Washington Fails Us Again

Ben_Hecht · Nov 21, 2011

suburbia said:

DanOregon said:

suburbia said:

Bob Cook said:

doctorquant said:

So let's assume that the sequester, which doesn't take effect until 2013, actually comes into being. That means that, over the period from 2013 to 2021, federal spending will increase by $1.6 trillion. Without the sequester (i.e., assuming the supercommittee had "done its job"), spending would have increased by $1.7 trillion.

Wow, such a consequential failure.
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I agree that there is no way anything was getting done. It's not like there existed 12 magical members of Congress, representing both parties, who could come up with a plan everyone loved. It was a sham from the start.

Plus, it's getting to be more apparent the best thing for Democrats to do to advance their own agenda is... nothing. A good story here:

http://www.salon.com/2011/11/18/the_favor_george_w_bush_did_for_democrats/singleton/

Basically, let the automatic cuts (which are mostly from traditionally Republican-supported departments, like defense) take effect, let the Bush tax cuts expire, and presuming Obama is re-elected, all of this can happen without a single vote. Plus, the Democrats are in a stronger position because polls generally blame Republicans for Congressional gridlock.

For a while, it was Republicans who benefited politically when nothing was done -- now it's Democrats. The Salon story makes a good point that Republicans' negotiating position isn't so strong, or else why would it have offered $250 billion in new revenue as part of the supercommittee negotiations (it was offered in exchange for keeping the Bush tax cuts, but still).
Click to expand...

The difference is that Republicans actually have some political spine. Democrats, particularly Obama, don't.
Click to expand...

Let's see, the Dems agree to cuts on social programs advocated by Republicans that anger their base. The GOP resist any tax increases which would anger their base. I don't see how anyone in the GOP has shown any real spine here. I guess I am kind of surprised they didn't get any pressure from defense contractors who are likely to take a hit from the mandated cuts.
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Republicans show spine by sticking to their ideology no matter what. And they win in the end because Democrats sacrifice their ideology and principles in the name of "compromising" and "being the adults in the room," which is then rewarded by the GOP screwing them over, campaigning against them anyway and winning elections.

As someone (I forget who) once said, if you give voters a choice between an actual Republican and a Democrat acting like a Republican, the actual Republican will win every time.
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From the lifetimes of most . . . Nixon's first swing, Goldwater, Ford on his own, Poppy's second swing, McCain . . .

Tarheel316 · Nov 22, 2011

Stoney said:

trifectarich said:

Incredibly inept people.
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Stoney, you are spot on. Another reason the GOP wants to keep cutting taxes for wealthy is to starve funding for the social safety net. Disgusting.

Inept people is part of the explanation, but the underlying source of these budget impasses is always the same goddamn thing: one side absolutely refusing to even entertain the notion that the wealthy should pay so much as one penny more to the government that protects and supports them (and bails them out when necessary). Despite the fact that all empirical evidence overwhelmingly shows that i) it's absolutely necessary for our govt to have any hope of ever returning to a state of fiscal health; and ii) the Bush upper income tax cuts were an unmitigated disaster for the nation as a whole.

It's utterly inexcusable that Obama capitulated on this issue during his first two years when he was holding all the political muscle, his biggest failure by far. If we could ever get past that one gigantic clusterfuck issue and return our tax rates to something resembling what they were during the Reagan/Clinton years then perhaps we could finally move on to some grown-up dialogue about resolving our debt crisis.
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micropolitan guy · Nov 22, 2011

Republicans show spine by sticking to their ideology no matter what.
Click to expand...

"I vas just following orders."

Starman · Nov 22, 2011

DanOregon said:

suburbia said:

Bob Cook said:

doctorquant said:

So let's assume that the sequester, which doesn't take effect until 2013, actually comes into being. That means that, over the period from 2013 to 2021, federal spending will increase by $1.6 trillion. Without the sequester (i.e., assuming the supercommittee had "done its job"), spending would have increased by $1.7 trillion.

Wow, such a consequential failure.
Click to expand...

I agree that there is no way anything was getting done. It's not like there existed 12 magical members of Congress, representing both parties, who could come up with a plan everyone loved. It was a sham from the start.

Plus, it's getting to be more apparent the best thing for Democrats to do to advance their own agenda is... nothing. A good story here:

http://www.salon.com/2011/11/18/the_favor_george_w_bush_did_for_democrats/singleton/

Basically, let the automatic cuts (which are mostly from traditionally Republican-supported departments, like defense) take effect, let the Bush tax cuts expire, and presuming Obama is re-elected, all of this can happen without a single vote. Plus, the Democrats are in a stronger position because polls generally blame Republicans for Congressional gridlock.

For a while, it was Republicans who benefited politically when nothing was done -- now it's Democrats. The Salon story makes a good point that Republicans' negotiating position isn't so strong, or else why would it have offered $250 billion in new revenue as part of the supercommittee negotiations (it was offered in exchange for keeping the Bush tax cuts, but still).
Click to expand...

The difference is that Republicans actually have some political spine. Democrats, particularly Obama, don't.
Click to expand...

Let's see, the Dems agree to cuts on social programs advocated by Republicans that anger their base. The GOP resist any tax increases which would anger their base. I don't see how anyone in the GOP has shown any real spine here. I guess I am kind of surprised they didn't get any pressure from defense contractors who are likely to take a hit from the mandated cuts.
Click to expand...

They know the "mandated" defense cuts are a fake. The only thing which will get cut is social spending.

Tarheel316 · Nov 22, 2011

micropolitan guy said:

Republicans show spine by sticking to their ideology no matter what.
Click to expand...

"I vas just following orders."
Click to expand...

Awesome.

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Washington Fails Us Again

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