US Politics Mega-thread - Page 1516

On December 12 2014 05:26 {CC}StealthBlue wrote:
Just realized that Democrats and Conservatives are aligned to oppose this bill. The Left against gutting of Financial Reform, the Right by acceptation of amnesty. Add tot eh fact that the White House is behind Boehner in support of the bill that makes every GOP who votes in favor voting for Obama. Then there are the Blue Dogs and Moderates that lost and will be replaced by Far Right Conservatives. Who won't support any of this when they arrive in DC.

Boehner is in a pickle.

On December 12 2014 06:11 GreenHorizons wrote:


Seriously... Like he's not making a joke there? I don't know if there was video but he can't actually be serious with that?

On December 12 2014 05:55 Nyxisto wrote:
I find it sad that the argumentation revolves around the utility of torture in the first place. How about the argument that for a country that holds itself to higher standards than say, Iran or North Korea, torture might be off table on principle?. Because how you treat your enemies is pretty much one of the things that distinguishes the good guys from the bad guys?

On December 12 2014 07:56 oneofthem wrote:
we are dealing with an imperfect world in the case of interrogating terrorists trained in counter-interrogation methods. they are still combatants under capture, because information is a part of the war.

with that said, obviously not ideal, but the more severe and repeated use of these techniques were limited to a handful of very high value targets.

On December 12 2014 07:54 Introvert wrote:


This is the whole question and its answer. I find it interesting that he focused more on the deals we had with other nations than about the tactics themselves. Seems to be taking a slightly different approach when talking about this matter. Or it could just be the venue.

+ Show Spoiler +

And the Bush blame game is going on, as it always is. He's not wrong there. All these articles on Bush and Cheney, ugh.

Kentucky's proposed "creationist theme park," Ark Encounter, won't receive tax incentives from the state because of potentially discriminatory hiring practices, the news website Insider Louisville reported on Wednesday.

The secretary of the state's tourism and arts cabinet sent a letter to the theme park's lawyers on Wednesday explaining the decision. The park, being built in Williamstown, Ky., may have been eligible for up to $18 million in tax breaks from the state, according to the website. But Kentucky backed out after the proprietors of Ark Encounter refused to agree to hiring practices that wouldn't discriminate on the basis of religion, the site reported.

Secretary Bob Stewart explained the hiring practices proved to be an insurmountable obstacle despite the state's support of the project since it was proposed in 2010. (Gov. Steve Beshear (D) helped unveil the proposal that year.)

"We have strongly supported this project, believing it to be a tourism attraction based on biblical themes that would create significant jobs for the community," Stewart wrote in the letter to Ark Encounter's attorney.

Stewart wrote "the Commonwealth's position hasn't changed. The applicant's position has changed."

On December 12 2014 08:05 Chewbacca. wrote:
God the Q&A part of that video was horrible. How many times does he have to say that he can't know if information gathered was a result of the use of EITs, but people subjected to EITs did indeed provide valuable information.

WASHINGTON -- Democrats and a handful of Republicans rebelled against the government funding bill Thursday, with a possible government shutdown looming just hours away.

Republican leaders insisted that they would not let the government run out of money at midnight, and would pass a stop-gap measure if a deal could not be reached in time.

The inelegantly named "cromnibus" appropriations bill would fund the government after current funding expires at midnight. But Democratic lawmakers revolted against the must-pass legislation because it includes riders that would gut campaign finance rules and undo provisions in the Dodd-Frank Wall Street reform act designed to curb risky trading at the heart of the 2008 financial crisis.

Trouble started in the morning when the House barely cleared a procedural hurdle to advance the bill, 214 to 212. GOP leaders managed to convince just enough of their unhappy members to stay in line, but 17 Republicans nonetheless spurned their own leadership, angry that the bill isn't conservative enough.

After the rule scraped by, the White House issued a statement urging passage of the omnibus bill, while also asking for the removal of special interest riders. But it did not issue a veto threat -- a move intended to sway some Democrats to support the bill's final passage, especially the 70 Democrats who voted with Republicans to pass a similar Dodd-Frank provision last year.

The White House also expressed disapproval of a short-term funding measure for the Department of Homeland Security, which is funded under the omnibus through Feb. 27, 2015.

Despite its reservations, the White House statement made clear that President Barack Obama would sign the omnibus bill if it clears Congress.

On December 12 2014 12:24 SnipedSoul wrote:
I'm officially going to predict that there will be a massive economic meltdown before the 2016 presidential election.

On December 12 2014 12:45 IgnE wrote:
Lol. I wish we had jonny on record back in 2007.

On December 12 2014 13:02 Nyxisto wrote:
well the one trillion dollar of student debt are certainly going to blow at some point.

On December 12 2014 13:07 JonnyBNoHo wrote:

Household debt is still below pre-crisis levels, and debt service is still quite low by historical standards. If you're worried about debt, you should be far more worried about Canada than the US.

On December 12 2014 13:09 Nyxisto wrote:


While public debt has doubled since 05, which in the end is going to be paid by the tax payer anyway. That rise of debt simply seems unsustainable.