Maybe you just started having a drink or two to help you sleep after a hard day. Then a drink or two to mellow out when you got home after a hard day. Then a drink or two at lunch to get through a hard day. Then a drink or two before you actually left for work so you could get through a hard day. Well, for some pols — like our president — it’s the same slippery slope syndrome when it comes to compromising.
Mr. Obama’s first big series of compromises came during the debate over health care reform, which was to cost his party their majority in the House and a chunk of seats in the Senate. He then compromised on extending Bush-era tax breaks for the rich, which firmly established him in Republican minds as a pushover on tax and spending issues. A week or so back he compromised on fiscal 2011 budget cuts at a level higher than House Speaker Boehner had originally even proposed. It goes without saying that he will compromise big time in Republicans’ favor when discussions about the 2012 fiscal year budget begin in earnest.
But for our serial compromiser of a president, one other major compromise that moves Republicans much closer to their ultimate budget cutting goals is about to be made. On Friday, in an interview with the AP, Mr. Obama said he would go along with more budget compromises in order to get Republicans to allow the government debt limit ceiling to be raised.
Of course, Mr. Obama could have announced when he made his $38.5 billion 2011 fiscal year giveaway to Republicans, that while some compromises on the following fiscal year budget might be possible, it would be idiotic to play with the debt ceiling and treat it as just another spending and borrowing measure subject to debate — failure to raise the debt ceiling being a direct and horrifying threat to this country’s credit worthiness, ability to function, and indeed, a threat to the entire world economic order.
Yes, he could have done that. Shown courage. Show spine. Positioned himself well for future negotiation. Could certainly have won the point with the still sane wing of the Republican party.
Yes, he could have done that. But that sort thing doesn’t seem a part of the man’s governing character.
Permit me a suggestion, Mr. Obama. A suggestion for another compromise you might make. Why not compromise on your tenure in office? Why not voluntarily limit it to four years rather than the originally hope for eight, and allow a less compromising Democratic Party standard bearing in 2012?
Even members of the Congressional Black Caucus seem to have lost faith in your leadership, sir, as well as the head of your party’s own House delegation, and by the by, most of your party’s major constituency, its liberal base.
You still have a unique and distinguished place in American history. Please don’t allow yourself to end up being remembered as little more than an enabler for the rabid right.
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