Quote of the Day: On Boehner Bombing
Our political Quote of the Day comes from The Christian Science Monitor which gives this take on how the payroll tax exemption battle:
In the end, carrying on the fight was a losing proposition for a party that took back the House in 2011 on a pledge never to raise taxes. And – in a new development – Democrats learned to say, “No.”
The deal marks a capitulation by the speaker, who appeared at the podium alone to announce the agreement, worked out with Senate majority leader Harry Reid (D) of Nevada and endorsed by President Obama.
It also marks a breakthrough for Senate Democrats and Mr. Obama, who said “no” from the start of this impasse – and stuck with it.
In short:
The Party of YES became the Party of NO — and the Party of No became the party of no political sense or real leadership.
4 Responses to “Quote of the Day: On Boehner Bombing”
The Party of Yes did not become a Party of No. They gave a lot for the current bill: no surtax on millionaires (at least not yet) and a decision on the pipeline before all the environmental impact studies are done. That the latter has NOTHING to do with the rest of the bill is palpable to all but the most blinded observers.
The Democratic Party had better continue to block Republican intransigence or they will be the ones put on the dust heap of history.
Also from a CSM article: “Because the payroll tax is the funding stream for Social Security, Congress said the payroll tax “holiday” to employees should be for 2011 only.”
Unfortunately, the doc fix and unemployment benefits were wound in with SS in this Gordian Knot of a situation. There are no winners and losers in this deal, the damage was done with the original extension and its entwined components.
The road to hell is paved with politics.
BTW, I hope Obama and the Dems do NOT take a victory lap over this. IMHO, it would be an excellent time and a shrewd political move for Obama to make a “nobody wins if we can’t figure this out together”, type of speech. Show that he is above castigating the Reps and refraining from rubbing their noses in their decision to go along with the two-month plan (they really were in a box and every one knew it). The old, we are the adults in the room routine, if you will.
Yes, I am a cynic, but as someone once said, I hate to see a crises go to waste.
Or a crisis………………………