Lawrence E. Rafferty — Follow The Money

Pension fund parasitism.

Jonathan Turley
Follow The Money
Lawrence E. Rafferty (rafflaw)

Note to Chris Christie and other "entitlement fixing" sociopaths. (That means you, too, Hillary.)

Christie came out the other day with this fucked-up "tough love" message about how we need to "fix" Social Security and how he's the man to do it. I presented my thoughts on that speech here. (BTW...Christie's state is in a shambles.)

Now a little lesson on why Social Security can never be "fixed" and repeating, for the umpteenth time, why it's not broken.

A tax is a tax. It is the removal of all or part of this income. Why should this be put on seniors and workers? It won't make Social Security more "secure." First of all it can never be insecure in a financial sense because the US government cannot run out of dollars. Greenspan explained that already to Paul Ryan in a video/post I have put up many times.

Secondly, all Social Security taxes flow into the Treasury's general account and are used for general expenditures. That's always how it has been. There is no "lockbox" like Al Gore once laughably told everyone. In fact, the government has no means whatsoever to "save" its own fiat. The whole notion is idiotic. Is the money stored up in some warehouse somewhere?

The fact of the matter is, any additional Social Security tax would a) hit workers the hardest and; b) just flow right into the Treasury's general account as it always has and be spent. Probably on war.

So, 10 years down the road they'd be saying we have to save Social Security...again. Then what? More taxes? Come on. Wake up. This is Wall Street wanting our tax dollars so it can play its casino games.

Chris Christie is floating his big, "presidential," idea: Screwing seniors out of Social Security

Guess who's sorta running for president, but hasn't come out and said it, yet? New Jersey Governor, Christie Christie. And guess what appears to be the main idea for his platform? How he's gonna "fix" Social Security.

Never mind that it ain't broken and will never go broke because the Federal Government can never run out of dollars to pay. Alan Greenspan schooled Paul Ryan on this, remember? And the government "paid back" nearly $69 trillion to holders of public debt securities LAST YEAR. SIXTY NINE TRILLION.

So it's pretty clear we can't run out of money.

But don't let that phase Christie; he's just another clueless, callous debt fanatic. A guy who's pretty much run his state into the ground. Near last in job growth. Credit ratings cut by rating agencies. Led the last three years out of four in people leaving. Cuts to education, health care, social programs, but of course, tax cuts for the wealthy. He's right up there with guys like Sam Brownback of Kansas and Scott Walker of Wisconsin

Christie's plan to fix Social Security is to screw seniors out of benefits by cutting payments and raising the retirement age. Wonderful. More taxes on the most vulnerable and those who worked all their lives and contributed to the system and helped build the country. That's fair.

By the way, with Christie coming out with this plan, expect the other ignorant debt fanatics/hypocrites to do the same and, oh yeah, that means Hillary Clinton, too. Her husband is all about cutting Social Security. His "guy" was none other than Erskine Bowles of Simpleton/Bowels infamy.

All I have to say are two things: Are we still really having this discussion about what is causing income and wealth  inequality?

And...

Say goodbye to Social Security as we have come to know it. It's going away.

P.S. Guys ike Christie are truly disgusting.

Paul Carr — Chris Christie lies yet again. Tells press conference that Sirota was fired by Pando over inaccuracies

I thought we’d already put this to bed, but apparently not. Speaking in a press conference today, New Jersey governor Chris Christie responded to the continuing scandal over his handling of New Jersey pension funds by adding yet another lie to his long, long record of untruths.

Asked once again about the scandal, he responded that David Sirota, the journalist who broke the story while at Pando, was fired for inaccuracy. He also called David a “discredited journalist” and a “hack.”

As I’ve written before, but apparently need to do once again, David Sirota wasn’t “fired” for anything. Rather he was laid off during our recent restructuring of our editorial team, allowing us to refocus on our core beat of holding to account the “new power” tech moguls and companies taking over the world. David was quickly snapped up by IBT which continues to publish his excellent investigations into financial corruption in all its forms.

As Christie is well aware, not only does Pando stand by David’s reporting but we continue to cover any legal expenses he incurs as a result of Christie’s cronies threatening to sue over our coverage. To date, despite attempts to silence us with threats of multi-hundred-million dollar lawsuits, no such suit has been filed.

Pando Daily

Chris Christie lies yet again. Tells press conference that Sirota was fired by Pando over inaccuracies
Paul Carr | Editorial Director of Pando

Maybe police are finally starting to wake up to the fact that the neoliberal looting class is coming for their money, too!

Maybe this is a sign that the police are starting to wake up to the fact that even they are not immune to the parasitic wants of their neoliberal masters. Looks like the NJ State Police are suing Chris Christie over the matter of his cutting of their pensions. Good luck with that.

Of course this is all done so the rich don't have to pay another dime in Jersey or elsewhere. You see, it's happening all over, regardless of who's in office, Democrat or Republican. (Andrew Cuomo in New York State, Mike Bloomberg in NYC, Rick Perry in Texas, etc.)

All these governors and mayors can then boast about how they balanced their state/city budgets without raising taxes, which is a total joke because the budget cuts and looting of pensions IS a tax increase--only it falls on those least able to afford it.

During the Occupy Wall Street days most police were too busy (and still are too busy) cracking heads and pepper spraying peaceful protesters to pay any attention. However, they were warned. I remember very well watching many of these protesters trying to tell the cops that it would soon be their money at risk, but these "law enforcers" were too busy or excited by the thrill of throwing another victim to the ground to pay any attention, I guess. (Or maybe they were too dumb to process the information.)

Whatever the reason, I am personally happy to see the cops get their pension money confiscated and even happier that it's being done by the very same lawmakers who had been cynically praising them all along, for the great work they were doing fighting "crime." What bullshit.

To me, the cops are even more despicable than the neoliberal parasites who bought the government and are now conducting their own personal war against the rest of us. They couldn't do it without the law enforcement apparatus providing the muscle and running roughshod over our Constitutional rights. Shame on police everywhere. My hope is that you inherit a fate far, far, worse than those you helped to rob and brutalize.

I rooting for Christie to win this lawsuit. Take the cops' money, governor. Take it.

More austerity pusher GOP hypocrisy and deceit. Michael Grimm (R-NY) indicted.

I met Congressman Michael Grimm (R-NY) several times while I was still at Fox News. I never liked or trusted him. He was a cocky dude and a diehard austerity pusher. "Too much spending, we gotta cut, balance the budget,"  blah, blah, same talk as all the other sadistic Conservative cretins. He didn't care who got taxed (yes, spending cuts are tax increases): seniors, students, children, needy families, as long as it wasn't his rich NY friends. They got to keep whatever.

Well it looks like Grimm has now been indicted on charges of Federal tax evasion, lying to authorities. He kept two sets of books of course at his Manhattan restaurant so he could show one to the IRS and keep the real money for himself. (What? Tax me???)

Another classic hypocritical asshole. No problem taking money from the needy and regular working stiffs, but the millionaires...they get to keep it all.

I wrote about this dude along with other Conservative cretins like NJ Governor Chris Christie (here and here) in several posts last year.

Grimm may be finally getting his due, but he won't go quietly. The guy is running for re-election so shame is clearly a word that is not in his vocabulary.

Karma's a bitch, eh Mike?

Susan Heavey — Senator Elizabeth Warren tops ‘National Thermometer’ poll — above Hillary Clinton

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie fell to ninth place from his top spot among favored U.S. politicians after a scandal over traffic lane closures on the George Washington Bridge, according to a Quinnipiac University ranking released on Thursday....

Christie lost the No. 1 spot to populist Senator Elizabeth Warren, a Democrat from Massachusetts, in Quinnipiac’s “National Thermometer” poll....

Researchers asked nearly 1,600 registered voters to rate politicians on a scale of 0 to 100, with higher numbers indicating “warmer or more favorable” feelings.

Populism on the rise.

The Raw Story
Senator Elizabeth Warren tops ‘National Thermometer’ poll — above Hillary Clinton
Susan Heavey, Reuters

Eric Zuesse — Why Chris Christie Is Edging Past Hillary Clinton For President

Looking like Christie is the big donor's pick for us in '16. The selling has already begun.

The Huffington Post
Why Chris Christie Is Edging Past Hillary Clinton For President

Eric Zuesse

David Edwards — Faith and Freedom Pres. Ralph Reed: Christie has ‘same principles’ as tea party (via Raw Story )

Faith and Freedom Pres. Ralph Reed: Christie has ‘same principles’ as tea party (via Raw Story )

The president of the Faith and Freedom Coalition confirmed on Monday that New Jersey voters will be voting for the “same principles” as the tea party and conservative Christians when they cast their ballots to re-elect Gov. Chris Christie (R) on…

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Total hypocrisy! GOPers, fiscal conservatives, Chris Christie, Michael Grimm, Peter King, cry when they don't get their money from the Fed's government

This trio--N.J. Governor Chris Christie, Representative Peter King (R-NY) and Representative Michael Grimm (R-NY)--take the prize when it comes to hypocrisy.

They're all staunch fiscal conservatives, who run around saying the government is broke, we're out of money and we need to see drastic spending cuts to ensure our national "solvency," yet they cry when they don't get THEIR money from the Federal government.

Christie gutted education, health care, police, fire, unions, I had a conversation with Grimm when I was still at Fox News where he hit all the conservative talking points about out of control spending, national solvency, etc and King as well, but now they're incensed that the government is not bailing out their states and constituents. This is a shameful display of hypocrisy. These guys are the worst of the worst.

Jon Stewart To Gov. Chris Christie: 'Would You Let The Free Market Dictate What Happens After Sandy?'

If you haven't seen it yet.

The Huffington Post
Chris Christie, Jon Stewart Interview: New Jersey Governor & 'Daily Show' Host Spar Over Republican Philosophy (VIDEO)