White House ‘Hopeful’ Deal Can Still Be Reached

[cal04]

Source: TPM

After the stunning defeat of House Speaker John Boehner's "Plan B" to avert the so-called fiscal cliff on Thurday night, the White House issued a statement expressing optimism in reaching a deal before the January 1 deadline.

"The President’s main priority is to ensure that taxes don’t go up on 98 percent of Americans and 97 percent of small businesses in just a few short days," said White House Press Secretary Jay Carney. "The President will work with Congress to get this done and we are hopeful that we will be able to find a bipartisan solution quickly that protects the middle class and our economy."

Read more: http://livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/entry/white-house-hopeful-deal-can-still-be-reached

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Statement by the Press Secretary
The President’s main priority is to ensure that taxes don’t go up on 98 percent of Americans and 97 percent of small businesses in just a few short days. The President will work with Congress to get this done and we are hopeful that we will be able to find a bipartisan solution quickly that protects the middle class and our economy.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2012/12/20/statement-press-secretary

[mac56]

1. A classy move.

[jaysunb]

4. ditto ! nt

[gateley]

2. But how? Ain't nobody home.

[Panasonic]

3. As long as Chained CPI is off the table, and a realistic COLA increase is offered, AND

the rich assholes get to pay for the 2.5 trillion dollars back to the SS Trust Fund.

[amandabeech]

11. Those are my conditions, too. n/t

[customerserviceguy]

19. Not gonna happen

Yes, maybe it should, but with the Rethugs controlling the House, it's just not in the cards.

The Repuke fallback position is to do nothing, nada, zero. No extension of UC benefits or a doc fix, no plan to tax only the rich, no payroll tax holiday, no fix for the sequester, and no increase in the debt ceiling. All they have to do is hold together (which they did remarkably well for the last two years) and the whole economy falls apart.

The rich have plenty of assets to wait for the middle and lower classes to cry "Uncle". They would rather continue making obscene profits, but they can wait out the rest of the Obama Administration if they want to, and they know as a practical matter, all they have to do is to survive until January, 2015.

[Pryderi]

5. #facepalm why? nt

[renate]

9. I'm confused by all of this, but...

... doesn't this make Obama look like the only grown-up in the room? This might put public pressure on the GOP to stop being such... well, never mind. It hasn't worked in all these years.

Still, I have to guess that being on record as being willing to continue to work after the GOP have all whined and gone home is a tactical move and not a concession.

I hope so, anyway.

[Pryderi]

14. Good point. nt

[JoePhilly]

6. Pouring salt into Boehner's wound.

[chuckstevens]

7. I'm hopeful too!

Yeah! I'm hopeful that the Chicago Cubs will win the World Series in 2013. However, that ain't gonna happen, just like getting any fair, realistic deal with the current Republicans House of Representatives.

Let the Bush tax cuts expire, go over the Fiscal "Bump", and then dare the Republicans to vote against lowering taxes on the Middle class.

[bpositive]

8. Now is the time to drop the boom and

Pull his offer- embarrass the hell out of the impotent house speaker!

[democrattotheend]

10. Hopefully he will behind the scenes

But politically, it makes more sense at this point to keep pushing for it so that it looks like he did everything he could to avoid the cliff. He knows the GOP won't vote for it. And there's no way it gets through the House and Senate in the next 11 days. But it would be hard to argue that the president didn't do everything he could, and the public sees how insane the GOP is.

[freshwest]

13. It's important that he make the effort in public for the debt holders.

[AnotherMcIntosh]

12. What does he want to do? Go beyond offering a chained-CPI?

[Cobalt Violet]

15. My worry too.

How much more will the lives of the working poor be destroyed in the name of a fucking deal.


This shit is giving me so much anxiety

[jsr]

26. Gotta sweeten the offer.

[Historic NY]

16. Boehner should put the Presidents plan to a vote come Christmas Eve....

he must be afraid that defectors will join the Democrats.

[wordpix]

17. I just saw "Lincoln." Who knows what's going on in negotiations with various people?

If that movie doesn't inform about the horse trading that happens, I don't know what will.

[Purveyor]

18. Strap on your parachute...the cliff is inevitable. Just saying. eom

[Doctor_J]

20. I don't want a bipartisan solution

I want no cuts to any programs, period. For a change "bipartisan" should mean Repukes voting for an actual Dem solution - one from Sanders and Boxer and the progressive caucus, not one from the DINOs

[Liberalynn]

24. Bingo

[Kelvin Mace]

21. White House hopeful it can still capitulate on a deal

At least Pelosi backed off her endorsement on the chained CPI.

[Liberalynn]

25. She did?

Do you have a link? I am not questioning because I doubt you, I just really need the reassurance right now that Chained CPI might not remain on table.

[Kelvin Mace]

27. here you go

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/12/20/1172471/-Pelosi-Boehner-s-bill-the-Merry-Christmas-gift-to-millionaires

[Liberalynn]

28. Thank You. I Googled and was only getting the remarks she made to Andrea Mtichell listed.

This article is some reassurance. They mentioned the earful she got from her caucus, but not calls from the public. I hope she is getting an earful from all of us too.

I know Senator Gillibrand's receptionist said they were getting many calls against Chained CPI when I called her office to ask her to oppose it.

[DallasNE]

22. As Of Today Republicans Are Leaderless

So who does Obama work with across the aisle to work on this compromise. Mitch McConnell, who just a couple of weeks ago brought up a bill on the debt ceiling only to immediately filibuster it? Obama has already been negotiating with himself and that doesn't work. Did House Republicans just crash American Democracy by making governing impossible. That is what this no confidence vote amounts to.

[amandabeech]

23. Obama negotiates with himself all the time. That way he always wins.

But serious, it does look like there is almost no way out of this situation.

It seem that a sufficient number of puke Reps will not vote for anything that will not be 100% agreeable to the Koch Bros., Norquist etc.

I do not blame Dems for not caving to something like that.

This could go on until the next election unless Boehner, Obama, Pelosi and Reid manage to negotiate something that could attract enough Rs to pass the House and Senate and receive the President's signature.

Surely, that would be the end of Boehner's Speakership, and he might as well just declare himself independent and a lame duck if he does it. If he does, he will be a hero for a while, but there will be very few bills that make it to the President's desk in the next two years. It will be a complete stalemate.

I'm afraid that Boehner will be thrown out as Speaker in the new year, and there will be no chance of getting some sort of compromise bill to the floor for a vote.