RYAN - THE DEFICIT HAWK ????

ACTUALLY......  A long time ago the media decided that Paul Ryan was an honest, reasonable, serious conservative and that his proposals were somewhat worthy even if you don't like him. Well, guess what, he isn't honest and not reasonable.  He may be a conservative, but the majority of the people simply don't like him. He has this super-duper budget he's proposed that will make us think in 10 years we've all risen to a better life.

Mr. Ryan proposes big cuts in tax rates - on top income brackets and corporations. The nonpartisan Tax Policy Center did the math, and the revenue loss from these cuts comes to $4.3 trillion over the next 10 years.

Mr. Ryan also has proposed large cuts in Medicaid.  He wants to turn this program over to the states while reducing funding under the current policy.  (He hasn't given us the plan for the states to fund this project, which they can't unless they receive that funding from another source.) That saves about $800 billion.  He proposes huge cuts in food stamps (another real blow to the poor) saving perhaps another $130 billion in addition to a variety of other cuts including reduced aid to college students.  We're at about $1 trillion with these cuts. He is also including the $716 billion in Medicare savings that are part of Obamacare (he wants to "get rid" of everything else in that act). 

Now, if Paul Ryan's proposals were calculated , we have $4.3 trillion in tax cuts, offset by about $1.7 trillion in spending cuts  -  remember the tax cuts benefit the top 1% and the spending cuts would be taken away from low-income families.  Over all, the deficit would be increased by around two and half trillion dollars.

Here are some examples of his not being reasonable:  He says he will offset the tax cuts by getting rid of enough tax deductions to make up the lost revenue, which deductions - he won't say:  he says he has a secret tax and spending plan which will turn his total plan into deficit reduction - shhh, he won't say. The Ryan plan would end Medicare as we know it, and the nations fiscal future is often equivalent to slashing Medicare and Social Security. The Ryan plan would most assuredly increase, not reduce, the deficit.

He's not a serious conservative, he's a rebel rousing, obnoxious, loud mouth, trouble maker. 

"THE TEXAS MIRACLE" ???

ACTUALLY, the miracle is not what it's cracked up to be.  Gov. Perry told us that the state had "billions in surplus".  In the next 2 years the miracle could be reduced to a deficit of almost $25 billion.  According to Barbara Bush "our schools are in crises.  She said we rank 36th in the nation in high school graduation rates. An estimated 3.8 million Texans do not have a high school diploma and we rank 33rd in the nation on teachers salaries".   That's almost too depressing to write. The Governor and his Lt. Gov. admitted that a lot of what they are doing are not priorities for Texans - but they would still never raise taxes.

Then, Texas legislators hit the people with $15 billion in cuts to all levels of state government, including health care.  $4 billion of those cuts went to public education.  More people are coming to Texas and they will expect that social services will rise or at least accommodate them.  In an economic downturn, revenue will be reduced and guess what will happen, what little social services there are will be severely downsized.

More Texans that ever are living on food stamps, and the number is growing.  The Houston Chronicle analysis shows 12% of people in the greater Houston area depend on the program and in some counties as many as 40% are poor enough to qualify for help.  Yes, Gov. Perry, you are creating jobs in Texas. but those jobs don't pay enough to put food on the table and pay the rent.

Gov. Perry spent over $2 million in travel and campaign expenses thinking he had a chance to be a nominee for President of the U.S.  (What a catastrophe that would have been).  He also added to his salary of $150,000 by more than 50% by collecting his pension, another little perk under Texas law.
According to the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, 189 state employees collected a pension in addition to their salary of more than $100,000; 6,102 state employees across all pay grades collected both pension and salary; 25 state Senate employees collected pension plus salary and 32 Texas House employees collected pension and salary.  Oh, I almost forgot to mention that Gov. Perry spent $360,000 on rentals while he was remodeling the governor's mansion.

The solution:  who can really say, however I'm convinced that Texans and our country deserve better.