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Speaking at the Twitter Town Hall at the White House today, the president said Congress "shouldn't be toying" with the debt ceiling and cautioned against risking the financial health of the country in order to protect the interests of the super wealthy.   "Never in our history has the United States defaulted on its debt. The debt ceiling should not be something that is used as a gun against the heads of the American people to extract tax breaks for corporate jet owners, for oil and gas companies that are making billions of dollars because the price of gasoline has gone up so high.  I mean, I'm happy to have those debates.  I think the American people are on my side on this," Obama said. The president was adamant that when it comes to fixing the economy and solving the deficit problem "we should go with what works," and that's a tax increase on the wealthy. "If the wealthiest among us -- and I include myself in this category -- are willing to give up a little bit more, then we can solve this problem.  It does not take a lot… when people say, you know, "job-killing tax increases, that's what Obama's proposing," we're not going to," he said. "You're entitled to your own opinions, but not your own facts.  And the facts are that a modest increase for wealthy individuals is not shown to have an adverse impact on job growth." "We can test the two theories.  You had what happened during the '90s.  Right?  Taxes for wealthy individuals were somewhat higher, businesses boomed, the economy boomed, great job growth;  and then the 2000s, when taxes were cut on wealthy individuals, jobs didn't grow as fast, businesses didn't grow as fast. I mean, it's not like we haven't tried what these other folks are pitching.  It didn't work.  And we should go with what works," he said.

he apparent victory by Republicans in the debt ceiling debate will now give the GOP "ownership" of the economy. That's another victory for Obama because the economic outlook right now looks very, very bleak. In short, this was a great victory for the electoral prospects of Obama - even if it was a loss for the prospects of progressive political achievements.

Mr. Obama is doing what any good demagogue does: delivering his constituency to his campaign contributors on Wall Street.

Glenn Greenwald, Salon.com

Odd Time Signatures | @karoli

Crisis? What Crisis?Cheer up, America: Our nation won't default, nor is our government dysfunctional.

Why Obama Won Debt Deal by CRAIGCRAWFORD on JULY 31, 2011 · 91 COMMENTS · in ALL POSTS The President got what he most wanted, postponing another debt ceiling fight until after the election and without politically damaging entitlement cuts. Everything else is eye wash. Most of the spending cuts are in the out years, which is another way of saying it won't happen. And one more committee to study cuts? Oh please, even if they call it a "super" committee that's always a Capitol Hill euphemism for doing nothing. Adding so-called triggers for cuts if goals aren't met also means nothing. Remember Gramm-Rudman? Giving up tax increases on the wealthy is probably Obama's biggest concession, but that fight lives for another day when the Bush cuts are scheduled to expire later on.

Glenn Greenwald - Salon.com

Senator John McCain warned his Senate colleagues on Wednesday, "To hold out and say we won't agree to raising the debt limit to pass a Balanced Budget Amendment to the Constitution, it's unfair, it's bizarro."

"...when the economy falters deficits are part of the remedy; when the immediate problem is what it is now-a lack of demand, not a shortage of capital-higher spending is generally more efficacious than lower taxes, especially lower taxes on the rich.

Maybe some of you can tell me why so many very smart people have, since the day Obama was inaugurated, deluded themselves into thinking that this admittedly very smart man, albeit one with limited political experience at the national level, was somehow going to step into office and proceed to rewrite the political laws that have governed presidential politics for the last two centuries? I'm listening.