From the NYT

...

“Are we in denial in this body?” asked Senator Jeff Sessions, Republican of Alabama and another opponent. “Do we think it’s just business as usual, that we can just continue to spend, spend, spend and borrow, borrow, borrow?”

Republicans are eager to blame Democrats. But Democrats note that it was Republicans who initially chose not to pay for wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, initiated a series of major tax cuts and started a new Medicare drug benefit that ran up the deficit before Democrats ever took the wheel.

“The people who set the fire are now the ones calling the fire department,” said Representative Richard E. Neal, Democrat of Massachusetts.

In any event, the deficit alarm has been sounded and lawmakers are responding. Whether it is too late for them remains to be seen.

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Gus: and the Americans are blaming the Europeans for the black hole in the red ink of the finances of the world...

US president Barack Obama says there is no point in him speaking to BP's chief executive, as oil continues to leak from a ruptured well in the Gulf of Mexico.

BP's CEO Tony Hayward has been criticised for once predicting the oil spill would be modest and for lamenting that he "wanted his life back" as the clean-up drags on.

Mr Obama said he would have sacked the BP boss for those sorts of statements, but he has also revealed he has never personally spoken to Mr Hayward.

"A guy like BP's CEO, he's going to say all the right things to me. I'm not interested in words, I'm interested in actions," Mr Obama said.

The irritated president said he did not have time to "perform theatre" for American cable television shows.

The US official in charge of the US Government's response, Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen, said he frequently talked to the BP chief.

Even though almost 15,000 barrels of oil a day are now being captured by a cap that BP has placed over the ruptured oil well, BP does not have enough ships to collect oil on the surface. Nor does anyone know how much oil is actually still leaking into the ocean.

Admiral Allen was abrupt when quizzed about these lapses.

"I have never said this was going well," he said.

"We're throwing everything we've got at this. This is the largest oil spill response in the history of the country."

The Obama administration says tests have confirmed that underwater oil plumes, some as deep as one kilometre below the surface, have come from the BP spill, something the company has previously denied.

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Gus : I believe president "Barrak" Obama also decided not to speak to bankers, to Mr Paulson nor to a horde of other nignongs and to the many profiteers responsible for sinking the world economy... In regard to "Barrack", please note my making a reference to a "mug's mug":

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Australian officials withdrew 200 Barack Obama mugs from the parliamentary gift shop — not because he cancelled his visit, but because they misspelled his name.

The mugs, featuring a smiling picture of the American president, cheerfully welcomed "Barrack Obama" on his visit due this month. The mugs, as well as the trip, have now been scrapped.

Officials said the specially made commemorative mugs arrived over the weekend and promptly hit the gift shop's shelves, despite Obama cancelling on Friday over the BP oil spill.

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Gus: "in my day" the person responsible for the cock-up would have been sacked and forced to wear a donkey suit/hat on his/her way out... Today, that person is most likely to get an upward promotion, in order to sensitively remove him/her from a "direct responsibility" job.

And I would say boo to BP too, with not enough mugs to collect the oil... Is this amateurish or what?

But you might point out that I make spelling mistakes too... but never on mugs... Wouldn't you say that the two mugs that got sold are now collector's items?... See toon at top.