Sometimes I think we would be better off leaderless. Senator: GOP could accept tax hikes on very rich:
There is a growing group of folks looking at this and realizing that we don’t have a lot of cards as it relates to the tax issue before year end,” [Tennessee Senator Bob] Corker told Fox News Sunday.
If Republicans agree to Obama’s plan to increase rates on the top 2% of Americans, Corker added, “the focus then shifts to entitlements and maybe it puts us in a place where we actually can do something that really saves the nation.”
No. It. Doesn’t.
How do I know this? Read on in the very same article:
Besides getting tax hikes through the Republican-dominated House, Corker’s proposal faces another hurdle: Democrats haven’t been receptive to GOP proposals on the entitlement programs. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin, D-Ill., on Sunday was skeptical about proposals to increase the eligibility age for Medicare from 65 to 67. He said he doesn’t see Congress addressing the complicated issue of Medicare overhaul in the three weeks remaining before the end of the year.
“I just don’t think we can do it in a matter of days here before the end of the year,” Durbin said. “We need to address that in a thoughtful way through the committee structure after the first of the year.”
The only chance to reform entitlements and other budget items stoking the national debt is to deal with everything at once. Otherwise, reform doesn’t get done. At least for the next 4 years, if ever.
Using the debt ceiling as a focus point is a pipe dream. If you are bullied by “the fiscal cliff is falling, the fiscal cliff is falling,” you will never withstand DebtCeiling-Ageddon.
Take the Christmas Strategy, please:
I say call his bluff. If a deal which tackles deficits from both revenue and spending can be reached this month, great.
If not, pass a 90 day extension of current tax rates and whatever else is needed to postpone the “cliff,” and go home for Christmas to give time for a Grand Bargain which puts Democratic sacred cows on the table.
Let Harry Reid refuse to bring it to a vote, and Obama refuse to sign it. Their inaction will be the reason for taxes rising for everyone.
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Comments
On Drudge today, there’s a story that states the government (me and you!) is borrowing 4.8 billion a day to fund itself.
Why don’t the Republicans SHOW the American people that by even taxing people making over 250K a year at 100%, they still couldn’t close that gap. So what’s left but to cut spending?
Stop with the rigamarole and state it in simple language.
I’m starting to think that Trey Goudy from SC should maybe the the speaker. Yeah, he can be abrasive, but he sure can make his point!
One more reason to rid ourselves of Boehner. Anyone with guts and an articulate voice could replace him, so lets do it.
http://www.redstate.com/nedryun/2012/12/07/how-you-can-fire-speaker-boehner/
It’s no big long deal. You find out what it will take to get him out and tell your Rep by email that’s what you want. They even have a mock up of email to send. 16 nays could send Bohener to the bone pile.
@ Benson II – Thank you for this link! I’ve sent my letter and I’m sending it on via e-mail to lots and lots friends.
God bless.
Why do I get the feeling the liberals don’t want to see Boehner replaced unless they get a say in picking his replacement?
The usual lefty blog & pundit suspects are noticeably refraining from Boehner-Bashing.
Suddenly, leftist ‘bi-partisanship’ messaging in Boehner’s direction seems to be favored in lieu of their typical racist rage bashing.
Beware Liberals being ‘nice.’ They are anything but nice.
Like the say they get in picking candidates via the media. If Republicans were to push for Ryan to replace Boner the media would go into a frenzy with every sort of disgusting attack they could think of.
The House has passed the Ryan Plan…not long ago.
Stand on that. Tell Reid he needs to allow a vote on it in the Senate with full debate.
Why are ANY GOP types EVEN talking to the regime right now…much less in public?
We HAVE a plan on the table. They DON’T.
That should read…”much less in PRIVATE?”
Negotiations should always be done with the full knowledge of the principles.
That would be the American people.
The current iteration of the GOP is no better than the Democrats vis-a-vis operating a functioning Constitutional Republic within the clear confines of its charter.
In other words, it matters only to what degree that they are all statists.
And statism is going to kill us. There will come a day, we know not when but that day does exist, when the house of cards is going to come crashing down to the deafening applause of those who have wished to see the U.S. fall (chief among those is our president *spit*) and to the shock and awe of those who thought everything was hunky-dory (the GOP).
No, folks. This version of Mr. Smith Goes To Washington stars Barack Obama in the title role.
And you and I get to be Smith, Winston Smith, that is.
What I want for Christmas is a conservative Illinois senator. Santa please! (and a golden parachute for the fiscal cliff jump and a lower tax rate and less government and a new president and a …)
Boehner and the rest of the House Republicans need to end these private negotiations entirely.
Whatever happened to doing things through the regular order?
Don’t want the Bush tax hikes to expire or, at worst, are willing to let them ALL expire, but under no circumstances hike the top rate only? Simple: You control the House. Pass a bill that makes the Bush tax rates permanent for everyone, send it to the Senate, and go home for Christmas.
Put the ball in their court. Make the Senate pass something, anything, or face some heat from the press. Every time the press tries to pressure R’s, say, “we’ve already passed a bill to avert the fiscal cliff, we sent it to the Senate. Go talk to Harry Reid.”.
Why surrender in private, then get blamed in public? Why not do what you think is right, pass a bill that reflects what you believe is best for the country, and send it over to the Senate?
I don’t see how that could possibly have a worse outcome than what they are doing now.
Our leadership SUCKS at negotiations. Their tactics are abysmal. Do they not think anything through at all?
They keep making the same mistake, over and over.
Stop playing politics, you’re losing. The Dem media can and will just make up stories, censor, and outright lie.
The House doesn’t need to agree to anything. They don’t need to raise the debt ceiling. They don’t need to appropriate any money at all. Their position in reality is almost perfectly strong. Their political position is extremely weak because of media lies. Stop playing the media’s game. Shut it all down. Even if you don’t, they’ll say you did.
America only has a few years left unless the debt problem is solved. This may be our only chance.
The ‘grand bargain’ approach is part of the problem. It cedes too much to Obama, who will deny the legitimacy of any comple proposal, and certainly use any particulars on spending cuts against the Republicans.
So the response to that is to go piecemeal. Boehner needs to make a public statement saying that for the last two weeks they’ve tried it the President’s way and got nothing meaningful in reply. So they’ve decided to make it simple for everyone to understand and go step by step.
First step is the House passes a bill that makes the current middle class tax rates permanent and tells Harry Reid once the Senate sends that on to the President they can proceed to resolve the other rates, and then spending cuts.
Make the foot dragging into a specific problem for the Democrats. If they reject the bill then they are the ones responsible for the tax hikes and recession. It is the only way forward.
Haven’t yet read the other comments but I am cynical enough when it comes to the GOP to think they like the Christmas Cliff… for obvious RINO reasons.
I prefer the Reynolds plan as well as adopting copyright reform. If the asshats what higher taxes give it to them. Make the blue cracker states howl by eliminating the deductions for state and local taxes. Eliminate the Hollywood tax breaks by reinstating the 20% excise tax. You can do this all in less than ten pages. Pass it and send it to the Senate. Just make sure Chuckie Schumer gets a load of tv time. Watching that bastard squeal would be like the smell of napalm in the morning.
IMO this is still the best youtube video on why taxing the rich doesn’t work, and deserves a replay: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ofJu7h5Hq_U
If the current Republican leadership was around in 1776, we would still be speaking English.
Channeling Yogi Berra?
charlie brown never copped to the fact that lucy was going to pull the football away no matter what she promised.