The November 7 evening meeting, which lasted nearly three hours,

The fact that these people haven't been meeting for 12 hours a day, 6 days a week for the last month should tell you all you need to know about how serious any of them ever were about reaching an agreement.

Super-duper!

Fire all of these guys. Being selected for this committee was a goddamned honor, a chance to make a huge difference in the future of this country, and they still couldn't pull their thumbs out and make some tough decisions.

Their ability to eliminate excess in government became suspect to me when they ordered 48 cupcakes for the 12 of them.

After a first meeting on September 8, the next three weeks were taken up with discussions over how many meetings should be held, and when and where. Murray and congressman Jeb Hensarling, her Republican co-chair, had to resolve who got to hold the gavel. In the end a compromise - something very rare in Washington - was agreed. They were to alternate it.

I don't think I've ever read anything that epitomized why out government is fatally broken than this short paragraph. Our government is filled with children.

theknuckler_33: After a first meeting on September 8, the next three weeks were taken up with discussions over how many meetings should be held, and when and where. Murray and congressman Jeb Hensarling, her Republican co-chair, had to resolve who got to hold the gavel. In the end a compromise - something very rare in Washington - was agreed. They were to alternate it.

I don't think I've ever read anything that epitomized why out government is fatally broken than this short paragraph. Our government is filled with children.

It would be better if it was only our government that worked like that. The larger corporations are even worse at it.

Although, I guess, our government has pretty much become a large, inefficient corporation anyway.

So... kudos and credit to Toomey and his staffers for the leak and the eventual failure.

I have to admit I was NOT expecting that headline to be as accurate as it was.

There's too much time between now and when the cuts kick in for a last minute deal in Congress. I don't think anyone ever took this group seriously.

Oh well. They failed but, as Congress agreed to, there will be 10% cuts across the board. Thanks to Toomey, our defense budget will be cut and the Huns will stream across our borders.

The people to cupcake ratio is A-OK

Yeah, but now they have Skyrim.

FTA "Do you want to know what's hard?" Clyburn asked. "Desegregating South Carolina in the 1960s. I met my wife in jail."

Wish I had something as powerful to say regarding what constitutes difficult in politics.

I liked the quote at the end of the article:

"Do you want to know what's hard?" Clyburn asked. "Desegregating South Carolina in the 1960s. I met my wife in jail."

Do they mean "Democrats giving in to 99% of Republican demands and receiving only .00001% of what could microscopically be called a progressive benefit" compromise, or do they mean actual compromise?

...reads TFA

Huh. It seems like they were actually working for once. Sort of.
Scary.

These people make me farking sick. How come the cuts never include cutting a few unproductive senators and reps.

Want to get this thing worked out?

Fly them all to the Newark airport. Put them up at the Holiday Inn next to it. Tell them that no one gets to leave until they're done.

I guarantee you the next flight the members of the GOP on that committee take will be directly to go strangle Grover Norquist.

You know, a more paranoid person could say that this smells of conspiracy, as if both parties actively work in public to keep America divided.

Me, though, I just think they are stupid assholes.

Of course, general political entropy ruined it almost immediately afterward. But there was a small semblance of them doing their jobs in between shoving troughs of cupcakes into their pieholes. Or rather, falling gently towards the idea of working for once, as seen through the lens of massive bureaucracy.

PingTimeout: Although, I guess, our government has pretty much become a large, inefficient corporation anyway.

The US government is a model of inefficiency to which all others on Earth aspire to.

You can't really call your corporation "big" until the CEO is attending meetings within meetings for scheduling the parent meeting.

Lost Thought 00: The November 7 evening meeting, which lasted nearly three hours,

The fact that these people haven't been meeting for 12 18 hours a day, 6 7 days a week for the last month should tell you all you need to know about how serious any of them ever were about reaching an agreement.

Fark that. Let them work the amount of hours that the people they are farking over have to work just to put food on the table. My wife put in 40 hours of overtime every week in October, and that's not counting her 2 hour daily commute. She still made less that month than these clowns make in a week. They have one of the most important jobs in the entire country, and they act like a bunch of goddamn squabbling school girls. It's farking infuriating. Quit playing games with our futures, you corrupt, inept bastards.

ferretman: Super Committee was a FAILURE
The entire idea of a Super Committee was a FAILURE
Congress (Senate & House) is a FAILURE
Obama is a FAILURE

Face it.....life long politicians are only interested in keeping their job (power) and helping their friends (more power); they can care less about the 'little-man'.

/disenchanted voter

I can't with any good conscience, as a man who has paid attention for a few years now, put Obama in the same group as the rest of Congress.

Fear the Clam: Fire all of these guys. Being selected for this committee was a goddamned honor, a chance to make a huge difference in the future of this country, and they still couldn't pull their thumbs out and make some tough decisions.

Fire all those assholes that signed Norquists no tax raise bullshiat. They should all be in prison for treason!

1 trillion in cuts, 1 trillion in more taxes, 300B injected into America. How hard is that? Sounds like a great compromise.

Ps. Hell yes tax the 1% more. Every time the market swings or the dollar slides further, their wealth is hit way more than any taxes could hurt. That's why they are marching. Its only the incompetent wealthy that don't get that. There seems to be way too many of those though.

Lost Thought 00: The November 7 evening meeting, which lasted nearly three hours,

The fact that these people haven't been meeting for 12 hours a day, 6 days a week for the last month should tell you all you need to know about how serious any of them ever were about reaching an agreement.

I also enjoy that only 7 of the 12 could bother to stop by. "Figure out how to get the nation out of this 15 Trillion dollar hole? I don't know if I can fit that in my schedule, I'm meeting some high dollar donors down at the club for cocktail hour."

So from the sounds of the article it looks like the GOP took a hard line of not raising taxes, then the Dems didn't want to defund SS, Medicare and Medicaid, then the GOP still didn't want to raise taxes and then the Dems tried to form a compromise by offering the GOP more of less what they want, but the GOP decided it wasn't good enough? Do I have that right?

yeah, we're so proud. and touched. yes, touched. these fine, upstanding gentlemen - they work so hard.

exactly what do these government welfare whores do? They are incapable of doing their jobs, by their own admission. Why do we keep paying these welfare queens?

/fark those short-timers. saving $ to donate to their opponents
//you say you want a revolution...

LarryDan43: Yeah, but now they have Skyrim.

That must be the real reason that negotiations broke down. All of the Super Committee was too busy Dovakiining it up to do their job.

At least I can respect that.

Noluk: Fear the Clam: Fire all of these guys. Being selected for this committee was a goddamned honor, a chance to make a huge difference in the future of this country, and they still couldn't pull their thumbs out and make some tough decisions.

Fire all those assholes that signed Norquists no tax raise bullshiat. They should all be in prison for treason!

Second. You took an oath of office you assholes. Nothing should supersede that.

s1ugg0: Noluk: Fear the Clam: Fire all of these guys. Being selected for this committee was a goddamned honor, a chance to make a huge difference in the future of this country, and they still couldn't pull their thumbs out and make some tough decisions.

Fire all those assholes that signed Norquists no tax raise bullshiat. They should all be in prison for treason!

Second. You took an oath of office you assholes. Nothing should supersede that.

Yeah..that too!!

Famous Thamas: LarryDan43: Yeah, but now they have Skyrim.

That must be the real reason that negotiations broke down. All of the Super Committee was too busy Dovakiining it up to do their job.

At least I can respect that.

It's what US politics comes down to... either you're a Stormcloak or you're an Imperial. Both sides are bad, so vote Imperial.

I have never seen people so comfortable with abject failure. Simply stunning.

It is times like this that I wish the US had a proper vote of no confidence.

LarryDan43: Yeah, but now they have Skyrim.

Imagine if Bethsoft wrote the budget bills. It would be awe-inspiring in its ambition, but would result in a government shut-down every few months or so.

Committee members Taxpayers would often treat the other panel members to lunch during their meetings in Room 200 in the bowels of the U.S. Capitol.


Need to see an actual receipt if you want me to believe the 'committee member' paid for that lunch out of pocket.

stupid fark

Skarekrough: Want to get this thing worked out?

Fly them all to the Newark airport. Put them up at the Holiday Inn next to it. Tell them that no one gets to leave until they're done.

I guarantee you the next flight the members of the GOP on that committee take will be directly to go strangle Grover Norquist.

I like it. It's somewhat similar to what I have been thinking for a while now. My idea was to lock the entire house and senate in their respective chambers and tell them that nobody leaves until the budget issue is solved. After the first week, if no progress has been made, we lock the bathrooms. After week 2, if no significant progress is made, we cut off the food service. I guarantee you they would figure out a way to "fix" the budget in short order. Oh, and in the meantime, the food service that they do get is the same food prepared by the same cooks that they punish public school children with.

My Rep (mostly worthless) said on Twitter that none of the cuts kick-in until 2013, and the 112th congress can not force the 113th congress to do anything. If the next President (Obama or not) is willing to ignore the cuts, they will be ignored.

I can't find if this is true or not, little help?

12 year term limits on Congress, vote every 3 years, no seniority. 2 year committee appointments, chosen somehow. Keep folks moving.

This will ensure action. It will negate the need for Greyhair McGee to stay ingrained in the system for seniority. If he doesn't get stuff done or otherwise, he's then replaceable. I don't want industry hawks/lobbyist types in there. and if they are, the other folks should limit the damage. Worst case, corruption money gets spread out more, and it becomes more transparent. And then we get someone else in there. If they want progress, they'll get it done. They cannot do any worse than now anyhow.

Famous Thamas: LarryDan43: Yeah, but now they have Skyrim.

That must be the real reason that negotiations broke down. All of the Super Committee was too busy Dovakiining it up to do their job.

At least I can respect that.

Now I imagine the super committee using The Voice on each other.

/it's amusing

Mercutio74: It's what US politics comes down to... either you're a Stormcloak or you're an Imperial. Both sides are bad, so vote Imperial.

Stormcloak is oh so much worse.
The game character, not the metaphorical faction.

"If this body is not capable of action, I suggest new leadership is needed. I move for a Vote of No Confidence in Chancellor Valorum's leadership."

mod3072: Oh, and in the meantime, the food service that they do get is the same food prepared by the same cooks that they punish public school children with.

"Vegetables again?!?!?"

We elect these people to make the tough decisions that need to be made so that we can prosper, grow and succeed as a whole, yet they continue to refuse to do that. Their primary concern is being re-elected to continue on with their mediocrity. At what point do we concede the fact that our current 2 party system no longer works, the barriers to entry are too high for other parties and the American public is NOT being served as it should be?

The sad truth is we probably never will come to that realization and/or do anything about it even if we did. Greece, Italy, Ireland and others have already shown us what happens when spending continues to out pace revenues. But somehow were magically different and above that.

Send a clear message during the next election cycle. Remove all incumbents and start over. Could it really be any worse?

tomcatadam: Mercutio74: It's what US politics comes down to... either you're a Stormcloak or you're an Imperial. Both sides are bad, so vote Imperial.

Stormcloak is oh so much worse.
The game character, not the metaphorical faction.

I can't choose between the two.

Either be an elf bootlicker, or become a racist xenophobe.

Fear the Clam: Fire all of these guys. Being selected for this committee was a goddamned honor, a chance to make a huge difference in the future of this country, and they still couldn't pull their thumbs out and make some tough decisions.

Yep. This next election will be an easy one for me; I'm voting against anyone with "incumbent" next to their name.

Sure, we may wind up with an entire cast of inexperienced Ron Pauls, but as they say, even a broken clock is right twice a day - and a congress that does the right thing once in a while purely by accident would still be an immense improvement.

CPennypacker: You know, a more paranoid person could say that this smells of conspiracy, as if both parties actively work in public to keep America divided.

Me, though, I just think they are stupid assholes.

it's alarming how often malicious intent and gross incompetence look alike

mod3072: Lost Thought 00: The November 7 evening meeting, which lasted nearly three hours,

The fact that these people haven't been meeting for 12 18 hours a day, 6 7 days a week for the last month should tell you all you need to know about how serious any of them ever were about reaching an agreement.

Fark that. Let them work the amount of hours that the people they are farking over have to work just to put food on the table. My wife put in 40 hours of overtime every week in October, and that's not counting her 2 hour daily commute. She still made less that month than these clowns make in a week. They have one of the most important jobs in the entire country, and they act like a bunch of goddamn squabbling school girls. It's farking infuriating. Quit playing games with our futures, you corrupt, inept bastards.

Shiat man, where does your wife work? I'd be expecting some massive dollars to deal with shiat like that. I put in like 5 hours of OT a week and I want to hang myself; can't imagine 40.

angry_scientist: 12 year term limits on Congress, vote every 3 years, no seniority. 2 year committee appointments, chosen somehow. Keep folks moving.

This will ensure action. It will negate the need for Greyhair McGee to stay ingrained in the system for seniority. If he doesn't get stuff done or otherwise, he's then replaceable. I don't want industry hawks/lobbyist types in there. and if they are, the other folks should limit the damage. Worst case, corruption money gets spread out more, and it becomes more transparent. And then we get someone else in there. If they want progress, they'll get it done. They cannot do any worse than now anyhow.

I don't really get behind term limits. If the people want the gray-haired guy, the gray-haired guy has a mandate.

A better idea is simply to force all committee assignments to be done by a random process, with the chair of each committee selected by committee members only. This would still allow benefits to accrue to the majority party, because they would be more likely to be selected to committees, but some committees would be controlled by members of the minority party.

This alone would remove the perverse incentive for people to keep voting for a gray-hair just because he's accumulated power. They would still be free to continue voting for him if they actually thought he was a good guy.

It would also hard-code an ability for each party to introduce things, at least some things on certain topics, to the floor.