feel what other people are feeling. >> it's always a pleasure, tony. tony schwartz, author of "the way we're working is not working." give it a read. we'll see tony next thursday. that does it for us. i am dylan ratigan. travel man. let's play "hardball." leading off tonight, where in the world is barack obama? last friday, the same week the president lost control of congress, he left the country for asia. first from india, then from indonesia, we got pictures from him and the first lady dancing with the local people. it was all in traditional

costume, very festive. the question today, is this any way to treat an angry electorate, announce no new changes then leave town the same day pelosi says she's staying. what's the message here? that the message of the voter lies in the in box at the white house? you had the g-20 meeting, but that was tomorrow. why did he leave a full week ahead of the peting? meeting. and extending tax cuts for the rich. how does the president deal with those cross winds. plus, tea partiers are piping hot to knock off the next crop of republican senators up for re-election in 2012. can olympia snowe or or inhatch avoid the fates of some of their republican colleagues? also, the majority of those surveyed for the military say gay service members can serve

openly without significant risk on the battlefield and robert gates said he would like to see the repeal by year's end. there's one big obstacle. the republican party. as our country needs to take control properly of our borders. is that asking too much? let's start with president obama over there. mark pence, howard fineman. we talk a lot about optics. about what seems to be the way people convey. they're tired of listen to the president's words, but how he acts to the voters last tuesday is important to the voters. they don't like the fact he left town. your thoughts, mark. >> i think it's perfectly typical after a midterms, for the president to focus on international travel and agenda because he's had to push that off while he worked on the m midter

midterms. i think it's a good thing to take the trip. the real question, how is he really going to answer what the voters said on election day? he hasn't given them a clear answer yet. it took bill clinton months to form late that answer. maybe today with the tax cut discussion, maybe we're going to see a real answer. >> there was a great comment by one of those republicans that were in office after the civil war, isn't there something we should look like we're doing? aren't there things that presidents should appear to be doing? shaking up the cabinet, the white house, doing things that show, i got it. you're upset about the economy. i'm going to try to upgrade my effort. i'm going to enhance the effort. >> well, i spent a good bit of time at the white house yesterday and i got the sense that they're operating on their own schedule. i think they've always operated that way. that's how they ran the presidential campaign. they have a certain ability about them. they're going to stick with their schedule.

this was a only chance the president would have to make a trip like this before things heated up in the next congress and he was going to do it. meanwhile around the white house, they're taking the carpets out, redoing stuff. >> oh, that will make us feel better. >> but i don't sense among the people left behind that they're thinking of changes things in any dramatic way. >> that's my point. you're a political expert. you're a political expert. it seems elections accomplish goals. the message of the voters this time was we want change. is he going to gif it to them? >> if he agrees to extend the tax cuts for everybody, that will be a real sign hes going to change, but don't be fooled by what people are thinking or doing in the white house today. when president clinton made changes, the white house didn't know about it until he was well along in those changes. >> he pushed people like the brains that got him in there.

carville, stephanopoulos. did he hit the panic button? >> the real event here is going to be what's going to happen between now and the state of the union, the tax cuts. the president's going to spend the holidays thinking, how is he going to respond. they looked at a truck that has been aiming towards the democrats since is scott brown election. it hit and now, they have to swerve. i can't believe they don't know that. >> they have to respond in an active way. it seems to me that every government that gets rocked like this doesn't change. the voters, i don't know how many times i have to say this tonight, the voters are angry. they want to see you get it. >> i think that's right. i can just report to you what the sense i have of them. i agree with what mark's saying.

they're going to take their time. see what cards the republicans are going to lay on the table and they're in a defensive posture, where they're going to exceed ground on various points until they figure out what to do. frankly, think they haven't figured out what the response is going to be yet, but i do not sense and mark may be rig, things are going on on the plane in asia that we don't know about, that they're going to make wholesale changes. >> no chief of staff coming. no heavy weight. >> we don't no. >> they're already looking. some of the top people are going to leave in the early spring. i get the sense that they're eager to get back to chicago, some of these people, to begin thinking about how to run a campaign again. >> in other words, they'd rather not be the incumbent. >> yes. >> they don't get that deal, they're running. let's take a look at the report today. quote --

i read in that what you read. that the white house is saying if we've got to get tax cuts for the rich to get them to the regular people, we'll do it. >> i think that david axelrod, with whom we had a 90-minute interview with yesterday afternoon, was thinking down the road. what a lot of people in town think is obvious. that because of the political situation in the lame duck congress and the procedural situation, the white house doesn't want to take the risk of trying to veto a bill that has tax cuts for the rich. >> let's look at david letterman. you'd say he is in a sense of

substance, he is looking at a tax cut for everybody. >> no change. that's not a plan -- >> impact of suggesting moving to the middle. >> here he is. >> president obama's in india right now. over there visiting our jobs. thank you. >> mark penn, i think about states like pennsylvania, ohio, indiana, illinois, wisconsin and all bid back at the president last tuesday. i keep asking myself, don't you think the working guy is not really a chuckle? they think their jobs are going overseas. >> that's the single toughest job for the president in the next two years. the devastation of democrats in the midwest and south is where this election's going to be. that's going to be about jobs and how you use trade policy in the right way to create jobs and if you can't make that case, he cannot get re-elected. >> it is try, chris, going

abroad at this time isn't helping reverse that image, is that he just doesn't understand the urgency of the situation of people who lost their jobs, who's houses are getting -- he's giving a speech about how we have to understand the rest of the world. it plays into that perception that influenced a lot of independent voters. the polls show a lot of people thought he didn't have the sense of urgency he wanted them to have. we watch pat buchanan and think he's a bit of a zealot when he comes out against trade. where are the voters on that? with pat? >> in both directions. they want to make sure america's is not taken advantage of, but realize america has to be a piece of it. notice the president took trade policy and pushed it until after the midterms.

he thought this would be a more hospitable time to talk trade. that means opening market it is right way. >> they sort of paced at the jobs label on this trip once they realized the poor timing of it. suddenly, it became a trip about jobs, which if they had a ton of jobs to bring back, a long, long list of them. >> looks like they're changing policy on taxes. a big tax cut for everybody that will look like a move to the center. you say that's a positive sign of change, still open to question about whether they're going to change the administration itself. you said it took how many months? >> a few. >> state of the union. we've learned a lot today. coming up, reigning in the national debt.

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welcome back. alan simpson and erskine bowles gave pressure groups yesterday. they made recommendations in five areas -- those are big ideas that will run into big opposition. have already. kent conrad of north dakota is a member of the commission senator, years and years ago, i worked on the senate budget committee and all this sounds familiar. the minute you try to cut the debt or deficit in this case and you have a wide ranging balanced program that hurts everybody, everybody complains. they don't say hey, you hit the other guy harder than you did me. they complain about their issue. what's going to happen?

>> these groups once again have revealed what they care about, themselves. they don't apparently care about the country because we are spending much more than we can afford. we are borrowing 40 cents of every dollar that we spend. clearly, that can't continue much longer and yet their answer is do nothing. that cannot be the answer. what the two chairmen have said, we've got the get the debt and deficits under control. we have the reduce the projected shortfall and they have proposed a comprehensive program to do it. well, they deserve our support. we can argue about the specificics. hopefully, we'll have a chance to improve the package, but we need this to get the country back on track. >> i hear there are 90-year-old people out there complaining about this requirement that you

don't get social security at 69 in 2050. this is not an extreme proposal. ill point to the fact that this extends the coverage of the payroll tax. you're going pay more taxes if you make more money. it seems getting rid of the capital gains pref rans, that's going to drive people crazy. does it help if it's balanced? >> i think it helps if it's balanced. spending is the highest it is been in 60 years a as share of our economy. revenue is a lowest it's been in 60 years a as share of our economy, so you've got to work both sides of the equation. what the two chairmen came out with was a proposal to do away with one option. one was do away with all the tax

expenditures. that will raise over a trillion dollars. over the next ten years. >> those are what we call -- >> yeah. they dedicate 90% of that the lowering income tax rates. in change for doing away with all the tax preferences, loopholes that's in the system. i would prefer not to go that far. i would prefer to retain some of the mortgage deductions, some of the child care credit, but do need thorough tax reform and to reduce or deficit. they have combined it with major spending cuts. 75% of this plan is spending cuts. 25% is revenue. and yet, we see some of these groups howling, well, you can't

raise any new revenue. apparently, he doesn't care about the country, just a narrow group that finances his efforts. the left has the same problem. they are so focused just on themselves that they forget about our country and our country requires us to be bold and brave and to get something done. >> they're paid by their people. the people watching now, is this going to be like the base closing commission report when it comes out if they get the 14 votes, if that goes to the president's desk, has he committed to backing this effort? >> no, he's not. that's understandable. he's got to see the product first. this is just the beginning.

this is the proposal of the two chairmen. bipartisan. but the commission itself has now got to render a judgment. if we can get 14 of 18 members to agree, it advances. >> do you think happen in the next congress or this congress? >> it's hard for me to see how it would happen in this congress, although that was the plan that senator gregg and i proposed when we proposed this commission some three years ago but we had one that was enforced by law. we didn't get a super majority vote in the senate for that, so the president did the next best thing. he put in place by executive order which means we don't have an assurance of the vote. we have the prospect of getting one, but not the assurance. >> their last good act for the country and leave. thank you. we're joined now by politico's

assistant managing editor, jean cummings. you've been covering this for a while. do you think there's any chance this country can get serious about reducing its debt? it's up to 14 trillion. it's really going to be all we do is raise money from the taxpayer to pay interest payments. just to transfer a payment from hard working people to t bondholders in china. your thoughts. >> well, i tell you, chris, this might be, it's possible that there is an opportunity here. frankly, the odds are that this will collapse. one of the key messages out of this election is a great deal of concern about the size of government spending and deficit, so you have these tea party candidates or these very conservative candidates coming to washington who embrace those concerns and who are under a whole lot of pressure to

demonstrate that they're going to do something about it. on the other hand, you have a group of, a large group of democrats in the senate who are going to be up for election in two years who have just seen what happened to their colleagues. especially on this issue. so, i think there's an incentive for democrat and the president to put deficit reduction credentials on their resumes as well. it's possible we could see some deals smaller than that package that are worked out so that both sides can say they did do something. >> let's take a look at the tax issue. here's the president. last week, the day after the midterms. last wednesday, eight days ago talking about what he might do on the tax cut. >> my goal is to make sure that we don't have a huge spike in taxes for middle class families. my goal is to sit down with

speaker elect boehner and mitch mcconnell and harry and nancy sometime in the next few weeks and see where we can move forward in a way that first of all does no harm. that extends those tax cuts that are very important for middle class families and how that negotiation works itself out, i think it's too early to say. >> seemed to be a key point he was making there, do no harm. the goal to make sure is middle class don't get a higher tax rate january. that's the way i read it. then howard fineman has been reporting today that they're going forward with axelrod's comments that suggests they're willing to talk about a continuation for everybody's tax cuts. >> that's the signal that the president and axelrod delivered

over the last few days. i think axelrod was more explicit than the president. you and i both know this is reality politics. what can they really get through in the senate when you have moderate to conservative democrats who are saying that they are not prepared to increase taxes on the wealthy during this economy. the votes aren't there. >> the worst thing that could happen, want to try this last question. the worst thing is that the democratic-led congress this fall doesn't pass the tax cut. the people face higher taxes next january. in come the republican dominated house and more republicans in the senate like the cavalry c e coming to save the taxpayer. they cut taxes for everybody and the president is forced to sign it. the republicans are the big heroes. the democrats look like the bad guys. your thoughts. >> i agree with you completely.

in that scenario, president obama breaks one of his biggest campaign pledges and that's not to increase taxes on any families making 250,000 or under. >> up next, what does christine o'donnell think of bill maher after he released those clips of her? you're watching "hardball," only on msnbc. because toyota developed this software that can simulate head injuries and helps make people safer. then they shared this technology with researchers at wake forest to help reduce head injuries on the football field. so, you know, i can feel a bit better about my son playing football. [ male announcer ] how would you use toyota technology to make a better world? learn how to share your ideas at toyota.com/ideasforgood. [ male announcer ] what does it take to excel in today's business world? our professors know. because they've been there.

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time for the "sideshow." first up, life after politics. christine o'donnell turned on the charm with leno last night. even had nice things to say about bill maher. >> my sister and i were watching the show when bill you know,

made his threat and i just thought, you know, whether it's -- that he was going to keep airing the clips until i went on the show. whether it's a comedian or a terrorist, you should not respond to threats, so it's a shame. but i do like bill maher and i was grateful for the time he gave he. >> you are single? >> yes. >> could you date a democrat? >> if that democrat doesn't mind being wrong a lot, sure. >> o'donnell's talking about a book deal. a reality show and you guessed, another run for political office. speaking of tim pawlenty's gearing up to start his book tour and campaign for president. the minnesota governor's race isn't resolved it. remember that state's 2008 recount and the al franken senate race took eight months to get done.

his book "courage to stand" comes out january 11th. the tour will happen one way or the other. i think it should be called good and pawlenty. earlier this week, alan west tapped conservative radio host joyce kaufman to have his new chief of staff. she called speaker pelosi fwar garbage. she said illegal immigrants who commit illegal acts should be hanged and if ballots don't work, bullets will. sounds like sharron angle. west announced today that kaufman declined the offer, but said he would always seek joyce's council. time for tonight's big number. president bush made his comback this week. on its first day, the book sold 220,000 copies.

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dispointing blue chip earnings and stronger dollar dragging stocks lower. networks giant cisco enduring

its biggest declines ever after an earnings release, plunging more than 16% on a dispointing revenue. and disney moving lower after missing expectations. viacom enjoying a bump on strong eerngs. boeing still on the ropes after suspending test of the 787 dream liner and european banks took a hit. but material stocks one of the few bright spots today on a report showing stronger demand from metals in overseas markets. that's it from cnbc first in business worldwide. now back to "hardball."

the republicans may have just fought successfully in the midter midterms, but there are already possibly fights coming up. long time senators like orrin hatch and olympia snowe may be at risk of a tea party challenge and being defeated. joining us now, todd harris, who's in the middle of this. and steve -- i'm talking to you, brother. se seems to me that orrin hatch voted for health care. he saw what's happening to his partner, robert bennett. wasn't good enough for the tea party. does olympia snowe face defeat at the hands of the far right up in maine, hatch in utah? >> i think both of them are going to, the one thing that benefits them is that they have the benefit of hindsight because they watched what happened to bennett. the fact is -- >> but democrats saw this crap

coming for years and couldn't do anything about it. >> wasn't just they didn't view him as being conservative enough. he wasn't working his base and that's what happens when you're in washington for too long. let me totally clear something. if i lived in delaware, i would have voted for mike castle. but having said that, the fact that a guy who's been in washington this long couldn't get 30,000 people to vote for him, that's all you need in de and he kopt do it. he ran as part of being the establishment, as having experience and he was a little tone deaf. >> i want you to look at these republicans who are going to face the heat of the right if conditions continue with the bad economy and the anger from the right. ten senate seats are up in 2012. that's coming rather quickly if you're one of those guys or women. john brasso, scott brennan.

tennessee's bob corker who meet howard ford and nevada's john ensign. kay bailey hutchins of texas. indiana's dick lugar. a lot of those guys are fairly new members of congress like scott brown, are you happy to see them being knocked off by crazies on the right to put it bluntly? >> yes, i am, actually, they're going to get knocked off by crazies on the right. if you look at the tea party's record starting with christine o'donnell and going to alaska with joe miller. >> he's got a short 15 minutes. that guy. >> but for the most part, they've done one of two things. they've either produced nominees who couldn't win or produced nominees who made it possible for democrat nominees who were

severely vulnerable to win. if olympia snowe gets primaried and that candidate wins, it's going to a democratic candidate. any purple or blue state represented by a republican, if the tea party nominee comes out, i'd be willing to bet they lose. if hatch did what murkowski did now, he probably would win. i think you're probably going to see temptations to not participate in the tea party process and to do it on their own. >> orrin hatch -- i mean, joe sestak would have been better off running against specter in pennsylvania, the fact is that specter was probably not as strong a candidate as the tea party backed toomey. you're wrong, steve. >> it depends on the states. >> of course. everything depends on the state.

blue state -- each one of these states is going to have its own unique circumstances. in a republican red state, a tea party candidate who gets nominated could win, but in a state like murkowski's, run as an independent and can be elected away. >> look at what's happening in utah. good point. according to a recent poll, it is a patrol year. if hatch's re-election were held now, 40% said shathey'd vote fo him. that's not a great re-elect number of. >> it's also irrelevant. a poll of registers voters two years out doesn't mean a lot. >> means something.

>> nothing. not worth the paper it's written on. >> listen. hold on. >> probably the mentality robert bennett had. >> no, my point is that i think that hatch, snowe and some of these other members have learned from watching what happened to bennett. you see hatch taking steps in utah. >> let's talk about a guy i once voted for, that's michael steele -- it is an absolute embarrassment in this country that a country like ours has no african-american senators starting now because burruess i out and kirk is in. >> we just elected two new african-american republicans to congress. >> the house. does it bother you, steve, we have no black senators? >> yes, it does. i think michael steele would be

glad to know you support him and he probably wishes you were an rnc member. >> for michael steele, the first african-american chairman of the republican party is now being run out by the usual crowd that doesn't think he did a sufficiently good job. i know if michael steele was supposed to win 80 seats or 90 seats or 100 seats, what it would have taken to make them happy, but they're unhappy with michael steele. >> you were good on that, but republican. why knock a guy who's got a winning record like babe ruth? from the time he got in there, he won new jersey, virginia, then took the house of representatives with a 60 something victory. >> here's the bottom line. for the chairman's race. you can't beat somebody with nobody. every king's court got barons

and dukes who think they do a better job, but until somebody steps forward and -- >> i love the way republicans talk. they say, barons and duke. we talk democratic politics. lower r. thank you. i love those mid evil references. up next, today is veterans day and the pentagon has concluded there would be little rest in the report that's gotten leaked. don't think there would be a big problem with letting gays serve in the military. that's a big development and that's ahead. a full serving of vegetables plus a full serving of fruit. but it just tastes like fruit. v8. what's your number?

[ slap! ] [ slap! slap! slap! slap! ] ow, ow! [ male announcer ] your favorite foods fighting you? fight back fast with tums. calcium rich tums goes to work in seconds. nothing works faster. ♪ tum ta tum tum tums president obama xhet commemorated veterans day in south korea. he laid a wreath alongside u.s. troops and veterans of the korean war. it is home to 25,000 military

personnel. "hardball" will be right back. [ advisor 1 ] what do you see yourself doing one week, one month, five years after you do retire? ♪ client comes in and they have a box. and inside that box is their financial life. people wake up and realize i better start doing something. we open up that box. we organize it. and we make decisions. we really are here to help you. they look back and think, "wow. i never thought i could do this." but we've actually done it. [ male announcer ] visit ameriprise.com and put a confident retirement more within reach.

i've been a strong believer in the notion that if somebody is willing to serve in our military in uniform, putting their lives on the line for our security, that they should not be prevented from doing so because of their sexual orientation. it's worth noting the majority of americans feel the same way. it's the right thing to do. >> we're back. that was president obama in last week's news conference cht according to "washington post,"

a pentagon study group has concluded that lifting the ban on gays in the military would not seriously harm p war effort and a survey shows that a majority of -- to not care. it may not be enough for republicans to support the policy. dan choi who was discharged this career after coming out and alex nicholson was also discharged under the policy. he's a member of service united. let's try to try about the unusual situation. politicians tend to try to be ahead of the curve. usually. they try to be smarter than people because they want to be elected. here we have a case that about 70% of the american people believe in open service. they're for that. that's really moved up, right? how come the politicians haven't

kept up with the people? >> i think it's a political issue. >> if the majority want it, why do half the senate not want it? >> i think when i talk about what my military service was and when i talk about wanting to serve, there's certainly many benefits of serving. many fringe things on the other side. i think politicians think different ways sometimes. they think the gay issue is a difficult, political issue. and i think for anybody to make promises like president obama did and not take action -- >> you're going in your direction. go in my direction. why is it a problem getting it through the congress. i just read the constitution. congress has the right to raise and support armies. congress has the fundamental power.

>> why can want the congress go with the american people on this issue politically? why are no republicans aboard this thing? getting rid of the don't ask don't tell? why don't they say, of course i'm for open service. why don't the republicans join the democrats on this? >> well, i don't speak for any political party -- speak for an political party. i think that you know that. but on my analysis i don't need to exactly understand why a certain politician votes a certain way i just need to know that currently under the law i'm not allowed to tell the truth and i'm not an equal citizen. i'm treated as a second-class citizen. people take polls whether i'm popular or not and i think that's an insult and what i'm focused on. i think that it's very clear. whether it's congress or the president, these people are leaders who are elected. >> right. >> and we all know that politics is war with no blood. war is politics with the blood. >> right. >> why is it that in politics we realize that there are consequences but we don't act on them? >> but my question is, why wouldn't a politician who is

self-interested, why wouldn't he or she obey the will of the people? it would be in their self interest to do it. >> well there's a lack of courage and i think that's one thing especially on this day, we can take -- >> why is there courage in the democratic party and not the republican party. >> politicians who are simply politicians. i think that when you talk about courage -- >> well, just a minute. we have 58 democrats now in the sen participate they're counting in almost all of them going in that direction but it ain't 60. i'm going to go to you, alec, on this question. what's the problem? >> i think to go back to your larger point here i think that we've really lost part of our principle civilian control in military, doesn't matter you look at congress the courts -- >> supervise so that out in the marines, say something out on the public record. >> you are right, congress has the power to raise and support army prmts major iity of the people. >> it seems that they're hiding behind. i understand your passion, you served your country. i wasn't over there. you did. let me ask you this, why are they hanging their hat?

>> you see the reports leaked that's not good enough. they want hearings now on the report and they want to make sure they they run out of clock and run out the clock this year. next year it's a rng congress. you say politics is something that you get into a lot harder for a republican congress to do it. what do you think? you first. >> it's not about whether a mission -- >> why don't they do it? >> it doesn't matter whether it's considered difficult or hard, it's a matter of doing the right thing. >> but when you talk like this -- when you talk to members like this in the members of the senate if you get into a room with them what do they say? >> it doesn't matter what they say to me. >> well when you vote. >> when you talk about the gay community and the disappointment that we have it's not just the disappointment in one party. i know that equality, if it is -- >> well, how do you blame the democrats and every single one of them if senate voted your way how do you blame them. >> i don't glaet you're saying. >> isn't that enough for you? >> well if you think about the people who have made promises to us -- i think that there's a lot more that the president with do. >> what can he do? >> for the cloture vote i think that it it would had been wonderful if he called a single

senator rather than just calling a sports team in seattle. i think if the president is going to make these promises he needs to put his money where his mouth. >> how does he get a republican to vote your way. >> i think that he's the president of the united states and he has more power than you do. >> you continue as well as i do that congress gets to decide these issues. they pass the don't ask, don't tell. they got to repeal it. >> i think that the president did help the discharges. >> can he do that legally? >> i think that he can in addition to -- >> how does the president ignore the will of congress? >> and the courts say that don't ask, don't tell is unconstitutional. number one, i don't think that president should repeal. >> but this -- >> is it unconstitutional is the question, and why can't the president not just say what he knows is true, that it is unconstitutional. >> because he took the same oath as you did to observe the constitution as determined by the supreme court. the supreme court hasn't ruled yet. >> supports what. >> pardon me. >> to the oath is to -- >> against all foreign and domestic enemies.

>> that's your opinion. >> but this is -- we have to get the courts to rule on that. >> and they have. >> i mean the only -- >> there's no reason to not repeal it. >> and by the way i'm with your passion because you've been there. i haven't been there. your thoughts, alex. he was a pretty strong mind guy on this. do you think that the president can do this willful low, just say it. >> the president needs to get more actively involved advocacy on this issue. >> a valid point. >> we do have a a coup of republicans, chris. >> who are they. >> susan collins. >> you don't have her yet. >> structured right. senator reid has to bring it. >> i know, i know. >> obama but it's the truth. >> when i see them vote for it those two republicans, voinovich and -- he's not going to do it. we got the statement. it's a tough fight. dan choi, alex nicholson. let me finish with some thoughts about -- well about this budget process. last year. (oof). i had a bum knee that needed surgery. but it got complicated, because i had an old injury.

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let me finish tonight with two of my fixed positions on the role of government in this country. one, if you can't protect your border you're not a country. two, if you can't control your budget, you're not a government. on the border, yes, you have to guard it humanely and given our history with the reasonable liberality, we are after all, the land of immigrants but countries have a right to decide how other people enter it. if they don't take that responsibility seriously they have failed their own nationhood. i want people living here, right now, to stay and be given legitimate documents but i want all employers who hire people in

the future to see those documents or face charges. my second fixed position is, if you can't control the budget, you're not a government. the president assembled a commission to try to deal with the debt raising past $14 trillion. the commission chairman had recommended a set of actions that will cut it in half, the projected debt growth over the next decade as a guy who once worked on the senate budget committee at the time of its creation i know how hard this will be. every pressure group in the country will blast its recommendations one at a time, and will bristle with outrage to get media attention, but ask anyone who commains about the proposals, what they would do instead? when i asked positioned any program they would get i get generalizations and procedures. i don't get the name of a program. one costing up there where it would cut and make a difference. if we only report on those who yell out the loudest we are, in effect, defending the deficits i think that the chairman of the commissioner doing the job that president obama asked him to do, spreading the pain. the pressure groups will do what they do, the question is whether the people will