Lawmakers oppose federal bailout for states

[The Northerner]

(02-09) 10:08 PST WASHINGTON (AP) -- The new Republican-led House is showing no appetite for making federal taxpayers help state and local governments cope with widespread budget problems. Even some Democrats are wary, underscoring the impact that Washington's crushing budget deficits are having on lawmakers' appetite for providing such aid.

"The era of the bailout is over," Rep. Patrick McHenry, R-N.C., told a House hearing on the debt problems facing scores of states and municipalities around the country.

At the same hearing, Rep. Mike Quigley, D-Ill., said states need to erase their deficits and face up to their long-term obligations such as pensions for government workers on their own. He also criticized a proposal some conservatives have made that Congress pass a law allowing states to reorganize their debts by declaring bankruptcy, an idea that opponents say would send state borrowing costs soaring.

"I don't think either one of those options can work or are optimal," Quigley said.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2011/02/09/state/n075448S03.DTL#ixzz1DU9mhGPP

[leftstreet]

1. "...such as pensions for government workers"

This is all about further breaking the back of labor

:grr:

[rurallib]

3. busting those public unions is federal job #1 this round.

that is pretty much the only united opposition left to the marriage of corporations and government.

[DJ13]

2. Alternate headline

"Both parties express a desire to push states into insolvency so they can end their reliance on union workers"

[xchrom]

4. +1

[xchrom]

5. bail out the banks but not the states.

do you guys even see what shit you're bringing to the table?

[Yo_Mama]

6. No public support until SS is fixed.

At least the vast majority of public pensions have considerable independent funding in place.

To gain public support for bailing out government pensions, first you have to fix Social Security so that the rest of the population has some modicum of security. Once that is fixed, then there will be public support for helping the states.

I'm sorry, but that's reality. The nice part is that SS can be fixed without too much agony. But that is the priority for the public.