In response to:
The national debt went up every year clinton was in office. Nobody has ever explained to me how that is possible with a surplus.
One of the best consequences of gridlock from 1995-2000. Congress and clinton fought and got almost nothing passed. The result was a near balanced budget.
Obviously what we need is more gridlock.
In his first formal press conference in months, Barack Obama showed that getting re-elected can increase a president's confidence and combativeness. He staked out tough stands on several issues, especially on the looming budget negotiations.
Looking ahead to the "fiscal cliff" on Dec. 31, when the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts expire and sequestration cuts government spending sharply, Obama demanded $1.6 trillion of increased revenues as part of any budget bargain.
That's twice the number he and Speaker John Boehner agreed on in the grand bargain talks in the summer of 2011.
Those talks fell apart when Obama telephoned Boehner and raised his demand...
let's go for it!