John Boehner Really Doesn’t Get It or “Why We Need To Jump Off The Fiscal Cliff”

[babylonsister]

Last edited Mon Nov 12, 2012, 06:44 PM - Edit history (1)

http://www.politicalgarbagechute.com/john-boehner-really-doesnt-get-it-or-why-we-need-to-jump-off-the-fiscal-cliff/

John Boehner Really Doesn’t Get It or “Why We Need To Jump Off The Fiscal Cliff”
November 12, 2012
by James Schlarmann


President Obama and House Speaker John “Orange Julius” Boehner are in a game of Fiscal Cliff Chicken with each other. Though both men are playing the “I want to compromise” card, both have also restated their previous opinions and views on the Bush Tax Cuts, which are central to the issue of whether or not we’re all going to head right over that “fiscal cliff” into the forced sequestration (read: massive budget cuts as well as tax hikes) that both Democrats and Republicans agreed to the last time Congressional Republicans held the debt ceiling hostage. But there’s something Boehner needs to realize, as he tells interviewers that tax hikes are not something he’s going to be okay with. Back then, Obama had a second term election to worry about, and so he probably caved on the Bush Tax Cuts and agreed to the sequestration in order to keep the economy plodding along.

But the people spoke on Tuesday, and the majority side with the President.

That decision the country made, to re-elect Obama despite all the insistence by his opponents that he’d held the economy back and would plunge us into darkness if he raised taxes, cannot be overstated. Republicans seem content to think that in our country if you lose you’re still able to get your way. That’s simply not true. In certain circumstances, like a Constitutional amendment, we ask our legislators to come up with an overwhelming majority. But in most cases, the decision gets to be made by whomever garners the most support, or in this case votes, for their cause. But with Obama winning the popular vote, hitting the 50% mark while doing so, he can legitimately claim that the majority of Americans side with his view on tax increases, simply as that. And until we re-write the system to say that the majority does not rule, Boehner and his Republican friends need to get in line.


snip//

Obama did make the first move in trying to at least make an attempt to broker a deal. He’s invited leaders of Congress from both parties to the White House to start talks. Whether or not any deal comes from the talks is anyone’s guess. But one thing is certain, the country is ready for healing, and in order to heal both sides are going to have to give up some ground. Obama has shown in the past that he’s willing to make deep cuts as long as tax revenue increases are also made, but the GOP has been stubborn to budge. But the dynamics in Washington are going to shift after Obama’s re-election. The idea is that the GOP has something to wrestle with themselves, and how they handle the next two years will determine if they have a fighting shot at keeping control of the House, and even if they have a shot at getting someone back in the Oval Office anytime soon.

Republicans need to think long and hard about the 2014 mid-term elections. They’ve already had their message of “Obama is the worst president of all time” rejected. They’ve had their proposals on taxes rejected. They’ve had their very fiscal beliefs rejected. The math, both in terms of votes and in terms of actual fiscal policy is squarely in Obama’s court. If Boehner and the rest of his Republican friends in Congress think they’ll be able to obstruct their way through another two years and not be slaughtered at the ballot boxes in 2014, they are sorely mistaken.

That may be why I’m secretly hoping they don’t change a single bit in the next two years.

[DCKit]

1. You rarely make I post I don't rec.

Unless i'm off the grid.

[Bandit]

2. The way the GOP has gerrymandered the voting districts, there is little chance Democrats will

win back a majority anytime soon..We need to concentrate on State elections, and elect more Democratic Governors and Legislators...

[CakeGrrl]

3. Dems need get on-message to take the House back in 2014.

They need to make this arrogant obstructionism easy for the low-information voter to grasp...or make sure the LIV's know who's responsible when the shit hits their fans.

[former-republican]

4. Who blinks first is the game but we could lose

even if the Republicans do obstruct.

2014 would be a defeat for them but if we do go over the cliff the recession could be massive and an additional 2 years
might not be enough time for the President to do anything after 2014.

So in 2016 the economy would be in the tank still and it will be hard for a Democrat to be elected.

[HopeHoops]

5. The Boner is a fucking idiot. Even he knows that.