Elon Musk, the billionaire who led President Trump’s effort to cut government spending, condemned the president’s signature domestic policy bill as a “disgusting abomination” that would swell the “already gigantic budget deficit.” Mr. Musk’s posts on X, just days after an Oval Office send-off where he and the president praised each other, said that Congress was “making America bankrupt” and that in next year’s midterm elections, “we fire all politicians who betrayed the American people.”

https://www.nytimes.com/live/2025/06/03/us/trump-news

I guess, like so many of us predicted, that there has been a falling-out. More trump ineptitude and stupidity. The guy that was his right-hand man a couple of days ago is now issuing press-releases criticizing him.

How on earth do you vote republican? It's not just idiotic, it is so idiotic it is embarrassing.

How do you vote for EITHER party...

Demo's brand problems from new CNN poll

"The poll, which was released Sunday, asked a battery of questions about how people view both parties. Perhaps most striking was that people were more likely to view the Republicans than Democrats as the party with strong leaders (40% to 16%) and even the “party of change” (32% to 25%).

Neither party won close to a majority in either category. But the former is notable because there is such a gulf between the two parties. And the latter is notable because the party that’s out of power is usually viewed as the party of change. Not this time."


.

sooooo ..liberals are now supporting Elon Again?

quote:

Originally posted by jeffeosso:
sooooo ..liberals are now supporting Elon Again?

I heard they where gonna start passing out fire extinguishers at Tesla dealerships!

quote:

Originally posted by JTEX:
[QUOTE]Originally posted by jeffeosso:
sooooo ..liberals are now supporting Elon Again?

Not even close. Let his whole world go to hell. Is that clear enough for you?

quote:

Originally posted by wymple:

quote:

Originally posted by JTEX:
[QUOTE]Originally posted by jeffeosso:
sooooo ..liberals are now supporting Elon Again?

Not even close. Let his whole world go to hell. Is that clear enough for you?

Don’t waste your time on him.

His head is far up the MAGA ARSEHOLE’s rear end he can’t see or hear anything!

quote:

Originally posted by jeffeosso:
sooooo ..liberals are now supporting Elon Again?

Oh no, buddy.....elon is allllll yours.

Does anyone here know what all of the "pork in the bill" is supposed to be?

If Congress would get off of its fucking dead ass and fix SS so more money is flowing in they wouldn't need to "borrow" as much in order to make good on those IOUs.

quote:

Originally posted by jeffeosso:
sooooo ..liberals are now supporting Elon Again?

Oh the hypocrisy of it all.

Sooo...."Conservatives" now support unlegislated tax increases(tariffs) and increases to our budget deficits?




You are one "unbiased" piece of work Honey.

quote:

Originally posted by Mike Mitchell:
Elon Musk ... condemned the president’s signature domestic policy bill as a “disgusting abomination” that would swell the “already gigantic budget deficit.” Mr. Musk’s posts on X ... said that Congress was “making America bankrupt” and that in next year’s midterm elections, “we fire all politicians who betrayed the American people.”

https://www.nytimes.com/live/2025/06/03/us/trump-news

... it is so idiotic it is embarrassing.

IMO, it's something overdue and I hope embarrassing to the Right people (pun intended), for the Right reason.

What if Musk pivots, having learned from the inside how Trump's whole admin and GOPer congress are a “disgusting abomination”?

Some of us can clearly see it from the outside.

" fix ss" how, antelope?

quote:

Originally posted by theback40:
" fix ss" how, antelope?

They can start by increasing how much is paid in for one. They give COL increases without a thought to money that's required to pay for them. Those COLs are permanent for EVERYONE until the recipients die. Like many other things inflation requires that cost ajustments/increases be made. If they had started out with small increases years ago things might not look so dire. Instead they borrow money "with interest" in order to repay money that they've alredy borrowed once.

Kind of like nonresident hunting license fee increases. IMO better to increase by $5 per year or every other year rather than hit folks with a $50 increase.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/mone...75c16490ddc809&ei=35

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news...75c16490ddc809&ei=35

So much winning

Remember back when Republicans felt the budget deficit mattered? Not these days.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news...aa4c9e2e763fd7&ei=14

I remember when Biden jobs reports were used as a reason to vote trump because they were "only" 200K.

Republicans in a panic that Elon (and his $400 billion) may jump ship.

https://www.axios.com/2025/06/...onald-trump-big-bill

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news...8OG?ocid=socialshare

‘Don’t Insult Us!’ GOP Senator Pleads With Trump to Dial Down Rhetoric — As He Slams ‘Grotesque’ and ‘Immoral’ Budget Bill
Story by Joe DePaolo • 9h •
2 min read

I had no idea that Ron Johnson had any qualifications to judge Immoral or grotesque.

Maybe it takes one to know one in his case.

https://youtube.com/shorts/qK9...?si=nAK3sLLq8BSA-7Ld

Elon Musk and the big, beautiful abomination

https://youtube.com/shorts/4ir...?si=pPavkgYmyZUCHWBd

After 44 years and $35 trillion in debt, Republicans once again turn to trickle-down economics

quote:

Originally posted by Magine Enigam:

After 44 years and $35 trillion in debt, Republicans once again turn to trickle-down economics

Any of that debt accrued by Democrats? How have their debt reduction plans worked out?
Don't pretend that deficit spending is a partisan problem. It is a societal problem and no political party, nor any other entity, has the will to even try to break the cycle. Regards, Bill

Here are some answers.

https://www.itsuptous.org/US-N...ional_Debt_Over_Time

And here's too much info:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...of_the_United_States

This looks like a more direct answer to your question:

https://www.investopedia.com/d...ational-debt-8738104

quote:

Originally posted by theback40:
" fix ss" how, antelope?

We now have an overhang of citizens from 1935 until now, who knew that there would be a teensy pension from the Social Security Administration. The necessity for saving retirement money was diminished a little (in some cases a lot) in favor of a little higher standard of living. It is too late to just end it without mass privation. Don't go there, it really is the third rail for a population that will take the time to vote.

For decades, the Social Security Administration took in more money than it paid out, and stashed the overage in government debt which would be certainly redeemable and safe. That has been over for a few years now, there is no current surplus and payables have to be paid by liquidating some of that debt. Who has the extra money to buy that debt?

I idly wonder how much of that debt is of recent issue, paying one or two percent interest. The principal will be paid at maturity, but the market value in a six percent environment is not the face value. This was the fate of the Silicon Valley Bank, which could not cover a run from collateral.

At the outset, there were six or so people paying in for every person getting benefits. That is down to something like two or three people paying in for each person getting benefits. This is barely sustainable if the two or three are productive and well-paid. The "productive" part is imperative, without it resources must come from outside domestic production. Tariff-taxed imports, which add to general revenues but are disguised as an aid to the domestic economy and do not appear as a line item on a 1040 form.

We tax earned income for Social Security, with a ceiling on the tax base. The ceiling gets raised a little now and then, enough to help a little without causing open revolt.

"If something can't go on, it won't go on".

At some point we must entertain a higher income ceiling for the tax, or tax unearned income as well as earned income (earned income is from W-2 or 1099 wages). Taxing interest, dividends, or capital gains for Social Security will inevitably rile the campaign contribution segment of the population.

Or print what's needed, and suffer the inevitable consequences (politicians who might do it would hope to be safely out-of-office and retired by the time the chickens come home to roost).

Kick the can down the road...?
Maybe until 2035, per projections.
Then what?

As an afterthought, I think I read somewhere that COVID saved the Social Security Administration something like $200 billion in benefits that won't be paid to the dead ones...

https://www.nber.org/papers/w33465

Hmmm...

quote:

Taxing interest, dividends, or capital gains

This.

Tax the valuation of stocks. We can discuss any exemptions. We pay tax on assessed values of wealth all the time. Land being the most obvious.

quote:

Originally posted by LHeym500:

quote:

Taxing interest, dividends, or capital gains

This.

Tax the valuation of stocks. We can discuss any exemptions. We pay tax on assessed values of wealth all the time. Land being the most obvious.

The entire value of the US stock market is roughly $45t... and the US government doesn't tax property, per se

A substantial class of folks have little support to the funding of our government and our obligations.

As Trump pointed out to HRC during one of their debates, “change it, but you want.”

It is past tone to change it and stop cooperate Tex breaks that do not result in more folks being hired. I paid 15 percent in Fed tax. Trump and his class can pay more percentage.

And, I am okay w increasing the age to full SSR staring w my age bracket.

Then you paid a heck of a lot less percentage than I do.

quote:

Originally posted by LHeym500:
A substantial class of folks have little support to the funding of our government and our obligations.

As Trump pointed out to HRC during one of their debates, “change it, but you want.”

It is past tone to change it and stop cooperate Tex breaks that do not result in more folks being hired. I paid 15 percent in Fed tax. Trump and his class can pay more percentage.

And, I am okay w increasing the age to full SSR staring w my age bracket.

Probably so. We both did more than Trump admitted.

My observation stands.

quote:

Originally posted by ANTELOPEDUNDEE:

quote:

Originally posted by theback40:
" fix ss" how, antelope?

They can start by increasing how much is paid in for one. They give COL increases without a thought to money that's required to pay for them. Those COLs are permanent for EVERYONE until the recipients die. Like many other things inflation requires that cost ajustments/increases be made. If they had started out with small increases years ago things might not look so dire. Instead they borrow money "with interest" in order to repay money that they've alredy borrowed once.

Kind of like nonresident hunting license fee increases. IMO better to increase by $5 per year or every other year rather than hit folks with a $50 increase.

For one they have to bring the inflows and outflows into balance where you have as many or more paying in as paying out. As it is when inflows are less they have to pony up on their IOUs. People on Medicare have a monthly premium taken from their SS. I could see a 1% premium from your SS which could be waived for hardship. If the Government didn't have to pony up hose IOUs they could absorb the SS administration costs like employers absorb the costs of 401k or other plans.

Instead the fucktards want to give tax cuts which don't pay for themselves so in the end they have to result to "borrowing" in order to cover that shortfall.

If I get a $500 tax break and spend that $500 on a computer the state gets $35 in sales tax; the Feds get nuttin. If I put it in a brokerage account then nobody gets anything.