home

SOTU Highlight

By Big Tent Democrat, Section Obama Administration
Posted on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:06:16 PM EST
Tags: (all tags)
Share This: Digg! StumbleUpon del.icio.us reddit reddit

Our troops come from every corner of this country – they are black, white, Latino, Asian and Native American. They are Christian and Hindu, Jewish and Muslim.

And, yes, we know that some of them are gay. Starting this year, no American will be forbidden from serving the country they love because of who they love.

And with that change, I call on all of our college campuses to open their doors to our military recruiters and the ROTC. It is time to leave behind the divisive battles of the past. It is time to move forward as one nation.

(Emphasis supplied.) Hear! Hear! Speaking for me only

< State of the Union Live Thread | Underwear Bomber Trial Set for October, Will Represent Himself >

  • The Online Magazine with Liberal coverage of crime-related political and injustice news

  • Contribute To TalkLeft


    • Display: Sort:
    SOTU Highlight | 126 comments (126 topical)

    Readers Must Login or Create an Account to Comment

    No you're not (5.00 / 1) (#1)
    by andgarden on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:08:18 PM EST


    DADT isn't the only reason (5.00 / 5) (#4)
    by Jeralyn on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:15:20 PM EST
    to oppose military recruiting at schools. Why not advocate the teaching of peace studies instead? If my child were still in college, I would resent him being approached to join the military.

    Speaking for me onlly (5.00 / 0) (#6)
    by Big Tent Democrat on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:16:21 PM EST
    I support military recruiting at schools.

    Parent
    Really? (5.00 / 1) (#63)
    by Dadler on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:54:28 PM EST
    Are there other organizations who regularly abuse their employees and also violate their contracts on a daily basis that you wouldn't mind recruiting our kids?

    It reminds me of your take on the gay marriage issue did.  Just as you'd prefer government out of the marriage business entirely, it seems to me you would think, big deal, now gay people can get used and abused and spit out by the military too -- and do it all while never actually protecting America's shores or her citizens (Katrina, anyone? All those national guardspeople halfway around the world in bumphuck wherever shoulda been home helping their fellow citizens -- THAT is protecting America. Neither of these two wars comes close.  And recruiting kids into these wars, which defacto is being done, I cannot condone it.  It's simply wrong.)

    Parent

    And where quitting your job is a crime? (5.00 / 2) (#88)
    by Peter G on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 11:28:20 PM EST
    Where job recruiters regularly lie, and the recruited have no recourse?  Where as part of the job you must be trained to do something no normal person would willingly do to other people? Where rape and other abuse of female workers is rampant and silence is the rule? And where after your period of service, the unemployment rate, homelessness rate, suicide rate, and permanent physical and mental injury risks are so far above average? I cannot be enthusiastic.

    Parent
    The one thing I really hated about (none / 0) (#93)
    by nycstray on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 11:48:03 PM EST
    living across the street from a public HS in Brooklyn, NY. The recruiter cars out front at the beginning of the school year (and the rest of the year!). If I had to walk my dog at the 'wrong' time, I had to pass them greeting the kids as they came school. They really ramped it up after 911 . . .

    Still makes me want to scream. Not everyone may agree with Bloomberg's school 'improvements', but they did change that school from a poor performing (one of the worst) to small schools under the same roof. Aka, less recruitment activity.

    Parent

    But, (none / 0) (#124)
    by NYShooter on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 06:41:26 PM EST
    isn't that a good reason to be on campus.....instead of a ghetto? At least the kids tend to have a higher level of intelligence and may be a modifying force for the military.

    All those abuses you mentioned, I would assume, work better on the low information and low aptitude kids. It would seem, if you at least agree that the military is a necessary organization, that a higher percentage of smart recruits is a good thing, no?

    Parent

    Figures. (none / 0) (#48)
    by oculus on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:41:37 PM EST


    Parent
    Me, too (none / 0) (#99)
    by gyrfalcon on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 01:12:37 AM EST


    Parent
    there is something to be said (none / 0) (#113)
    by CST on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 09:23:55 AM EST
    for having a more socio-economically and culturally diverse military.

    I am much more comfortable with military recruiting in college, where people have some kind of alternative plan for life, than military recruiting in high school where you get kids who see it as the only way out.

    If you're in college, at least then it feels like more of a choice, rather than the only option available to you.

    Parent

    I agree with this (none / 0) (#117)
    by Capt Howdy on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 10:05:34 AM EST
    I just saw Winters Bone.  amazing movie.  but in it there is a very interesting sequence where this desperate poor white trash girl goes to a recruiter because she read the sign that said she gets 40,000 dollars for signing up.

    now, in the movie, the recruiter is kind and smart and pretty intuitive.  but watching it you have to wonder how many are so in real life in such situations.


    Parent

    Seems like the best way to do that (none / 0) (#118)
    by jbindc on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 10:23:39 AM EST
    Would be compulsory 1-2 year service by all able-bodied citizens when they turn 18.  That gets you the most diverse military possible.

    Parent
    true (none / 0) (#119)
    by CST on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 10:49:13 AM EST
    to be honest, I wouldn't be 100% opposed to that.  Starting with the fact that it would force people to take a year or two off before college, something I think a lot of us could benefit from.  That being said, I'm not sure everyone is cut out for the military or that the military is right for everyone, so I could see some other kind of national service being available as well, similar to what German men go through - they can either do military service or "other" service.

    I still think it should be a volunteer military.  I just think we should be encouraging diversity over desperation.

    Parent

    As regards the ROTC part of the proposal (none / 0) (#114)
    by Peter G on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 09:26:25 AM EST
    -- aside from the obligatory and gratuitous slap at the anti-Vietnam generation -- see Ben Masel's comment @ #103.

    Parent
    Not a bad idea, (5.00 / 1) (#8)
    by brodie on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:18:13 PM EST
    especially in light of the recent passing of Sarge Shriver, who I think Obama didn't mention tonight, no?

    Lots of military talk, competition, winning battles, but little about living together peacefully.

    Parent

    Why can't there be both? (5.00 / 1) (#111)
    by jbindc on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 08:42:58 AM EST
    Some kids would want to pursue peace studies, others may want to pursue careers in the military.  Colleges and universities are supposed to be places where kids can be exposed to many different viewpoints (a very liberal idea, BTW) and then they are supposed to use their critical thinking skills to come to the best conclusion.

    It's not a mutually exclusive principle.

    Parent

    My takeaway: (5.00 / 3) (#5)
    by brodie on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:15:33 PM EST
    Americans do Big Things.

    Obama isn't Kenyan -- he's Texan.

    Gays Still Not Allowed in the Military Yet (5.00 / 1) (#14)
    by Dan the Man on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:24:29 PM EST
    Link


    "Don't ask, don't tell," instituted in 1993, was repealed by Congress last month, but it won't be officially rolled back until military officials formalize new rules allowing gays to serve openly. The Pentagon hasn't said when that process might be completed.
    I wish (5.00 / 2) (#57)
    by kdm251 on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:48:52 PM EST
    I wish he had mentioned atheists when he was talking about Christians Hindus etc etc

    I bailed before the GOP response (5.00 / 2) (#82)
    by Anne on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 10:15:05 PM EST
    as I felt I had already heard enough Republican-speak...malpractice reform, deficit reduction - and he did "go there" on entitlements...

    At times, it seemed to me like Obama was as bored by what he was saying as I was by what I was hearing.

    Shorter SOTU (5.00 / 3) (#90)
    by lambert on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 11:35:08 PM EST
    What stirling said:

    "Obama told us tonight that with work and sacrifice, we can have the richest criminal banks in the world."

    Parent

    "Winng the Future" (5.00 / 4) (#84)
    by Anne on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 10:32:20 PM EST
    Aside from the unfortunate - or Freudian - "WTF" to which it can be reduced, hearing that phrase sprinkled throughout the speech sent me flashbacking to every corporate bonding/trust-building retreat I ever had the misfortune to be required to attend...

    Am half-expecting to receive my very own lapel pin in the mail tomorrow...

    Yeah, if I had a lapel pin... (5.00 / 2) (#91)
    by lambert on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 11:36:48 PM EST
    ... I could stick it into my eyeballs so I never had to watch a SOTU like that every again.

    You're wrong on the trust-building retreat part, though -- that was the "competitiveness" part.

    Parent

    Now gay people... (5.00 / 2) (#89)
    by lambert on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 11:33:20 PM EST
    ... can turn brown people into red mist.

    Obama is a master at forcing injustice as the price of simple justice.

    And (none / 0) (#108)
    by lentinel on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 05:54:14 AM EST
    now, we can look forward to many more unproductive years in Afghanistan - fueled by students recruited on their college campuses.

    I know that McCain and Palin are both lunatics.
    But I honestly can't say that we would have been worse off had they won.

    McCain, the universally extolled hero, unendingly thanked for "his service", might have been the one to end the war in Afghanistan rather than escalating it.

    I don't know, but I am so discouraged by Obama and the people around him that I am just about willing to accept any alternative.
    Hail Mary.

    Parent

    McCain may not have wanted to end (5.00 / 1) (#109)
    by MO Blue on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 07:53:15 AM EST
    the war in Afghanistan either but there would still be an active anti-war movement. Can't say that I've seen or heard much from that front since Obama became president. Also, my Rep. who reliably voted against any and all funding of the wars during the Bush administration, evidently thinks Obama's wars are just fine and dandy and supports them with his vote.  

    Parent
    The NEW ROTC battle: Censorship (5.00 / 1) (#103)
    by Ben Masel on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 01:20:08 AM EST
    Opinion: ROTC policy on Wikileaks threatens academic freedom

    according to a memo sent to ROTC programs at the University of San Francisco and other colleges and universities last month, they have effectively been prohibited from completing any assignments that professors may make involving any material released through WikiLeaks.

    According to a Dec. 8 memo from Col. Charles M. Evans, commanding officer of the 8th Brigade, U.S. Army Cadet Command, "using the classified information found on WikiLeaks for research papers, presentations, etc. is prohibited." A follow-up memo from the cadet commander at the University of San Francisco advised against even talking about it, precluding ROTC students from taking part in classroom discussions regarding WikiLeaks material.

    The rationale appears to be that downloading, reading, referencing or discussing WikiLeaks material could jeopardize receiving a security clearance. This has little rational basis, however, since much of the material was apparently made available by a U.S. Army private who had access to it and -- for better or worse -- this material is now widely available publicly.
     

    I could make special accommodations for ROTC cadets. I could offer an alternative reading assignment. I could not reduce participation grades if the students did not take part in a discussion. I could excuse them from viewing a documentary that might include film clips, images or other proscribed contents. I could write up special quizzes or exams.

    However, in doing so, I would effectively be allowing the military to control part of my curriculum. This raises sensitive issues regarding academic freedom. If the military can effectively tell its cadets to refuse to complete assignments by civilian professors, it sets a very dangerous precedent.
    Wonderful (5.00 / 1) (#107)
    by lentinel on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 04:42:48 AM EST
    Military recruiters on college campuses.
    Framed as leaving a divisive battle behind us.

    I'm at a loss for words.

    I wonder (none / 0) (#2)
    by Maryb2004 on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:13:58 PM EST
    if anyone in this jobless recovery believes that "our destiny remains our choice?"  

    Not a very good speech.  But I didn't listen to the middle part, maybe I missed the good parts.

    They're never good (none / 0) (#3)
    by Big Tent Democrat on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:14:58 PM EST
    That said, I thought this was a pretty lousy speech.

    Parent
    The post coverage (none / 0) (#7)
    by Big Tent Democrat on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:16:37 PM EST
    is worse of course.

    Parent
    Tweety always (over)reaches (5.00 / 1) (#10)
    by brodie on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:19:11 PM EST
    for the JFK comparison.

    He's writing another JFK book at the moment too, natch.

    Parent

    Name me on single (none / 0) (#98)
    by gyrfalcon on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 01:11:07 AM EST
    solitary thing Tweety doesn't overreach on.  I defy you.

    Parent
    But often (none / 0) (#9)
    by Maryb2004 on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:18:36 PM EST
    more entertaining.

    Parent
    Michelle Bachman and Paul Ryan (none / 0) (#11)
    by Big Tent Democrat on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:19:42 PM EST


    Parent
    Obama's delivery was so low key (none / 0) (#13)
    by Maryb2004 on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:24:06 PM EST
    with so little crowd enthusiasm that Ryan might look better than the rebuttal normally does ... oh, who am I kidding. It will be as boring as it usually is.

    Parent
    Not with that hair (5.00 / 1) (#17)
    by Big Tent Democrat on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:26:18 PM EST


    Parent
    I'm feeling old watching him. (5.00 / 2) (#21)
    by Maryb2004 on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:28:03 PM EST
    He hasn't even grown into his ears yet.

    Parent
    No serriously (5.00 / 1) (#22)
    by Big Tent Democrat on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:28:57 PM EST
    What's with the hair?

    Parent
    Hannity's hairdresser n/t (5.00 / 1) (#24)
    by lilburro on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:30:25 PM EST


    Parent
    Hannity! (none / 0) (#26)
    by Big Tent Democrat on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:31:04 PM EST
    That's what it is.

    Parent
    Trust me (none / 0) (#40)
    by lilburro on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:37:30 PM EST
    I've had far too much time to analyze Hannity's hair.  But I think in terms of his speech he's not going to get a lot of play...POTUS' speech was more or less irrelevant to unemployment but made people feel good.  My inhouse Hannity fan liked it.  He's Hannity on Xanax now, I don't think he's going to be able to rally anybody but Fox viewers.  And Bachmann will distract as well.  LOLs to the fact that she doesn't even get play on Fox...

    Parent
    Bachmann (none / 0) (#44)
    by Big Tent Democrat on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:38:52 PM EST
    I am curious what she will do.

    Parent
    where can one see her remarks? (none / 0) (#47)
    by DFLer on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:41:09 PM EST


    Parent
    Lol. Hard to get a widow's peak with a side part (5.00 / 1) (#37)
    by ruffian on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:36:03 PM EST
    But he achieves it.

    Janesville WI is near where I grew up so his accent is oddly comforting...but his speech is trite and facial expressions are just odd.

    Parent

    it's a widow's peak! (none / 0) (#30)
    by DFLer on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:33:58 PM EST
    I say...what's with the constant pursing of the lips? Some kinda rhetorical device?

    Parent
    Have to admit (none / 0) (#25)
    by Big Tent Democrat on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:30:48 PM EST
    He is doing pretty well for himself.

    Parent
    That hair -- he looks like (5.00 / 1) (#31)
    by brodie on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:34:04 PM EST
    the kid from the Munsters (60s tv monster show).

    Parent
    I'm thinking (none / 0) (#29)
    by Maryb2004 on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:33:16 PM EST
    that too.

    He's going to get rave reviews.

    Parent

    I'll give him a good one (none / 0) (#32)
    by Big Tent Democrat on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:34:21 PM EST


    Parent
    You may disagree with everything (none / 0) (#38)
    by Maryb2004 on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:36:37 PM EST
    he says, but he says it in a winning way.

    Parent
    Apparently (none / 0) (#41)
    by Big Tent Democrat on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:38:07 PM EST
    Just you and me think so in this thread.


    Parent
    Blog threads aren't known (none / 0) (#49)
    by Maryb2004 on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:42:12 PM EST
    for participants trying to come to impartial analytic conclusions.  

    It's why I stay out of them at most blogs most of the time.

    Parent

    Me three, he looks good and was not (none / 0) (#72)
    by KeysDan on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 10:01:36 PM EST
    unwatchable, as say, Bobby Jindal.  He was ideologically- heavy and content-light, a good Republican.

    Parent
    who is the "he" (none / 0) (#122)
    by NYShooter on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 06:32:32 PM EST
    you're referring to in this thread? Obama or Ryan?

    Parent
    o.k. (none / 0) (#123)
    by NYShooter on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 06:33:12 PM EST
    I think its Ryan

    Parent
    for his bedroom eyes! (none / 0) (#34)
    by DFLer on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:34:54 PM EST


    Parent
    Yes- pretty baby blues (none / 0) (#43)
    by ruffian on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:38:36 PM EST
    I don't think he hurt himself like Jindal and Sibelius, so that is a win for him.

    Parent
    Dunno (none / 0) (#95)
    by gyrfalcon on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 01:06:38 AM EST
    To me, he looked seriously creepy.  And he was so relentlessly downbeat, doom and gloom, let's scare people into voting for us crap.

    Parent
    Ryan doesn't care about jobs (none / 0) (#20)
    by lilburro on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:27:11 PM EST
    so, it'll be the same blah blah.

    Parent
    Re Bachman (none / 0) (#28)
    by DFLer on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:32:11 PM EST
    Scalia can't show up for this state occasion, yet can show up for Bachmann's Conservative Constitutional teaching moment? What a d#ck!

    Ryan may be photo-genetic, but he is boring.

    Parent

    Boring and (none / 0) (#36)
    by brodie on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:35:56 PM EST
    no one knows who he is.

    Parent
    Perhaps if he had worn a cheesehead or (none / 0) (#42)
    by DFLer on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:38:24 PM EST
    Packer gear, folks would have taken notice.

    Parent
    Republicans do; Ryan has been (none / 0) (#73)
    by Towanda on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 10:04:52 PM EST
    significant in the party for a few years now, often named in the potential VP group.

    If so, fear for our country.  Slippery.  Corrupt.

    Parent

    Seriously fanatically (none / 0) (#96)
    by gyrfalcon on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 01:08:04 AM EST
    ideological.  I mean, really, vouchers for Medicare?  That's just plain nuts.

    Parent
    The responses always suffer from being (none / 0) (#52)
    by ruffian on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:43:45 PM EST
    read to a camera and not an audience. The delivery gets singsongy and loses me. I didn't pay attention after a minute or two.

    Parent
    Tweety is unwatchable (none / 0) (#12)
    by Big Tent Democrat on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:22:41 PM EST
    Unbelievably, I miss Olbermann.

    Parent
    It's actually a good (none / 0) (#15)
    by brodie on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:25:24 PM EST
    panel.

    And KO's replacement, Rachel Maddow, got off a good one, reminding viewers that in one Reagan SOTU, he actually mentioned Americans coming together over an invasion by space aliens.

    Parent

    Not if Tweety is on it (none / 0) (#18)
    by Big Tent Democrat on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:26:55 PM EST
    I turned it off.

    Parent
    You never know when (none / 0) (#27)
    by brodie on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:31:43 PM EST
    he'll get another thrill up his leg.

    Or be challenged to a duel.

    Or ask the female on the screen to come a little closer to the camera.

    Tweety's a pain in the bum, but I can't not watch him

    Parent

    He doesn't do that with women (none / 0) (#97)
    by gyrfalcon on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 01:10:06 AM EST
    anymore-- at all.  Pain in the butt he most certainly is, but I have to give him credit for whatever self-criticism he delved into that's caused him to essentially eradicate virtually all traces of his previously grossly sexist behavior.

    That's a lot more than I can for Olbermann.

    Parent

    Bwa! (none / 0) (#85)
    by chrisvee on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 10:38:00 PM EST
    They would be greeted warmly by our human animal hybrid overlords.

    Parent
    My DVR had two 10PM recordings (none / 0) (#19)
    by andgarden on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:27:01 PM EST
    so it changed the channel for me. WIN.

    Parent
    I agree totally (none / 0) (#16)
    by lilburro on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:25:50 PM EST
    that section got me whooping and hollering.  Good on POTUS and a great accomplishment.  Of course Boehner had to be a d*ck and not clap.

    I like that he focused on the "little things" and moved discussion from SS.  Good damage control for an SOTU.  Great for his polling.  It'll be a long two years though.  As he is no doubt well aware.

    Health care entitlement! (none / 0) (#23)
    by lilburro on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:29:49 PM EST
    ENTITLEMENT!  oh yeah.  We might win in 2012 after all...hell dude he gave in on 1099.  Health care entitlement, great idea, please adopt GOP!

    I need a little help re "1099," your (none / 0) (#33)
    by oculus on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:34:43 PM EST
    victory.

    Parent
    The 1099 provision (5.00 / 2) (#51)
    by lilburro on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:42:39 PM EST
    in the healthcare bill just pisses people off.  Here's Ezra on it.  Basically if you're a business you must report any expense over $600.  And it has been driving the small business owners here in NC crazy.

    From my link:

    The 1099 reporting requirement raises $17 billion in the health-care bill. It says that businesses have to report every purchase from every vendor above $600. Those purchases currently go unreported, and taxes related to them often go unpaid. Tracking them will fix that, and the government will collect some much-needed coin.

    But getting there will require a lot of paperwork. Enough, actually, that many people on both sides of the aisle are convinced it's simply not worth it. And they're right. Making the lives of small-business owners miserable isn't a good idea. Some Democrats resist the idea of changing the health-care bill this soon, but any large piece of legislation will need tweaks and modifications as it gets implemented. Making the bill work well is much more important than avoiding a bad headline or two.

    A close friend is involved with a small business lobbying group, and this is very important to them.  It's a conservative group but it's relatively painless.  Obama signaled in the past he would be ready to get rid of it (Medscape).  In terms of the SOTU, the fact that this is the territory Obama claimed, instead of SS, is a good thing, IMO.

    Parent

    They'll get rid of it (5.00 / 2) (#100)
    by gyrfalcon on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 01:16:27 AM EST
    It's perfectly idiotic, some accountant's idea of how to raise a little cash for health care reform by cutting down on -- wait for it -- tax fraud.

    It's perfectly insane.  Nobody who's ever run a business or been self-employed would think this bright idea was anything other than a total disaster.  Raise my taxes, just don't make me fill out 1099s for everything!

    Really, I'm supposed to submit a 1099 when I buy a new computer from Dell?  It's just nuts.

    Parent

    what is this 1099 you mention? (none / 0) (#39)
    by nycstray on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:36:42 PM EST
    and what did he give in on it?

    Parent
    "1099" is the IRS Form (5.00 / 1) (#60)
    by Peter G on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:51:06 PM EST
    for reporting the payment of non-employment income (equivalent to a W-2 for employment income) by businesses.  The Health Care Act greatly expands the filing requirement (now only has to be filled out for payments to unincorporated recipients, exceeding $600 in toto during a year; as of next year, it would expand to cover payments to incorporated entities as well), and thus adds a gigantic new paperwork burden on businesses, large and small, in hopes of achieving a large gain in tax compliance by the receivers of this non-employment income.  Lots of pressure to repeal it by businesses, large and small.

    Parent
    THe idea that it's somehow (5.00 / 2) (#102)
    by gyrfalcon on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 01:19:57 AM EST
    my responsibility as a self-employed person to keep Staples honest in their sales reporting is insane.

    And just imagine the number of extra IRS people it would take to keep track of literally millions of additional 1099s for purchase of coffee and stationery supplies.  Good God.


    Parent

    Yup (none / 0) (#69)
    by lilburro on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:57:37 PM EST
    conservative groups have seized on it, and it is put in place before the law is fully on the ground.  There must be a better way to raise $17 billion, or at least wait to raise that money.

    Parent
    thanks! I was wondering if it was the same (none / 0) (#71)
    by nycstray on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 10:01:21 PM EST
    1099, me being a 1099er and all :) I hadn't heard of this until tonight.

    Parent
    Wondering how this became (none / 0) (#92)
    by oculus on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 11:46:23 PM EST
    part of health care reform legislation.

    Parent
    Hmmm . . . $$$$$$$$$ (none / 0) (#94)
    by nycstray on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 11:55:25 PM EST


    Parent
    from my Medscape link (none / 0) (#55)
    by lilburro on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:48:13 PM EST
    Under the law, called the Affordable Care Act (ACA), all businesses -- medical practices and gas stations alike -- must file federal tax form 1099 with the Internal Revenue Service for annual purchases of $600 or more from a single vendor. The provision, scheduled to take effect January 1, 2012, is designed to raise tax revenue -- and help pay for healthcare reform -- by identifying vendors who are underreporting their revenue, and thus lowering their tax bill.

    Right now, businesses must file 1099s for the purchase of services worth $600 or more each year from unincorporated businesses such as sole proprietorships. The ACA extends this requirement to cover purchases of property and goods as well as services from all businesses, including corporations.

    In other words, if a medical practice buys more than $600 worth of copier paper per year from Office Depot, or more than $600 worth of ground coffee from Starbucks, it must file 1099s on those transactions.

    It's just dumb, politically and for many small businesses, practically.  Changing it has been tried in the Senate, and if Obama wants to own the next try, I think that's a very good idea on his part.


    Parent

    So this only effects incorp sm businesses? (none / 0) (#68)
    by nycstray on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:57:08 PM EST
    1099ers have to report if we purchase services over $600 also . . . .

    thanks for the info :)

    Parent

    No, it applies to everybody (none / 0) (#101)
    by gyrfalcon on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 01:17:39 AM EST
    who files a Schedule C.

    Parent
    I'm guessing (none / 0) (#70)
    by Yman on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:59:08 PM EST
    This one?

    Parent
    Oh good grief . . . (none / 0) (#74)
    by nycstray on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 10:05:02 PM EST
    But under the new rules, if a freelance designer buys a new iMac from the Apple Store, they'll have to send Apple a 1099. A laundromat that buys soap each week from a local distributor will have to send the supplier a 1099 at the end of the year tallying up their purchases.

    Thanks for the link :)

    Parent

    Not to mention salesmen (none / 0) (#104)
    by gyrfalcon on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 01:21:12 AM EST
    who spend their days on the road in their cars visiting their territories having to keep track of the gas stations they patronize.

    Parent
    I'd have to 1099 Comcast, lol!~ (none / 0) (#106)
    by nycstray on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 01:42:17 AM EST
    Have they even thought about the impact of this? Of course, many prob don't do their own taxes etc. Just toss their receipts at someone . . .

    Parent
    Only if you use Comcast in your business (none / 0) (#112)
    by Peter G on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 09:22:43 AM EST
    The provision is idiotic and should be repealed, but it doesn't impose this 1099 filing requirement on individual purchasers of services, only on businesses (large and small).

    Parent
    I do (none / 0) (#121)
    by nycstray on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 10:56:46 AM EST
    I can't do my work without it :)

    Parent
    Some more info (none / 0) (#116)
    by lilburro on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 09:35:24 AM EST
    from Yglesias:

    Ultimately, this isn't very surprising, since Republicans see the 1099 repeal issue as a good way to start the ball rolling on unwinding the health care law and a convenient way to frame their more general argument about the Affordable Care Act. The administration and Congressional Democrats have all condemned the provision as burdensome and overreaching and Republicans are hoping to extend that argument to the entire law. In this sense, the longer the 1099 remains an issue, the better.

    Nelson wanted to change the law so that businesses with less than 25 employees are exempted.

    Anyway, I think it will be interesting to see how this plays out.  The fact that Obama brought it up helps take away some of the credit the GOP appeared to be looking for in repealing the provision.

    As for where it came from I guess you can thank Baucus & Co in the Senate Finance Committee, from the CNN link above:

    A Democratic aide for the Senate Finance Committee, which authored the changes, defended the move.

    "Information reporting improves tax compliance without raising taxes on small businesses," the aide said. "Health care reform includes more than $35 billion in tax cuts for small businesses ... indicating that during these tough economic times, Congress is delivering the tax breaks small businesses need to thrive."

    If the goal is to give tax cuts to small businesses, why then burden them with the cost of all the extra paperwork (and, the actual forms cost money).  I guess it's just a byproduct of the myopia induced in trying to get a bill like the health care bill passed.

    Parent

    meanwhile the republican response...... (none / 0) (#35)
    by thereyougo on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:35:41 PM EST
    is all about spending cuts.  Did Paul Ryan mention the Pentagon? No

    That would work for me. Bring em home and see the deficit melt.

    And as an after note....could John Boehner have looked any more somber/bored?  sheesh... I thought he was going to start wailing, he looked on the verge of....tears.

    He's weird.

    heh (none / 0) (#45)
    by Maryb2004 on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:38:53 PM EST
    Katie Couric just thanked Jones Day for the view.  

    Heh (none / 0) (#46)
    by Big Tent Democrat on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:41:00 PM EST


    Parent
    Piers Morgan (none / 0) (#50)
    by Big Tent Democrat on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:42:14 PM EST
    has a lisp.

    Is he giving the response to Michelle Bachmann? (5.00 / 1) (#53)
    by DFLer on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:46:53 PM EST


    Parent
    She's awful (5.00 / 2) (#61)
    by Big Tent Democrat on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:51:27 PM EST
    Dems should by airtime for her.

    Parent
    I'm boycotting CNN (none / 0) (#64)
    by brodie on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:55:24 PM EST
    for a while for televising her rebuttal -- or is it by now a surrebuttal?

    Parent
    I applauf them (5.00 / 1) (#67)
    by Big Tent Democrat on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:56:43 PM EST
    Great for Dems.

    Parent
    Yes, a competitor for Paul Ryan (none / 0) (#75)
    by KeysDan on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 10:06:42 PM EST
    not the president's SOTU.  You chose.

    Parent
    Absolutely Agree (none / 0) (#115)
    by CoralGables on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 09:32:19 AM EST
    a Tea Party response is great for the Dems. Keep them coming. Maybe she'll run for President on the Tea Party ticket. That would be like a gift from the gods.

    Parent
    Listening to Maddow are you? (5.00 / 1) (#105)
    by gyrfalcon on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 01:22:51 AM EST
    She's a growing force on the right, and obviously so is the Tea Party.  Makes sense to broadcast her patent insanity, IMO.

    Parent
    Comrade, not yet (none / 0) (#125)
    by Harry Saxon on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 11:20:51 PM EST

    MADDOW:As you may know there is no way I would have ended up with a show on this network had it not been for Keith making me first a regular guest on his show and then his regular guest host when he was away.

    I wouldn`t have this show without Keith directly nudging the network to give me a try and without Keith clearing space for the liberals among us in this country to identify ourselves as such, as liberals even on primetime cable TV.

    The way Keith cleared that space was not only by voicing his own opinion, but by really being freaking successful while he did it.  If you want to be a pioneer, don`t just be the first person like you to do something; be the first person like you to do it brilliantly.

    That`s how you change the world so other people like you get chances, too.  We are all sorry that Keith and MSNBC decided to end his run here.  I can also tell you that that decision has no effect on the editorial independence that makes it possible for me to do this work.

    We are here.  We are not going anywhere.  We`re really, really glad you are here with us.  And I`ve got something really vile to point out about Rudy Giuliani when we come back.



    Click or Debrief Me

    Comrade, to the barricades against counter-revolutionaries such as Maddow and the now-dethroned Olbermann!  

    Nor do the gods appear in warrior's armour clad
    To strike them down with sword and spear
    Those whom they would destroy
    They first make mad.

        * Bhartṛhari, 7th c. AD; as quoted in John Brough,Poems from the Sanskrit, (1968), p, 67



    Parent
    Someone on Twitter (none / 0) (#54)
    by Maryb2004 on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:47:59 PM EST
    just said his hair looked like Eddie Munster's.  Lol.

    Parent
    Well that was me (5.00 / 1) (#59)
    by brodie on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:51:04 PM EST
    upthread (patting self on back).

    Apparently someone else out there in this great land of ours also had the same idea ...

    Parent

    Ryan's hair, I mean. (none / 0) (#56)
    by Maryb2004 on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:48:16 PM EST


    Parent
    #2 Sorry, I was thinking of the American Idol guy (none / 0) (#58)
    by DFLer on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:49:39 PM EST
    No extended cable anymore. Waaah.

    Parent
    Bachmann (none / 0) (#62)
    by Big Tent Democrat on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:54:23 PM EST
    The teleprompter is not by the camera. She's looking away.

    This is really bad.

    iwo JAma? (none / 0) (#65)
    by Big Tent Democrat on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:55:54 PM EST
    Six young mAn?

    Embarrasing.

    Parent

    You know (none / 0) (#66)
    by Maryb2004 on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 09:56:31 PM EST
    this is the first time I've ever listened to her.

    She's terrible.

    Parent

    When I first heard of Sarah Palin (none / 0) (#76)
    by andgarden on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 10:07:08 PM EST
    she reminded me of Bachman. Go figure.

    Parent
    There are similarities. (none / 0) (#80)
    by Maryb2004 on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 10:12:41 PM EST
    The long northern "O" helps.

    Parent
    Bobby Jindal/Kathleen Sibelius bad? (none / 0) (#77)
    by ruffian on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 10:07:44 PM EST
    Or even worse?

    Parent
    She was worse. (5.00 / 1) (#78)
    by jeffinalabama on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 10:10:49 PM EST
    Michelle Malkin with line stumbling, while looking away from the camera.

    Parent
    She's looking at the camera (none / 0) (#86)
    by Joan in VA on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 11:00:14 PM EST
    for the webcast to the teatards she's doing-she can't look at the tv camera. That's my sole defense of her performance.

    Parent
    worse. (none / 0) (#79)
    by Maryb2004 on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 10:11:59 PM EST
    hard to believe, I know.

    Parent
    Just looking at (none / 0) (#81)
    by brodie on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 10:13:25 PM EST
    one Bachmann "highlight" on Msnbc:  it's jarring watching her because she's looking at St Paul but the camera is in Minneapolis.

    Plus she's stumbling in her delivery.

    And speaking of makeup -- looks like someone applied it with a paint brush.  Especially around the eyes.

    Parent

    The Winner: (none / 0) (#83)
    by KeysDan on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 10:15:37 PM EST
    John Boehner's tie had the best knot.

    If (none / 0) (#87)
    by chrisvee on Tue Jan 25, 2011 at 11:04:49 PM EST
    she's not sobbing and she's not glowing orange, she's an improvement over what was on my TV screen earlier even if she is bats**t.

    FWIW (none / 0) (#110)
    by jbindc on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 08:39:21 AM EST
    AP fact checks speech.

    WaPo fact checker

    NY Times fact check

    ABC News

    MSNBC

    Interesting (none / 0) (#120)
    by jbindc on Wed Jan 26, 2011 at 10:52:03 AM EST
    I guess Mark Penn and Paul Begala watched two different speeches  last night.

    Penn:

    But, if President Obama hopes to "win the future" in 2012, his speech came up short Tuesday night. It was certainly a big and earnest move to the center, but it lacked the kind of specifics and innovative policies that the president needs to make America competitive in the 21st Century.

    If you were unemployed, you were all but ignored at a time of great unemployment. And when it came to the specifics almost all of them were still being developed. In this speech, Obama proposed extending many Clinton ideas like the $10,000 college tax deduction but had few original ones of his own ready to go.

    Begala:

    In his State of the Union address, President Obama spoke directly to those people -- the ones Bill Clinton calls "walkin' around folks." I suspect a lot of those folks will be lining up to march behind the plainspoken, commonsense, practical leadership President Obama is offering.

    So which was it?

    I support the draft (none / 0) (#126)
    by Madeline on Thu Nov 17, 2011 at 01:12:40 PM EST
    Speaking for me

    SOTU Highlight | 126 comments (126 topical)

    Readers Must Login or Create an Account to Comment