Budget talks: This is getting nasty

Good detail. Thanks.

 

Despite the President's spinning and despite his rush to the cameras to get his side of the story out, it's pretty clear what happened.

The deal included $800B in increased revenues, achieved through closing "loopholes", not through higher tax rates.

When the President presented the deal to House Dems, they freaked, so at the last minute, the President demanded $400B in additional revenue through higher tax rates on the "rich".

This is when Boehner "walked away". And, who could blame him? The President tried to change the deal.

As I've said all along, House Democrats will be just as big an impediment to any deal as "Tea Party" Republicans.

The bottom line among the "Tea Party" folk is that their compromise is to agree to raise the debt ceiling at all. They're only going to vote for it if they get spending cuts in return. And a raise in tax rates can't be part of the deal.

Call 'em crazy, but they have the stronger hand. While I fully admit it will be a disaster, in their mind, the worst case scenario is an immediate 40% cut in Federal spending. And they don't have to lift a finger to achieve it.

They know we won't go into default. The interest payments will be the first thing paid.

And, President Obama is already blinking. He's clearly open to a smaller, shorter deal.

He's caught between a rock and a hard place. A default will be a disaster for him and his party.

And, his anger last night shows how desperate he is. "No Drama Obama" was clearly stressed out. Compare his performance to Boehner's calm appearance right afterwards.

I think you'll see who is under more pressure to get a deal done -- and who's having more problems with their own party.

The President has blinked. His poker face crumbled. He's not going to get a better deal after that.

 

Hard to argue with anything in this reasonable, well thought out post.

 

Not that I believe your version of events for a minute, but if it were true, I wonder where he would have learned the tactic of agreeing a deal, then insisting on further compromises from the other side.

Gee, I can't think where he got that from. Nope. Can't think of it at all.

And you keep telling yourself that the Democrats are the ones who are going to get the blame for it.

 

To be fair, history suggests Obama will get blamed if the worst happens and the predicted economic calamity ensues. Bush I got blamed when the economy tanked in 1992. Bush II got blamed when the economy tanked at the end of his term (though John McCain, as the GOP nominee, was the one who actually paid for that). Herbert Hoover got blamed for the Great Depression.

I disagree with YankeeFan on a lot of things. But he could very well be correct on this one.

 

Actually, LTL, I think Boehner is the wuss here. I had my doubts that he'd be able to stand up to the Tea Party types when the chips were down, and he proved me right in the end. When it came down to a choice between the country or the noisy minority in his party, the country lost. When the history of this train-wreck, do-nothing Congress is written, this chapter will be the beginning of the end.

But i certainly agree that it's time for Obama to man up. These people have no interest in what's good for the country - they only want what's good for them. It's time for Obama to stop trying to make nice and start kneecapping these guys.

 

They'd have to find a blatant reason for impeachment beyond "Well, he tried to ignore us!" Something that is actually criminal that the American public can't roll their eyes over.

Especially after impeaching the last Democratic president over lying under oath about a blow job. Americans would see an Obama impeachment as the GOP trying to ignore subvert the democratic process. The GOP already has led one impeachment, and you had the controvery over the 2000 election.

Impeaching Obama would lead voters to ask, "Why are they impeaching every Democratic president that has been elected?"

 

Please stop with the "lying under oath about a blow job" is no big deal line of thought.

The fact is that Clinton perjured himself as the President of The United States.

 

The Dems were giving away the store and the Repups wouldn't take it.

 

The GOP will get the blame if the country defaults or if the economy tanks.

As well they should.

 

It's not my version of events:

And, I didn't actually say the President and his party would get the blame.

What I'm saying is that they'll have to deal with it. The executive branch is going to have to figure out which bills to pay. And it's by and large programs that appeal to their constituents that will have to go unfunded.

So, maybe the Republicans will get the blame, but Dems will feel the pain.

 

No, the elderly, the poor, the disabled, the wounded in battle and the sick and dying will feel the pain.

Which is a feature, not a bug.