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In the wake of the Solyndra scandal, another green energy program Obama invested in has announced more layoffs.

Obama: “Some Technologies Don’t Pan Out; Some Companies Fail.  But I Will Not Walk Away From The Promise Of Clean Energy.” (President Barack Obama, Remarks In The State Of The Union Address, 1/24/12)

Fisker, Which Received More Than A Half Billion In Loan Guarantees, Announced It Is Laying Off Staff After Failing To Meet Early Manufacturing And Efficiency Goals

Fisker Automotive Has Announced It Is Laying Off Staff To Try To Reserve Enough Capital In Order To Qualify For More Taxpayer Funds From The DOE. “In another setback for President Obama's clean energy loan programs, the recipient of more than a half-billion dollars in federal loans is laying off workers at their Delaware and California operations. Delaware’s News Journal reports that Fisker Automotive, a California-based electric car start-up company, is laying off an undisclosed number of staff to try to reserve ... more

Today, President Obama’s FY2013 is officially late, again, as the White House shirks its legal obligation to submit a budget by the first Monday in February. Last night, The Wall Street Journal reported that we won’t be missing much as the president intends to repackage his failed deficit proposal from last fall as his FY2013 budget. That proposal included a $1.5 trillion tax hike that many Democrats rejected and failed to outline a plan for containing the nation’s budget-busting entitlement programs.

Obama Plans To Re-Release His Lackluster Joint Deficit Reduction Committee Proposal As His FY2013

NOW, AGAIN: Obama’s FY2013 Is Essentially The Same Framework He Proposed In September Which Included $1.5 Trillion In New Taxes. “President Barack Obama will release his budget plan next week, calling for $3 trillion in deficit reductions over 10 years, including $1.5 trillion in tax increases to fall mostly on the wealthiest Americans. If that sounds familiar, it's because the president ... more

“The Pace Of Recovery In Output And Employment Has Been Slow Since The Recession Ended In June 2009, And The Economy Remains In A Severe Slump.” (“The Budget And Economic Outlook: Fiscal Years 2012-2022,” Congressional Budget Office, 1/31/12)

The Congressional Budget Office Downgrades Obamanomics In Its 2012 Budget And Economic Outlook

CBO: “The Economy Will Continue To Grow At A Sluggish Pace Over The Next Two Years.” “The pace of the economic recovery has been slow since the recession ended in June 2009, and the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) expects that, under current laws governing taxes and spending, the economy will continue to grow at a sluggish pace over the next two years. That pace of growth partly reflects the dampening effect on economic activity from the higher tax rates and curbs on spending scheduled to occur this year and especially next.” (“The Budget And Economic Outlook: Fiscal Years 2012-2022,” Congressional Budget Office, 1/31/12)

• CBO: “Considerable Slack ... more
  
  

John King: “So, the president had no responsibility, Mr. Mayor, or is that a cop-out?”

Mayor Michael Bloomberg: “I would argue that the president, as the chief executive of the country, has the responsibility to make things come together. I understand the problems of partisanship and the jealousies and the pettiness and selfishness that occur at the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue. But in the end, no CEO would send a proposal and just say, ‘well, let's see what happens.’ You send a proposal and then you go fight for it. Nor would any CEO let the other side write the proposal. The job of the president is to lead the country and to lead congress and I think the president should now just stand up and say, ‘we aren’t gonna take it anymore.’” (CNN’s “John King, USA,” 11/21/11)

John King: “So, the president had no responsibility, Mr. Mayor, or is that a cop-out?”

Mayor Michael Bloomberg: “I would argue that the president, as the chief executive of the country, has the responsibility to make things come together. I understand the problems of partisanship and the jealousies and the pettiness and selfishness that occur at the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue. But in the end, no CEO would send a proposal and just say, ‘well, let's see what happens.’ You send a proposal and then you go fight for it. Nor would any CEO let the other side write the proposal. The job of the president is to lead the country and to lead congress and I think the president should now just stand up and say, ‘we aren’t gonna to take it anymore.’” (CNN’s “John King, USA,” 11/21/11)

Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) Says That The President Is Going To Be Judged On The Results Of The Super Committee And Should Be Part Of The Fight For A Solution

Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV):  “Well, you know, Mika, it's the leader – if – I was the governor of the state of West Virginia, people relied on me to make, set the tone of what we were going to do and push it through and everybody has a different style. I'm not going to criticize it, but people are going to judge the results we receive, and if we don't get results, we're in trouble. Right now, if the committee of 12 is not able to come to an agreement, we have about 140 members of congress, about 44 senators and about a 100 members of the house that are saying go big, be bold, stand tall, let’s pull out Simpson and Bowles and let's vote on this thing, let's move it forward for the next generation.”

Mika Brezinski:  “Do you want the president – I mean, I'm just looking at your comments made on "Face the Nation" for the president, that ... more

On CNBC This Morning, Warren Buffett Said It Was “An Absolute Tragedy” That Simpson-Bowles Was Ignored

CNBC’S BECKY QUICK: “So is that an argument for a tax code that is stripped down the way Simpson and Bowles laid out?”

WARREN BUFFETT:  “Well it – you go back to what, you know, Kemp-Roth and all that that too that they were working on that. I think what happened with Simpson-Bowles was an absolute tragedy. I mean here are two extremely high-grade people. They have somewhat different ideas about government but they're smart. They're decent. They’ve got good senses of humor, too. They're good at working with people.
They work like a devil for ten months or something like that. They compromise. They bring in people as far apart as Durbin and Coburn to get them to sign on and then they're totally ignored. I think that's a travesty.” (CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” 11/12/11)

Buffett: No Super Committee Would Be Necessary If Simpson-Bowles Was Not Ignored

QUICK:  “Why are we starting over with ... more

Obama Says “We Can’t Wait” But His Stimulus Spending Won’t Kick In For Years

Less Than 8 Percent Of The Obama-Reid Infrastructure Stimulus Bill Would Be Spent This Fiscal Year. (“Budgetary Effects Of S.1769 The Rebuild America Jobs Act,” Congressional Budget Office, 11/1/11)

Less Than Half Of The Obama-Reid Infrastructure Stimulus Bill Will Be Spent By 2015. (“Budgetary Effects Of S.1769 The Rebuild America Jobs Act,” Congressional Budget Office, 11/1/11)

• More Than A Quarter Of Obama-Reid Infrastructure Bill Stimulus Would Be Spent After 2016. (“Budgetary Effects Of S.1769 The Rebuild America Jobs Act,” Congressional Budget Office, 11/1/11)

Stimulus Spending Cannot Deliver The Jobs America Needs Now

“Jobs Are Needed Now – Not In A Few Years,” And Experts Doubt That Obama’s Proposed Infrastructure Spending Can Move Quick Enough To Provide Those Jobs. “With the jobless rate hovering at 9 percent and an uneasy economic recovery, jobs are needed now — not in a few years. But experts ... more

On “Fox News Sunday” this morning, Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) was put on the spot over past Democrat dodges over the budget and debt ceiling. Check out the video below:

Durbin Tries To Deflect Question On Why Dems Haven’t Passed Budget

FOX NEWS’ BRET BAIER: “Senator Durbin, why haven't the Senate Democrats passed a budget?”

SEN. DICK DURBIN:  “It's called 60 votes. What it boils down to is this: we have 53 Democrats. But I can tell you when we get through all the procedural tangles that we face getting through this budget resolution, it is not just a matter of finding some agreement, but getting it executed on the floor. The point I want to make is this. This, as I understand it, the negotiation we're talking about will include some budget targets for at least the next fiscal year. So, we won't revisit this kind of crisis politics when it comes to next year.”

Durbin Tries To Deflect Question On Why Dems Dodged Debt Ceiling In December

BAIER: “Let me go back to ... more

On the same day Reuters reported Iran may be capable of arming a missile capable of hitting the U.S. by 2015, The Washington Post’s editorial board has declared the Obama Administration completely “Confused On Iran”:

[T]he public signs of the administration's squishiness about military options are worrisome because of the lack of progress on its two-track strategy of offering negotiations and threatening sanctions. A year-long attempt at engagement failed; now the push for sanctions is proceeding at a snail's pace.

Though President Obama claims all options are on the table when it comes to dealing with Iran, the paths left open to the administration continue to dwindle.  As the editorial board goes on to note, “the administration has so far shrunk from supporting sanctions, such as a gasoline embargo, that might heighten popular anger against the regime.”  Even using the military option as an intimidation tactic seems to be off the table.

With the growing specter of a nuclear Iran, ... more