investment income if you earn more than $250k.
But it you're so confident that it's a republican problem tell me why we've had a democrat president for 12 of the past 17 years and it wasn't done.
for some reason, folks on the left like to think that all these problems have only occurred because republicans have failed to act. They seem unaware that there have been Democrat Presidents and controlled Congresses since the problem has been known.

Right now, it's Trump's fault that Clinton, Obama and Biden as well as other republican presidents ignored the problem,
 
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baltimorened

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* Where did I say $184,500 constitutes a billionaire? If it was raised to $250,000, 90% of Americans would be unaffected.
* Your percentage is a bit misleading. 12.4% is for the self-employed. The rate is 6.2 % for 90% of Americans.
* 3.8% for a married couple filing jointly. Adding .5% to go to the Social Security fund, again, would only affect 4-5% of Americans.
but would those "fixes" raise enough money?
 

firegiver

Heisman
Sep 10, 2007
74,005
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Social security is a simple fix, remove the cap or push it up. Thats it. A first year accounting student could fix this. But of course, the end goal, ever since Reagan is to make shareholders own every asset in the world. SS spits in the face of that. Shareholders want MORE.
 
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scotchtiger

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Dec 15, 2005
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I become eligible in 2034. Which will mean I am sure after myself and my employers both paid 100’s of thousands into it, I am going to get screwed. I know one thing, the boomers did not get screwed by it…

No serious talk about items like balancing the budget, reducing or debt and fixing social security and healthcare can happen until we as a nation demand we stop being the world police and cut our military spending by 50 percent or more. The trillions we pay for defense is why all the other countries in Europe and Asia are leaving us behind. Many of who benefit by us being their useful idiot.

What countries are leaving us behind? And in what metric(s) are they leaving us behind?
 

noleclone2

Heisman
May 3, 2015
3,356
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What countries are leaving us behind? And in what metric(s) are they leaving us behind?
A lot of lists out there. And a lot of metrics such as:

Infrastructure
Modernization
Access to low cost or free healthcare
Lifespans
Getting off Oil and Gas dependency
Average worker week
Average paid time off
Distribution of wealth to top 1%
Per capita number of citizens in prison

many more.

We are not the country we once were and free falling now.

 

TJ8869

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This guy reminds me of @TJ8869 on steroids. Teej, we may have met a long lost brother of yours? Your dad travel to Baltimore for work when you were a kid?
Is this the new refuge for HORT posters who aren’t willing to pay $100 a year to argue with idiots?
 

bdgan

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At the end of Obama's term, the economy was doing fine and we didn't need the TCJA to juice the economy, so when we drastically cut taxes at that time anyway, because that's what Republicans do without regard to the consequences, the decision added 2 trillion dollars to the debt. Not to mention that when they passed it, it had a sundown provision for individuals that was supposed to expire in 2025. Of course that's when they decided to make them permanent despite the damage they had already done to the deficit/debt.

And let's not forget that Obama entered office during one of the worst economies on record following a Republican administration.

And let's not forget that Biden entered office during another bad economy exacerbated by hysterically bad pandemic management following another Republican administration.

Obama and Biden did attempt to address the deficit despite the sh*tty hands they inherited, so feel free to look it up but how about we quit passing along the sh*ttiest hands possible in the first place? Republicans are the biggest issue here despite your anxiety when I speak the truth about them. Stop being a b*tch and demand better fiscal responsibility from your side first before whining about what Dems had to do to clean up Republican messes.
You believe what you want to believe. When the debt rises under Trump it's his fault. When it rises under Obama or Biden it's still Trump/republican fault. You won't allow the data or common sense get in the way of what you believe. For example the unemployment rate never got lower than 4.7% under Obama but you consider that good. It's now 4.3% under Trump and you think he's destroying the economy.
  • Federal revenues have continued to rise at the rate of inflation. The problem is that spending has risen even faster.
  • Most of the deficit increase is due to entitlements. This is what Rubio said in the clip that Mayor Pete called lies.
  • Both parties have had plenty of opportunity to address the problem but they won't for political reasons.
  • Democrats have had periods just like republicans when they've had full control.
  • Biden proposed higher taxes on the rich that he claimed would raise $500 billion over 10 years (or $50 billion per year). That's a drop in the bucket compared to a $1.9 trillion annual deficit and he didn't even want to use it to reduce the deficit. He wanted to use it to increase spending.
But I dare you and all democrats to stand by your words. Go on record to propose 100% of the Trump tax cuts get eliminated. That means everybody's tax rate goes up by 3%, the standard deduction is reduced, child and dependent credits are reduced, no tax on tips and no tax on OT are eliminated, and the $12k deduction to offset taxes on SS income are eliminated.
 

Rifler

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If dems had won the election, it wouldn't have been made worse because they would have allowed the tax cuts for the richest people to expire and they wouldn't have deported millions of undocumented workers who contribute 26 billion to the fund for benefits they're legally barred from receiving.

Animated GIF
 
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bdgan

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How about we curtail the military and ICE and rich tax cuts instead of going after programs that working class people have spent their entire lives paying into?
I have mixed feelings about the military. On one hand I think keeping us safe is the #1 priority for the federal government. On the other hand I don't think we can continue to be the world's protector. I also don't like to make friends around the world by carrying the water for them.

But you should also be realistic. In the last 25 years defense spending has fallen from 4.9% of GDP to 3.4% of GDP. In 1980 it was 6.8% and in 1990 it was 5.6%. Our growing debt over the decades isn't because of defense spending.

You don't even know about tax cuts for the rich. What new tax cuts did they get in the BBB? If you want the top rate to go back to 39.6% I'm all in. That might lower the deficit from $1.9 trillion to $1.87 trillion.
 

bdgan

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* Where did I say $184,500 constitutes a billionaire? If it was raised to $250,000, 90% of Americans would be unaffected.
* Your percentage is a bit misleading. 12.4% is for the self-employed. The rate is 6.2 % for 90% of Americans.
* 3.8% for a married couple filing jointly. Adding .5% to go to the Social Security fund, again, would only affect 4-5% of Americans.
You're comments are confusing. I'm not sure how much revenue would go up by raising the SS tax cap from $184,500 to $250,000 but it's something. You're correct that it wouldn't impact most people but it would hit the upper middle class most. Certainly not the billionaires.

The rates is definitely 12.4%. It's divided evenly between employee and employer. Self employed people just happen to be both.
 

bdgan

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for some reason, folks on the left like to think that all these problems have only occurred because republicans have failed to act. They seem unaware that there have been Democrat Presidents and controlled Congresses since the problem has been known.

Right now, it's Trump's fault that Clinton, Obama and Biden as well as other republican presidents ignored the problem,
This all goes back to what I've said repeatedly. Politicians get elected by promising free stuff and they lose elections by threatening to take free stuff away.

Reagan was correct when he said the closest thing to eternal life on earth is a government program. Any politician who says we're in a bind and we're all going to have to suck it up a bit stands no chance of remaining in office. That's why we need a balanced budget amendment.
 

bdgan

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A lot of lists out there. And a lot of metrics such as:

Infrastructure
Modernization
Access to low cost or free healthcare
Lifespans
Getting off Oil and Gas dependency
Average worker week
Average paid time off
Distribution of wealth to top 1%
Per capita number of citizens in prison

many more.

We are not the country we once were and free falling now.

Do you think that's because we don't have enough social welfare and because the rich don't pay enough?
 

bdgan

All-Conference
Oct 12, 2021
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If dems had won the election, it wouldn't have been made worse because they would have allowed the tax cuts for the richest people to expire and they wouldn't have deported millions of undocumented workers who contribute 26 billion to the fund for benefits they're legally barred from receiving. So let's just end the **** talk that Republicans do it better. They only make things worse and then hand it off to the Dems, who have to make the unpopular decisions so Pubs have something to blame them for.
Good strategy dpic. Allow millions of people who tend to be low income, low education, and limited language skills. That's a sure way to boost the economy. You sound like Michael Moore when he claims that Trump probably deported someone who could have cured cancer.
 

LunchBox50

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Because he knows he can’t get his own party in order so can’t do anything now, and next session he won’t have the House and can just blame Democrats.

GOP will return to the party of deficit reduction and balanced budgets and spending the moment they are out of power.
Couldn't agree more. Party of Fiscal Responsibility until they have power.
 

bdgan

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Oct 12, 2021
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Federal deficit by year:

Biden (post covid)
2022 $1.375 trillion
2023 $1.695 trillion
2024 $1.833 trillion

Trump
2025 $1.850 trillion

dpic's analysis: It all went to hell in a handbasket under Trump because we lost tax receipts from undocumented workers
 

baltimorened

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May 29, 2001
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Is it your position that nothing should be done unless it solves the problem completely? That's shortsighted IMO.
that's what you took from my question? I asked only because the fixes described didn't seem to me to be enough to put the program on a solid footing.

Of course something needs to be done. And it should have been done years/decades ago when the problem was discovered and smaller fixes, over time, would have eliminated the need for major fixes today.
 

baltimorened

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May 29, 2001
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I have mixed feelings about the military. On one hand I think keeping us safe is the #1 priority for the federal government. On the other hand I don't think we can continue to be the world's protector. I also don't like to make friends around the world by carrying the water for them.

But you should also be realistic. In the last 25 years defense spending has fallen from 4.9% of GDP to 3.4% of GDP. In 1980 it was 6.8% and in 1990 it was 5.6%. Our growing debt over the decades isn't because of defense spending.

You don't even know about tax cuts for the rich. What new tax cuts did they get in the BBB? If you want the top rate to go back to 39.6% I'm all in. That might lower the deficit from $1.9 trillion to $1.87 trillion.
while a lot of people throw out "cut defense" they really don't know all the breakouts of where the spending is. It's a quick look up for the category and % spent in each..

But, not unusual, they fail to address where a lot of the "waste" is...minority set asides, women owned business set asides, small business set asides, and try to close a base and see all the "cut defense" folks who might just have the base in their district or state come out of the woodwork.
 

Rifler

All-American
Jan 26, 2011
5,280
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Federal deficit by year:

Biden (post covid)
2022 $1.375 trillion
2023 $1.695 trillion
2024 $1.833 trillion

Trump
2025 $1.850 trillion

dpic's analysis: It all went to hell in a handbasket under Trump because we lost tax receipts from undocumented workers

Any budget that requires tax receipts from undocumented slave labor is a budget that can't survive...
 

bdgan

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Rifler

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Public charge is a legal ground for inadmissibility that democrats have ignored for years. Here's an article that says 90% of Somalis with children in Minnesota receive some sort of government welfare. These are the people dpic insists are reducing our deficit.

Report: Nearly 90% of Somali homes with children in Minnesota on welfare | Alpha News MN

That's because they see the dollars these groups contribute, but have zero appreciation for the dollars they consume,... The books don't balance.
 

TJ8869

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Acting like you didn't know. Come on Teej.
Actually I didn’t know, Hermie. I’d never even heard of this board before you tagged me this morning. When the HORT mods made it a premium board I just wandered over to the Iowa women’s basketball board.

Is this place worth hanging around?
 

TJ8869

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seems to be...don't people in Iowa have jobs that pay well? $100/year is too much?
HORT was becoming barely tolerable even for free. And now that it’s pay-for-play it seems like the traffic is only about half of what it was.
 

Tom Paris

Heisman
Oct 1, 2001
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Well, I would severely curtail entitlements.
Entitlements? You mean steal the money that the middle class has paid into their entire working lives? Those aren’t entitlements. It’s OUR money. Again, crap the wealthy NEVER need to worry about. I don’t really want to hear thieving Republicans talk about cuts when they waste our money on the rich and this narcissistic president regularly. Every Republican cut hurts the vast majority for the wealth of the few. Oligarchical, actually.
 
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Rifler

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Entitlements? You mean steal the money that the middle class has paid into their entire working lives? Those aren’t entitlements. It’s OUR money.

I think we need to seriously consider terminating a majority of these non-entitlement funds that the middle class pays into,.. Let's just have everyone keep their own money.
 

Tom Paris

Heisman
Oct 1, 2001
143,641
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Missed this. Comments:
  • Federal spending on ICE will be $18.7B annually over the next 4 years. Federal budget is $7.4T, so ICE is 0.25% of federal spending for 2026. That's not moving the needle.
  • As I've said before, please identify those not paying their fair share and propose tax legislation that only goes after them. Find those billionaires paying 8% effective rates on actual income. Find those rich guys paying less than their secretaries. Get their effective rates up to where the rest of us are. But leave people actually paying a high rates - and far more that 98% of the country - the **** alone.
  • Take a look at the military if you want too. That's actually a large spend category. I wouldn't reduce our effectiveness, but I bet there's a **** load of waste in our military contracts.
  • Entitlements account for $3.5T of our federal budget, or 47.3%. We simply can't get out of this without reducing spending here. And reducing the general mentality of government dependence.
So once again the proposal is the middle class sacrifices. Never the wealthy.
 

Tom Paris

Heisman
Oct 1, 2001
143,641
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Actually I didn’t know, Hermie. I’d never even heard of this board before you tagged me this morning. When the HORT mods made it a premium board I just wandered over to the Iowa women’s basketball board.

Is this place worth hanging around?
No. You should leave. It sucks here.
 

bdgan

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Entitlements? You mean steal the money that the middle class has paid into their entire working lives? Those aren’t entitlements. It’s OUR money. Again, crap the wealthy NEVER need to worry about. I don’t really want to hear thieving Republicans talk about cuts when they waste our money on the rich and this narcissistic president regularly. Every Republican cut hurts the vast majority for the wealth of the few. Oligarchical, actually.
I'm constantly flabbergasted when people claim SS & Medicare aren't entitlements. Entitlements Federal entitlement are legally mandated benefits as opposed to discretionary programs which are funded through annual appropriations. I'm sure you don't think SS & Medicare are discretionary but that's what you're saying when you say they aren't entitlements.
 
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bdgan

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but would those "fixes" raise enough money?
Unfortunately there's not a single item where we can cut $2 trillion per year. But if we can save $20 billion here and $20 billion there it's a start. I hate the idea of doing things like increasing taxes, cutting COLAs, increasing the retirement age, etc but it's going to take a combination of things to keep the SS trust fund solvent. The problem is congress won't vote to cut benefits or raise taxes for the majority of people. Tax the rich plays well politically but it doesn't generate enough money.

I predict that something will eventually be agreed upon at some point but it won't fix the problem. At best it will keep the trust funds solvent for a few years.
 

What Would Jesus Do?

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not to be obstinent, but I heard him say "fix" not cut.
He said "the largest spending item, the reason we're in trouble, is because over 74% of federal spending is on autopilot. Mandatory spending. That's your entitlement programs like Medicare, Medicaid, and things like Social Security. They have to be adjusted and fixed."

Do you honestly believe with that setup he meant anything other than cut?
 
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