Republican Senator Calls For Repeat Of 1995 Government Shutdown: ‘If We Hold Strong We Can Do That Again’ & Obama Reiterates He Won’t Compromise Over Debt Ceiling, Calls For Closing Tax Loopholes For The Rich 5&7JAN13

HOPE springs eternal that Pres Obama realizes he is the President and doesn't have to negotiate with the repiglicans and tea-baggers in congress over the federal debt. After all, as pointed out in this article, negotiations were not required the 19 times the debt ceiling was raised when george w bush was president. And it is refreshing and heartening to see Pres Obama standing firm in his insistence on raising revenues by closing tax loopholes that benefit only the rich and corporations. Progressives will have to keep vigilant to make sure the President stands his ground. This from Think Progress, followed by a piece on sen ted cruz's call for the repiglican / tea-bagger obstructionist in congress to stand firm against Pres Obama on raising the fed debt ceiling, shutting down the American govt if necessary (but close tax loopholes legislated only for the rich and corporations? Oh no, he opposes that, big surprise).

By Igor Volsky

In a his weekly address from Hawaii, President Obama reiterated that he will not negotiate with Republicans over raising the nation’s debt ceiling and said that any future efforts to reduce the deficit must include a combination of higher revenues and spending cuts.
Obama noted that additional revenue could come from closing tax loopholes and deductions Republicans themselves sought to reform throughout the 2012 presidential election and the fiscal cliff talks but were not altered in the compromise Congress passed to avert the fiscal cliff. Congress enacted $1.7 trillion in budget cuts last year and raised $620 billion in revenue in the fiscal cliff fix, a number that is far below House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH)’s offer of $800 billion during the cliff negotiations and lower than what would have been raised under Simpson-Bowles or Rivlin-Domenici.
From Obama’s remarks:

I believe we can find more places to cut spending without shortchanging things like education, job training, research and technology all which are critical to our prosperity in a 21st century economy. But spending cuts must be balanced with more reforms to our tax code. The wealthiest individuals and the biggest corporations shouldn’t be able to take advantage of loopholes and deductions that aren’t available to most Americans.
And as I said earlier this week, one thing I will not compromise over is whether or not Congress should pay the tab for a bill they’ve already racked up. If Congress refuses to give the United States the ability to pay its bills on time, the consequences for the entire global economy could be catastrophic. The last time Congress threatened this course of action, our entire economy suffered for it. Our families and our businesses cannot afford that dangerous game again.

Since Obama signed the “American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012,” the GOP has insisted that the measure “settles the level of revenue Washington should bring in” and have turned their attention to using the leverage of the debt ceiling to secure spending cuts and entitlement reforms.
During George W. Bush’s presidency, however, Republicans voted to increase the debt ceiling 19 times without ever demanding spending reductions, increasing the debt limit by nearly $4 trillion. In 2011, Boehner even warned of the consequences of holding the nation’s credit rating hostage. “That would be a financial disaster, not only for us, but for the worldwide economy,” Boehner said on “Fox News Sunday” of the risk of default. “I don’t think it’s a question that’s even on the table.”
http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2013/01/05/1402591/obama-reiterates-he-wont-compromise-over-debt-ceiling-calls-for-closing-tax-loopholes-for-the-rich/

Republican Senator Calls For Repeat Of 1995 Government Shutdown: ‘If We Hold Strong We Can Do That Again’

By Scott Keyes

Tea Party-aligned Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), within days of being sworn in, is already calling for a government shutdown unless Congress agrees to massive budget cuts.
During an appearance on Mark Levin’s radio show Friday, Cruz waxed poetic about the last time Republicans successfully shut down the government in 1995, arguing that a shutdown leads to better economic policies. “Because Republicans stood strong in 1995, we saw year after year of balanced budgets,” Cruz said. He went on to call for a repeat as Republicans hold the nation’s fiscal solvency hostage in the debt ceiling fight next month. “If we hold strong we can do that again,” the Texas Senator declared:

CRUZ: What would happen if the debt ceiling isn’t raised is it would be a partial government shutdown. We’ve seen this before, we saw this in 1995, when Republicans in the House shut down the government. What happened was it was a partial shutdown, there was some political cost to be paid but at the end of the day, because Republicans stood strong in 1995, we saw year after year of balanced budgets and some of the most fiscally-responsible policies Congress has produced in the modern-era. If we hold strong we can do that again. It just comes down to Republicans. Are we willing to stand strong and face the wrath of the mainstream media criticizing us and the president saying nasty things about us?

Listen to it:
Were Cruz and his Republican allies to succeed in shutting down the government, the effects would be felt widely. Over 800,000 federal workers would likely be furloughed, Social Security processing could be delayed, newly-eligible Medicare patients wouldn’t be able to obtain benefits, police and public safety officials could be cut, and veterans’ services would be impacted.
In addition, a debt ceiling negotiation itself is costly; last time Republicans held it hostage in 2011, the debacle cost taxpayers $19 billion.
The larger problem, however, is that by not raising the debt ceiling, Congress risks defaulting on the United States’ credit. If Cruz and his allies block a debt ceiling increase, the Treasury won’t be able to pay all its bills. As Matthew Yglesias notes, “The result won’t be a ‘shutdown’ of government functions; it’ll be a deadbeat federal government. Some people won’t get money they’re legally entitled to.” That’s why House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) warned in 2011 that not raising the debt ceiling would cause “financial disaster” for the entire “worldwide economy.”
In his first week in Congress, Cruz is already earning a reputation as an unwavering firebrand. As he explained on Fox News Sunday this past weekend, “I don’t think what Washington needs is more compromise.”
http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2013/01/07/1406011/cruz-calls-for-shutdown-default/