The ‘Fiscal Cliff’ was designed, largely, by the people who today will get together for a high-level meeting to talk about “now what do we do?” Maybe perched on the edge of the “cliff” they created will be inspiring. After all, their political futures are in play.
From ABC News:
The stakes could not be higher: the Congressional Budget Office reported earlier this month that failure to reach a compromise … would send the U.S. economy back into recession and send unemployment skyrocketing.
While the majority of reporting follows the “crisis” framing, not everyone sees the “cliff” as something to be avoided at all costs, a sort of “let it happen and then maybe we’ll be forced to deal with reality” perspective. It’s also regularly pointed out that the whole thing is a construct of the very people who could have taken steps to avoid it, but chose not to do so. None of that is to say, of course, that there wouldn’t be real consequences if going over the cliff – by push, shove, choice, default or whatever – is the outcome. Of course, there will also be consequences to the choices made to keep from going over the edge.
Today’s reports include the speculation that Obama will be “flexible” and “compromising” in dealing with the demands of the Republicans. In other words, this could be a big step toward the Grand Bargain that has “entitlements,” among other things, as targets of “flexibility.” And as the argument also goes, this is all part of a plan, or further movements in a long-planned direction.
( Photo via ThinkProgress )
I’m laughing my a** off because I just caught Nancy Pelosi talking on CNN now and CNN had her tagged as (R) Minority House Leader. My husband said she just jumped over.
I guess that doesn’t help Pelosi’s efforts to retain her (D) postion … Or, who knows, maybe it would
Thanks for sharing this fun tidbit.
Little by little, as things begin to filter out, it is becoming obvious that Obama has unsheathed the blade and is getting ready to plunge it into the backs of his pathetic supporters. The wealthy in this country have been ripping us off for almost thirty years; what does it take for people to wake up and realize this. We gave them everything they wanted and they gave us nothing. If I had it my way I would take all the money back, every last cent that they stuffed in their own pockets rather than invest in their own country. Forget about the rates under Clinton, I want them raised back up to pre Reagan levels. I want all these bullshit non profits taxed to the limit, including the Chamber of Commerce. You would think that Obama, a victim of these so called non profits, would want to stick it to them but he won’t. He won’t because he’s weak, even now he’s trying to get back into the good graces of Wall Street. People like Elizabeth Warren will find themselves fighting not only Rebublicans, but their own collaborating president and his minions.
I’ll just say Yes!, and leave it at that.
I feel that we already went over the “fiscal cliff”. I am going to be optimistic about the future. I have to be. “Generating Revenue” and “Stimulating Growth” are terms that should be replaced with “Fiscal Responsibility” and “Comprehensive Economic Solution”.
The left has adopted the right’s language and talking points and we have deleted our own in the national discussion about budgets, priorities, and policies (when was the last time you heard a national politician use the words poor, poverty, working class, working poor – John Edwards 2016; if for no other reason than to hear about the two Americas again, or God forbid anti-war or peace). We’re screwed.