News and Politics | July 30, 2008 | 65 comments

Bush raises national debt ceiling by $800 billion

source: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/31/business/31housing.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin

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philipmcp
"President Bush signed into law on Wednesday a huge package of housing legislation that included broad authority for the Treasury Department to safeguard the nation’s two largest mortgage finance companies and a plan to help hundreds of thousands of troubled borrowers avoid losing their homes.

To accommodate the rescue plan for the mortgage companies, the bill raises the national debt ceiling to $10.6 trillion, an increase of $800 billion. The bill also creates significant liabilities and risks for taxpayers, that are virtually impossible to calculate."
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65 comments // Bush raises national debt ceiling by $800 billion

  • quinnironhart
  • thomzang
    • 0
      thomzang  

    • doesn't anyone remember "voodoo economics" the infamous remark made by former president George H. W. Bush, which he denied having said until they found the video of him saying it? The republicans have screwed America again!

    • 3 years ago
  • 1FEDUPBM
    • 0
      1FEDUPBM  

    • Who cares Bush is rich and so is his family.....If they had integrity like a Buffets they'd care and pay for it themselves...Maybe not enough to pay with dollars but America will accept his suicide as equal payment!

    • 3 years ago
  • dcgamers
    • 0
      dcgamers  

    • It's ok we'll just borrow it form other countries and, you know, never pay it back. American to China: What are you going to do about it?

    • 3 years ago
  • PlatoTacius
    • 0
      PlatoTacius  

    • It may be true that bush is trying to avoid extradition...he has invested bookoos into property in Paraguay, which has no extradition agreement with the US...maybe he figures he can go there and fulfill his kingdom desires...

      How is he going to pilfer more money unless he raises the debt ceiling...he's already maxed out the former plan... so go ahead, Congress, give him some more money to squander, so we can dive even further into the bottomless debt pit...

    • 3 years ago
  • eldamon
    • 0
      eldamon  

    • ...and he did it while simultaneously lowering the national IQ and pissing on the Constitution. He is truly multi talented.

    • 3 years ago
  • Mark701
  • matlaroche
  • LuckyTripps
  • babyrobin
  • tripn4days
    • 0
      tripn4days  

    • Our tax dollars... hard at work saving fannie mae's "butt" (pardon the pun; I couldn't help it) but never coming back to us in the end... We get nothing from fannie's profits, if any; we only get to pay for their losses: "This decision privatizes the profits but socializes the losses"

      Gee, thanks guys!

      And why do we need another republican in office exactly? I keep having such a hard time coming up with a good answer to this... hmmm

    • 3 years ago
  • Vierotchka
  • PlatoTacius
    • 0
      PlatoTacius  

    • Get real folks, we didn't vote for these scoundrels that are running us in the ground. Certain investigative reporters, i.e. Greg Palast and others, have discoveed that, through the use of caging lists and voter registration lists, hundreds of thousands of votes were not counted or were lost or just ignored in many states. Voting machines that were known not to work were placed in mostly democratic black, hispanic, and native american areas so that the votes would not even register...many sneaky scummy tactics were used to insure that Bush/Cheney would win both electoins, but none of this is ever publicized for obvious reasons...the exit polls, that said Gore won, did not lie...we'd better get the kinks ironed out of the system this time or we'll be looking at four more years of drudgery...I, personally can't handle any more of the B.S. we've had to put up with from these blatantly corrupt scoundrels. It's become trickle down scoundrelism...

      Don't take my word for it, read 'Armed Madhouse' by Greg Palast...you'll be enlightened...

      If you look closely at the details of the bail out, it's a temporary fix for the consumers, not a gift, but more loan money that has to be paid back, i.e., from a 30 yr morgage, the period would jump to a 40 yr loan period, increasing the debt and the interest altogether... creating a lower monthly payment but more slave to debt ratio...this is only one example of the solutions proposed in the bill...another is a tax credit for down payment money, but that has to be paid back as well... so don't anyone jump to conclusions... check it out thoroughly first...

      Ambiguity fools even the cleverest minds...or, at least, confuses them...is this the 'business as usual' attitude that we've come to expect from our scrupulous leaders..? When are we going to have a real representative government, of, for, and by 'the people'..? No one is going to give it to us...WE have to make it happen...'We the People'...

    • 3 years ago
  • jeffreyak
  • reptillia
    • 0
      reptillia  

    • I don't see where any Pro-Bush views have their grounding any more. If the monumental and serious risks facing a certain piece of financial legislation affect everyone, and are impossible to calculate as well, who in their right mind would suggest it as a solution? The companies who are falling apart and taking our money with them need to be charged for the things they've done, and the politics-as-usual approach of lying to, and hurting the citizens needs to end. It's our responsibilty to make sure that they are held accountable. after all, it's our money that they're squandering, and using to fund these corporate rescues, and our votes are the ones determining if we're going to allow ourselves to be subject to these tactics further on down the line, and for the next eight years.

    • 3 years ago
  • benji21
  • talicatz
  • BentFranklin
  • arcticspirit
    • 0
      arcticspirit  

    • Unknown to most, the USA's country finances are compiled in a total different way than we would ever guess. It's nothing like what you or I would do with our money management.
      There is much "soft money" to work with that isn't counted for/against the numbers, and it seems like there was a big list of stuff that was completely confusing.

      What he did should have positive effects. I do miss Greenspan though.

    • 3 years ago
  • damnneargenius
    • 0
      damnneargenius  

    • The higher you fly the harder you crash. Actually I just made that up, but it could be true. They should only help the people whose houses were "reasonable" in relation to their income.

    • 3 years ago
  • jeromecon
  • JudahEvan
    • 0
      JudahEvan  
    • damnneargenius:

      So that includes no person or family who took out an ARM or a sub-prime loan. The people who took those types of loans did it on houses they couldn't afford by definition. If they could afford it, they wouldn't need help refinancing nor would they have taken out loans with adjustable rates.

      What classic blind conservatism by you two. You don't want to understand or realize what it is like to be poor. You don't want to admit that predatory lending is real because that would put a clout on unfettered capitalism. I love capitalism, don't get me wrong, but we live in excess. No doubt. But it is not always the fault of the consumer, nor is it always the fault of the lender. In the end, owning a home is the consummate American dream (especially considering the best schools are funded by the property taxes of the highest valued properties). But you would rather mock the needy and preach about responsibility because it makes you feel good. It's great to be able to afford your home isn't it?? I thank my lucky stars every day.

      And this has very little to do with the National Debt in all, by the way.

    • 3 years ago
  • PajamaDan
    • 0
      PajamaDan  

    • Who's worse?
      Bu$h, with all his America-worsening actions,...
      OR
      Us,... the American public, who have basically let all these tragedies happen.... and "voted" for him?!!?
      Alright, it's him,... but we can sit back no more.

    • 3 years ago
  • nobody04
    • 0
      nobody04  

    • Indentured survitude for the american people.

      I would like to denouce my citizenship, but Congrass pass a new law on June 17, a little provision in the 2008 Heroes Act, one section of the act, which states that anyone voluntarily giving up his or her citizenship will be taxed on all of his assets as if he or she had sold them -- paying capital gains on assets that have increased in value, even though they have not been sold.

      Look it up folks,
      Laugh, go ahead, it feels good...

    • 3 years ago
  • teto007
  • jeromecon
    • 0
      jeromecon  

    • congress past the law b4 bush signed it and yet you guys blame him. im not a bush supporter but this one is just as much as congresses fault

    • 3 years ago
  • JudahEvan
  • JudahEvan
    • 0
      JudahEvan  
    • jeromecon:

      I totally get a complacent and complicit congress, both democratic and republican controlled. But I will not place equal blame upon Congress. No way. This is mainly the fault of our current executive. He has thrown us deep into a hole (whether it be war or whether it be deregulation) that seems almost impossible to get out of.

    • 3 years ago
  • krag2112
    • 0
      krag2112  
    • jeromecon:

      War and tax cuts at the same time. It had never been done before. Sorry, but this is mostly Bush's fault. Even McCain said that we should repeal Bush's tax cuts (which mostly went to the richest Americans)...of course that was before he became a wholly owned subsidiary of the Bush administration.

    • 3 years ago
  • pos_nir
  • Paratus
    • 0
      Paratus  

    • Imagine the castigation he would underego if he did not sign the bill. Libs would have called him a heartless whatever and said it was typical of a Republican to ignore the regular people in this country who are in trouble. He was screwed regardless of what he did.
      Now, how did this come to be on his desk? Which of our reps on the HIll voted for this? This could have been stopped at the House or Senate level but they choose to push it through. YOu who blame Bush only for our deficit ignore the culpability Congress has in it. YOu who blame Bush only for Iraq choose to ignore Congress' culpability in it. We are in Iraq and have this deficit because of Congress and Bush.
      The problem is not just Bush. The problem is Capital Hill and 1600 PA Ave.
      The intellectual dishonesty of the left never ceases to amaze me.

    • 3 years ago
  • krag2112
    • 0
      krag2112  
    • Paratus:

      And while you're at it...answer this question. Which one of our candidates voted FOR the war in Iraq? Don't feed me a bunch of shit about funding either...just answer the question Mr. Honesty. You talk big about accountability and then start issuing passes. Typical.

    • 3 years ago
  • scabbio
    • 0
      scabbio  

    • crapcrapCRAPcrap
      wanna save some money? take away politicians benefits. all these fancy shindigs, a jetsetter lifestyle.. you wanna serve the public? do it for free.

    • 3 years ago
  • MRprez
  • bss05g
    • 0
      bss05g  

    • I want our sexy president Bill Clinton back, he was more about getting the nation into a surplus than into debt. Maybe if we weren’t at war spending millions a day we could save a little.

    • 3 years ago
  • Vierotchka
  • Ricky84
    • 0
      Ricky84  
    • bss05g:

      The surplus cannot be attributed to one person or entity. The world is not that simple. And with respect to this article the Clinton administration helped create the housing bubble! Ever hear of the National Homeownership Strategy?

    • 3 years ago
  • Ricky84
    • 0
      Ricky84  
    • Image

    • Huntre is right. Before anyone gets giddy about universal healthcare or a comprehensive government plan to reform the energy department just remember we’re already in the negative. There is however a problem with trying to fix the problem by simply raising taxes.

      In the Clinton administration we balanced the budget because of a combination of higher taxes, a fiscally responsibly Republican congress and a soaring economy. Now we are in a recession, in a major war and congress is spending like crazy.

      The 103 House, who met during the first two years of the Clinton administration, proposed three spending bills for every one that reduced spending. The senate had an equally low ratio of 3.1 spending verse reduction. However in the last two years of Clinton’s second term that ratio jumped to 10 to 1 in the house and 10 to one in the senate.

      Today, the 110 congress has completely lost its mind. The house currently maintains a 21 to 1 ratio while the senate maintains a 29 to 1 ratio.

      You can find a comprehensive report of our governments spending habits here. http://current.com/items/89146362_while_bush_takes_the_heat_congress_spends_like...

    • 3 years ago
  • Mark701
  • shelchak
  • huntre
    • 0
      huntre  

    • We had all better get ready for the next president to raise taxes to try and compensate for increased US debt, whether he says he won't or not.

    • 3 years ago
  • Vierotchka
    • 0
      Vierotchka  
    • huntre:

      It is not so much a question of raising taxes than a question of restoring taxes to their previous levels. If you talk about raising taxes, everyone moans. If you talk about restoring taxes, people might accept it more easily.

    • 3 years ago
  • Sublime_Emperor
  • Entrancing
  • chuygarsia2
  • Whitehorsevideo
    • 0
      Whitehorsevideo  
    • chuygarsia2:

      Capitalism is the process of transferring the wealth generated by the working class to the pockets of the useless rich through phony justice. We probably shouldn’t kill the rich, but we should insist that they work for a living…

    • 3 years ago
  • ArtisGilmoreHOF
  • Kynmore
  • AlinaJette
  • TexasPatriot67
  • furryjenn
  • drewsuf721
  • SonicSubculture
    • 0
      SonicSubculture  

    • We should be thankful that Bush and the Legislature are bailing us out of this mess using our tax dollars and the value of the dollar itself... it's not like they caused it or anything. Oh, wait... nevermind.

    • 3 years ago
  • Bookshepherd
    • 0
      Bookshepherd  

    • This "lame duck" has still got some "quacking" left to do... and by "quacking" I mean "fundamentally undermining the strength of the United States both at home and abroad." Inauguration 2009 can't come soon enough.

    • 3 years ago
  • covert1
  • Saladin
    • 0
      Saladin  
    • covert1:

      Because the economy will collapse if you don't.

      I love you don't mention the criminal loaners, who sold their loans without the money in the bank and then sold those loans to Mae and Mac. They get the money either way, win-win for them. Why do you think they handed out the loans?

      I also love how you don't whine about the 1 trillion dollar plus military budget.

    • 3 years ago
  • advertisehere
  • Ricky84
  • Whitehorsevideo
    • 0
      Whitehorsevideo  
    • covert1:

      You shouldn't, The mortgage makers and their stockholders should have their assets siezed. Corrupt corporate thieves should have their hands (livelyhoods) amputated like the lowliest of market thieves in the arab world...

    • 3 years ago
  • polkey1
  • philipmcp
    • 0
      philipmcp  

    • In the race to increase the chances of the next President being disliked for inheriting 8 years of planned chaos, Bush is certainly winning.

    • 3 years ago
  • jennyschu
  • julieboolie
  • BentFranklin
    • 0
      BentFranklin  
    • jennyschu:

      If you can afford it, yes. If you have steady jobs you should be able to afford something. Just be humble and stay conservative. Don't buy a bigger house than you can afford just to stroke your ego.

    • 3 years ago
  • s0und0FF
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