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2011年6月27日星期一

Biden warns GOP on debt ceiling talks (AP)

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COLUMBUS, Ohio – Vice President Joe Biden said Saturday the Obama administration wouldn't let middle class Americans "carry the whole burden" to break a deadlock over the national debt limit, warning that the Republican approach would only benefit the wealthy.

Addressing Ohio Democrats, Biden said there had been great progress in talks with Republican lawmakers on a deficit-reduction plan agreement. But he insisted that his party wouldn't agree to cuts that would undermine the elderly and middle-class workers.

"We're not going to let the middle class carry the whole burden. We will sacrifice. But they must be in on the deal," Biden said in a speech at the Ohio Democratic Party's annual dinner.

Biden led efforts on a deficit-reduction plan but Republicans pulled out of the discussions last week, prompting President Barack Obama to take control of the talks.

The sides disagree over taxes. Democrats say a deficit-reduction agreement must include tax increases or eliminate tax breaks for big companies and wealthy individuals. Republicans want huge cuts in government spending and insist on no tax increases.

On tax breaks for the wealthy, Biden used the example of hedge fund managers who "play with other people's money."

"And they get taxed," Biden said. "I'm not saying they don't do good things, they do some good things. But they get taxed at 15 percent because they call it capital gains. Because they're investing not their money, (but) other people's money."

To ask senior citizens receiving Medicare to pay more in taxes when people earning more than $1 million a year receive a substantial tax cut "borders on immoral," the vice president said.

"We're never going to get this done, we're never going to solve our debt problem if we ask only those who are struggling in this economy to bear the burden and let the most fortunate among us off the hook," Biden said.

Republican leaders say without a deal cutting long-term deficits, they will not vote to increase the nation's borrowing — which will exceed its $14.3 trillion limit on Aug. 2. The Obama administration has warned that if Congress fails to raise the debt ceiling, it would lead to the first U.S. financial default in history and roil financial markets around the globe.

Obama and Biden are scheduled to meet with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky on Monday. McConnell and House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, say no agreement can include tax increases.

Biden assailed moves by GOP governors in Wisconsin and Ohio to strip away collective bargaining rights from most public workers while criticizing efforts by Republicans in Congress to alter the Medicare program. He defended Obama's handling of the economy, pointing to difficult decisions on an economic stimulus package and the rescue of U.S. automakers.

Ahead of Biden's visit, Republicans countered that Obama's policies led to GOP gains in 2010 and have failed to revitalize the economy.

"All the visits in the world from President Obama, Vice President Biden and other top-level surrogates won't change the administration's job-killing policies," said Republican National Committee spokesman Ryan Tronovitch.

Biden, who spoke frequently of his blue-collar roots in Scranton, Pa., during the 2008 presidential race, is expected to be a frequent visitor to the Midwest during next year's campaign.

Obama won states such as Ohio, Michigan and Pennsylvania in 2008. But those states elected Republican governors in 2010 and are considered prime targets for Republicans next year.

Looking ahead to 2012, Biden called Ohio "the state that we must win and will win."

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Ken Thomas can be reached at http://twitter.com/AP_Ken_Thomas


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Obama, GOP radio duel over government debt ceiling (The Christian Science Monitor)

在 ServiceModel 客户端配置部分中,找不到引用协定“TranslatorService.LanguageService”的默认终结点元素。这可能是因为未找到应用程序的配置文件,或者是因为客户端元素中找不到与此协定匹配的终结点元素。
在 ServiceModel 客户端配置部分中,找不到引用协定“TranslatorService.LanguageService”的默认终结点元素。这可能是因为未找到应用程序的配置文件,或者是因为客户端元素中找不到与此协定匹配的终结点元素。

Washington – Saturday's radio addresses by President Obama and a Republican legislator offered a preview of the challenge the White House faces next week in restarting stalled talks over raising the federal debt ceiling and averting an August government shutdown.

Congressional Republicans last week pulled out of debt reduction talks led by Vice President Joe Biden citing their opposition to any tax increases being included in a final plan. House Speaker John Boehner warned of “job killing tax hikes.” White House spokesman Jay Carney countered that “millionaires and billionaires and special interests” should have to contribute to cutting the deficit.

On Monday, President Obama is slated to meet separately with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D) of Nevada and with Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R) of Kentucky to try and restart the talks. So it is not surprising that the Saturday addresses from both parties continued the on-going debate about government fiscal policy.

President Obama’s address was recorded Friday during his trip to Carnegie Mellon University’s Robotics Institute in Pittsburgh. Speaking in front of a display of robots used to find leaks and breaks in water and sewer pipes, Obama said “advanced manufacturing can help spur job creation and economic growth across the country.”

His remarks on the debt ceiling debate – and related efforts to trim the massive federal budget deficit – were pointed.

“I am committed to working with members of both parties to cut our deficits and debt,” the president said. But he added, “We can’t simply cut our way to prosperity.”

Rep. Renee Ellmers of North Carolina gave the Republican response, criticizing the Obama administration for wanting to raise taxes. Ellmers, who owns a small medical practice with her husband, accused the Obama administration of wanting to "stay the course, keep spending money we don't have, and raise your taxes – all in the name of 'stimulus.'"

She added that “The job creators we hear from, they don’t have their hand out. They don’t want a bailout. All they ask us to do is get government out of the way.”

The economy’s continuing weakness remains a major concern for the Obama administration.

Weak economic growth, high unemployment, and a lagging housing sector are major factors in the president’s poor approval ratings. The latest Real Clear Politics average of major polls shows 47.7 percent of Americans approve of the job President Obama is doing while 47 percent disapprove. An approval rating under 50 percent generally indicates tough re-election prospects for an incumbent.

The war of words over economic policy will continue Saturday evening when Vice President Biden speaks at the Ohio Democratic Party’s annual state dinner. Biden has been a frequent defender of the administration’s economic policies, speaking of the economic challenges his family faced when he was a boy.

“He obviously has deep, deep roots in the industrial Midwest running from Pennsylvania right across and he’ll be very valuable there,” the Associated Press quoted Obama strategist David Axelrod as saying in Chicago last week.


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