Mike Rogers Confronted Over Sequestration Concerns At Town Hall Posted: 05/01/2013 6:20 pm EDT "WASHINGTON -- As the ripples of sequestration begin to spread across the country, members of Congress are in their home districts for recess this week, meeting with their constituents and hearing their concerns. On Tuesday, dissatisfaction with the budget cuts spilled over into Rep. Mike Rogers' (R-Ala.) town hall meeting, when a local businessman stood up and said he worried that sequestration was going to destroy his business. "John Mullins, 57, is a lifelong resident of Auburn, Ala., where Rogers held his Tuesday meeting with constituents. For the past 15 years, he's owned Collector's Corner, which sells comic books and other paraphernalia. "During the town hall, Mullins became frustrated by another attendee's call to impeach President Barack Obama. Mullins said the man also called the president a "terrorist." "You're a crazy man. You are crazy,â interjected Mullins, the Opelika-Auburn News reported. "The president is not some person trying to take your rights away." "Mullins then confronted Rogers, saying his primary concern was about sequestration and the effect it would have on his business. "The House of Representatives has done more to hurt my business than anything government, by anybody -- state, local, federal -- has ever done in that 15 years," he said. "Every time ya'll do something and cut funding, it hurts my customers. They have less money to spend. When they have less money to spend, they spend less with me, which means I have less money. You're ... destroying my business with the sequester." "Rogers' office did not return a request for comment about the exchange. "In an interview with The Huffington Post on Wednesday, Mullins, who considers himself to be a Democrat, said he's heard from fellow business owners who are also concerned about sequestration. He said he believes the across-the-board federal cuts have already hurt his sales. While it's likely too early to attribute any economic effects to sequestration -- a drop in spending could, for example, be attributed to the end of the payroll tax credit -- Mullins' comments reflect how concerns about sequestration have filtered down to the constituent level. "In February, Wells Fargo said Alabama was one of the states at "highest risk" of economic contraction from sequestration. "Mullins also said he has been receiving compliments from Auburn residents all day long, thanking him for standing up to the man who called for Obama's impeachment. Indeed, even his phone interview with The Huffington Post was interrupted by someone coming into his store and praising his conduct at the town hall. "I've even had Republican businessmen, who are diehard Republicans, tell me that I did the right thing in calling the guy out, because they say that's hurting the party with that craziness," he said. "So both sides have been thanking me, which really surprises me. Maybe that's a sign that people are getting tired of this and want people to work together." "Rogers didn't buy into the constituent's call to impeach the president either, replying that it would be a waste of time "in absence of him doing something more directly in violation of the constitution." The congressman added that the public's primary concern right now was the economy."
democrat comic book store owner does not realize that every time the govt spends money it does not have, the govt debases this guys assets. by the way even the story admits the only effect of the sequester could be having on this guy is not even the sequester but the repeal of tax cuts. What this guy is really feeling is the crush of obamacare on jobs and hours worked. "He said he believes the across-the-board federal cuts have already hurt his sales. While it's likely too early to attribute any economic effects to sequestration -- a drop in spending could, for example, be attributed to the end of the payroll tax credit"
The government borrows (some) to operate, always has. Right now, money is idle, plentiful, and cheap. Under those conditions it makes no sense to reduce demand further in an already demand constrained environment.
first of all the money is cheap and plentiful not because of natural market forces but because the Fed is rigging the rates and debase the dollar via QE or printing money. If we do not stop borrowing when... interest rates return to 4 5 6 percent we will virtually lose the ability to pay the debt or pay for essential govt services. You and Krugman are cheerleading for a debt bomb. Its why the price of food and oil and now clothes keep going up. I just paid 35 dollars for a chinesse food which was 29 dollars 18 months ago. Our economy is demand constrained by the distortions caused by govt meet and the policies which supported too big to fail and the housing bail out. If you had let the recession clean out the excess we would be booming by now. You would think we would have learned the lesson by looking at Japan.
Comic bookstore owner gets economics education from own stock. Lets face it most of his customers are kids or teenagers who never grew up exactly the demographic that gets hit the most in a downturn pof an economy. Now if he could accept WIC cards he'd be rolling in it.
Right now, money is idle, plentiful, and cheap. And still..no one want to buy comic books. On the flip side though.... sale of wooden arrows shot up with the repeal of the wooden arrow tax. Gov't in action.
When interest rates rise to those levels what's probably happening in the economy? Will the government need to borrow as much? Nope. (Unless some moron starts a war--or two--and cuts taxes.) U.S. to pay down debt for first time in six years The Wall Street Journal - MarketWatch By Greg Robb April 29, 2013, 4:05 p.m. EDT "WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) â In another sign of an improving deficit picture, the Treasury on Monday said it expects to pay off debt in the current quarter for the first time in six years. "In a statement, Treasury said it now expects to pay off $35 billion of debt in the April-to-June quarter, compared to an earlier projection, given in February, that it would have to borrow $103 billion. "This will be the first quarter that Treasury has paid off debt since April-to-June period 2007. "The payoff âis emblematic of the turn in budget finances from horrible, to grim, on their way to steadily better,â said Eric Green, global head of rates and foreign-exchange research at TD Securities. "Treasurys on the longer end of the yield curve weakened slightly after the news. The 10-year note 10_YEAR -0.12% was yield was up about a half a basis point up on the day at 1.668%, while the 30-year bond yield 30_YEAR +0.04% climbed more than 1 basis point on the day to 2.876%. Read MarketWatchâs bond report. "In a statement, Treasury said the changed projection related to higher receipts and lower outlays, but gave no details. The agency also said it expects to have more cash on hand than was previously assumed. "Congress allowed a payroll tax cut to expire at the beginning of the year. This tax hike and continued growth has put more money into the governmentâs coffers. The sequester, in effect since March, has helped cut outlays. "For the fourth fiscal quarter, which begins in July, the government expects to borrow $223 billion. "This assumes quarter-end cash balances of $75 billion on June 30 and $80 billion on September 30. "The Treasury will announce details of its quarterly refunding on Wednesday. Green said Treasury is expected to hold the refunding auction sizes steady at $32 billion three-year notes, $24 billion of ten-year notes, and $16 billion in 30-year bonds. âBut if there is a surprise, we know where it leans,â Green said. "Over the next two years, the Treasury offering of coupon securities could be $250-$325 billion lower than it has been, Green estimated. "Last week, as a result of the improved outlook for the deficit, the Bipartisan Policy Center pushed back the estimated date that the U.S. might hit its debt ceiling to far as mid-to-late September from the previous estimate of late August to mid-September. "Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew said last week he could not forecast the exact date when Congress has to raise the ceiling to avoid a default. "Republicans in Congress want to use the debt ceiling to seek spending cuts from President Barack Obama." http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us...-first-time-in-six-years-2013-04-29-151034646
"Pay off debt" with what? Worthless printed paper currency? Why not just print the $16.8 Trillion we owe and be done with it?