Kerry with Republican Congress

[Huckleberry Finn]

Clinton’s healthcare platform lost in Congress even when there was Democratic majority. After 1994 election his hands was tied with Republican majority and there was no change for major reforms.  

Let’s suppose that Kerry will win White House but Republicans keep to Congress. What kind of Kerry’s presidency would be in this pretty likely situation?

Any opinions?

[Wakie]

It would be difficult.  That is why it is important for the Democrats to also gain ground in Congress.

[classical liberal]

The same as with Clinton.  Except now the exuse Bush used to get a Republican senate, along with just who is up for reelection in the midterms, will probably win the senate and possibly the house for the Democrats.

[dunn]

Clinton’s healthcare platform lost in Congress even when there was Democratic majority. After 1994 election his hands was tied with Republican majority and there was no change for major reforms.  

Let’s suppose that Kerry will win White House but Republicans keep to Congress. What kind of Kerry’s presidency would be in this pretty likely situation?

Any opinions?

If he sticks wirh liberal-left ideas they will give him hell

[Kghadial]

If Kerry wins and has a republican senate there will be beautiful Frist/Hastert on Kerry deadlock. The economy will boom. Look at Gringrich on Clinton deadlock, beautiful times for the economy.

Hopefully Kerry will at some point have control of when of either the house or senate (probably senate)  then he might push some decent reforms through.  Kerry has only three things to do if he becomes president: fix social security for the rest of the century, restore a measure of sanity in the war on terror (get allies, slow down growth of American empire, etc. ) , and but the deficit on a diet.

Dificult work? yes? but he won't have a major load of things to force through congress. Likely he'll be able to get the war on terror to something the moderate democracies of the world will be able to get aboard on, and reign in the deficit. Social Security might be too much for anyone to deal with  ...

[classical liberal]

Index retirement age to life expectancy retroactively to the SSA's inception.

[angus]

not retroactively

[zachman]

They really ought to pass legislation to start raising the Social Security Benefit's age to 72 or 75, starting 5 years from now.

[angus]

privatize social security?

[zachman]

No I don't think they should, because I don't trust people to make smart investment choices with their money. It will be privitized or gone by the time I recieve it, in 2053 (Assuming the age is not raised).

[angus]

"My opponent trusts the government.  I trust the people.  It's an honest disagreement between us."

  Governor George Walker Bush, June 3, 2000

[classical liberal]

When I said retroactively I meant make the age 105%percent of the current life expectancy.  FDR devised the program with a retirement age at 65 when life expectancy was at 62.

[MN-Troy]

No I don't think they should, because I don't trust people to make smart investment choices with their money. It will be privitized or gone by the time I recieve it, in 2053 (Assuming the age is not raised).

It would be nice to take a percentage of the social security money the government takes out of my paycheck and put into an IRA account or an index fund and get an average yearly return of 10 to 15%.

~Troy~

[zachman]

It would be fine to privitize if the government made it optional, and if it was limited to under 25%.

[opebo]

I think a Republican Senate and House are both exceedingly likely throughout a Kerry first term, and I think that while there are a few turncoats in the Senate that might vote with Kerry, the House would basically stand fast and make war on him, just like they did with Clinton.  So none of your socialized medicine.

Alas the way the tax cuts are structured Kerry can just let them expire, thereby raising taxes, by just vetoing Republican attempts to make them permanent.

[Gustaf]

The age structure will cause problems...

[NHPolitico]

They really ought to pass legislation to start raising the Social Security Benefit's age to 72 or 75, starting 5 years from now.

When SS was started, the life expectancy was 62, 3 years shy of the eligibility age.  The new expectancy is 77, so eligibility should move to 80.

[John]

I Think it is going to hard to work A Democart in the White House if kerry is the Next Man in Line

[angus]

Here's your answer Huck:

Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.) dueled with President Bush over taxes and the economy yesterday and then, in an offhand comment to factory workers in Chicago, called the Republicans "the most crooked, you know, lying group I've ever seen," triggering an angry denunciation from Bush's campaign.   Last night, Bush campaign chairman Marc Racicot called Kerry's statement "unbecoming of a candidate for the presidency of the United States of America" and called on Kerry to apologize. "On the day that Senator Kerry emerged as his party's presumptive nominee, the president called to congratulate him," Racicot said. "That goodwill gesture has been met by attacks and false statements."

read more at
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A47992-2004Mar10.html

[Nation]

Bush's phone call was nothing more then a way of saying "let the battle begin."

As for Kerry's remark, it was a little over the line. He's not going to win an election with stuff like that. An apology might actually help him.

[elcorazon]

It was similar to Reagan's comment about bombing the Russians.  He screwed up and should apologize.  It was not meant to be captured on tape.  Don't think Bush wouldn't say the same stuff about Kerry in private.  Problem was Kerry wasn't in private.

[classical liberal]

the part that got onto the recording did not specify that Kerry was talking about Reps.  His campaign has already denounced the efforts to make the comments seem to be personal attacks on the President.

[Ben.]

didn’t Bush refer to a crowd of activists as ass holes?... didn’t surprise me any more than what Kerry's saying now... in this kinda race you need to demonise your opponent in your own mind to a certain extent while keeping focused on appearing reasonable... personally both Bush and Kerry seem like decent guys... I'll be voting for Kerry though and that’s a promise...  

[angus]

... personally both Bush and Kerry seem like decent guys...

They probably are.  I'm telling you it's like that old Tex Avery cartoon, "Goodnight Ralph."  "Goodnight Sam."

[Ben.]

 Wow maybe slowly but surely starting on this board we can try and set aside partisan bickering and reject both our party's extremists and move to that great sun lit upland......... doubt it thought... oh well maybe one day