My Advice To Dems: Ignore Republicans
Republicans are in tough guy mode. Lots of chest thumping and trash talk going on as they, once again, thrust the debt ceiling onto center stage. The howling is quite intense, and, as usual, our awesome media will latch onto the hysterics with a passion that would make a Twilight fan blush. My advice to Dems… Ignore it.
Why should the Dems ignore Republicans? Because, just like their Presidential candidate, Republicans won’t put the meat on the bone. Exhibit A:
From a Mitch McConnell statement Wednesday:
The President claims to want a balanced approach to solve our problems. And now that he has the tax rates he wants, his calls for ‘balance’ mean he must join us in our efforts to achieve meaningful spending and government reform. We have an immediate opportunity to act: the debt ceiling. Washington’s credit card has reached its limit again, and the Senate majority must act on legislation early in February—rather than waiting until the last minute, abdicating responsibility and hoping someone else will step in once again to craft a last-minute solution for them. Once the Senate passes bipartisan legislation, we can conference with the House on a solution. But this time the entire Senate must have an opportunity to act.
Emphasis added. Not only are Republicans closing the door on more tax revenues than they already provided Obama. And not only are they demanding unpopular spending cuts as their price for raising the debt limit. If you read between the lines, they’re actually insisting that Democrats put together the spending cuts themselves.
We find ourselves in familiar territory. Republicans want cuts, but they don’t want to name or propose them. They want the Democrats to own them, and then they’ll run against those cuts in 2014 – Just like they did last year with their “Obama is cutting Medicare!” campaign. Remember that? Good times.
So… what happens if Democrats ignore Republicans on the debt ceiling? There are several possible outcomes. First, there’s going to be a lot of shrieking from Republicans, but people are use to that because if everything’s an outrage, then nothing’s an outrage. Keep in mind that the shrieking will be about the Dems not doing the GOP’s dirty work in regards to Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.
On Morning Joe right now a Republican Senator is calling for Democrats to propose cuts in order to increase the debt ceiling. In typical fashion, he didn’t propose any specific cuts. He simply said that if President Obama wants the debt ceiling raised then he will have to pick what’s going to be cut. There’s leadership, for ya.
So, if the Democrats don’t propose cuts, then… what? The Republicans will suddenly get specific? I doubt it, but it would be great if they did because then we could actually have a debate that moved beyond Republicans yelling freedom!
I realize that ignoring Republicans isn’t easy. Just like a toddler’s temper tantrum we are tempted to do anything to shut them up.
But, consider this… what if we did ignore the Republican temper tantrum? What if Democrats refused to debate the debt ceiling in any way, shape or form? Would Republicans simply refuse to raise the debt ceiling? They would own that, and if there’s one thing you can count on when it comes to Republicans it’s that they refuse to own anything.
Tags: Debt Ceiling, National Republicans
So, given the results of the election, is the GOP more or less likely to try and plunge the economy into chaos?
I’d have to hedge and say, “just as likely as ever” because they don’t seem to be in touch with reality.
We are playing these games while the Chinese open high-speed train lines.
Democrats are all too eager to own cuts to Medicare and Social Security.
Meanwhile Democrats actually DID pass bipartisan cuts (sequester) but now both Republicans and Democrats can’t run away from them fast enough. It seems like the only cuts that count are cuts to the safety net. Just ask Tom Carper.
It’s called being “fiscal conservative.” You conserve your budget cutting energies to confront the diabolical enemy of freedom known as the new deal.
2000: Republicans want to limit Social Security increases. Democrats would block any cuts with their own bodies.
2012: Democrats want to cut Social Security. Republicans want to end it.
@Puck …
2024: Democrats want to end Social Security; Republicans opposed because every last one of them is over 65.
biden has been working delaware for 40 years talking alot and doing nothing the guy who pushed the new bankruptcy law which savages people yet he is the progressive model?
It took California 15 years to realize the only way to move forward and not lot more slide into ruin was to minimize the GOP even more in the electorate and then to ignore them on everything. I never thought it would happen. But things just got too bad.
Biden is not progressive. He is a Democrat who owes his existence to financial interests, much like a prisoner who gains special favors by ratting out the general population. Thus the bankruptcy law, and this week’s deal which handed back already-won investment tax increases, with Biden’s fingerprints.
@George Smith:
National Unemployment Rate: 7.8% (Dec. 2012)
California Unemployment Rate: 9.8% (Nov. 2012)
California must be right….
They are burdened by a tax policy even more dysfunctional than our national clusterfuck-onomics
And a bottomless supply of cheap exploitable labor.
California’s marginal tax rate on taxable income between $46,766 and $1,000,000 is 9.30% (Single Filer). In contrast, Delaware’s highest marginal tax rate is below 7%.
I think President Obama and the Democrats should specify which cuts are acceptable:
1. Congressional perks and benefits. Eliminate Congress’ cushy health care program, putting all Congress-persons and staff into the same health insurance program available to all Federal employees. Eliminate the Congressional retirement program, putting all Congress-persons’ and staffs’ retirement plans to 401(k)s and Social Security.
2. Eliminate all gas and oil company subsidies. Place a cap on the number of oil drilling leases a company can hold. Any unused leases must be returned to the government before acquiring new ones.
3. Eliminate subsidies to agribusinesses. Any person/family/business earning over a set threshold is ineligible for farm subsidies. (This will protect the small family farms the subsidies were intended to aid.)
4. Cuts to defense spending. Eliminate any funding for projects the Pentagon/military/government does not specifically require (i.e., no more funneling money to defense contractors to build obsolete equipment and bring our troops home and stop being the policeman of the world
I am sure that Boehner and his tea party hacks along with the screamers in the senate would support these suggestions for it would place the country on a path to fiscal sanity.
5. Drug price negotiation.
Cuts to defense spending are already passed and will take effect in two months (I crack myself up).
We can draw any lines in the sand we want, but it all gets ignored when we wake up in the morning and learn Joe Biden gave it all away in the last ten minutes.
It would be a good time to flip the script. The problem is we have too many people like, otherwise sensible, Chris Coons who have accepted the bullshit ‘the-sky-is-falling!!! OMGZ!!! ENTILEMENTS!!!” wholesale.
California’s marginal tax rate on taxable income between $46,766 and $1,000,000 is 9.30% (Single Filer). In contrast, Delaware’s highest marginal tax rate is below 7%.
Good for California. They have a ton of millionaires who owe their wealth to California’s unique circumstances and they damn well need to pay for the benefits they are enjoying.
California’s blue shift means that one day they may repeal Prop 13, which limits property taxes and therefore shifts the tax burden onto the state.
@Puck
That marginal rate hits the middle class – the lower bound is $46,766 in taxable income.
Also, California imposes a 7.50% sales and use tax.
Yes, the brackets could be more progressive.
California is also bearing the job-displacement burden of illegal employment.