How can the people we
elect to to the three branches of government do such a supremely
shitty job? Or more to the point how did it get this bad? This whole
'fiscal cliff' is total bullshit. That we are in these desperate
straits now at the cusp of a new year is the direct result of a last
ditch bargain to get out of the entirely manufactured crisis of a
refusal to raise the Debt Ceiling. Recall centrist Democrats
led by Barack Obama and the crazed Tea Party ultra right nut case
infiltrated political party that calls itself “Republicans”
decided to getting into a pissing contest over doing something they had to do anyway – raise the
debt ceiling so the previously run-up bills could be paid.
In what any objective observer would consider
sedition the US House
of Representatives, which is supposed to originate all spending
measures, suddenly decided to hold the entire nation hostage to their
deluded demand that Obama begin dissolving all the elements of the
government that they don't like: social services, the regulatory apparatus and
so-called entitlement programs. Of course this meant keeping their
beloved bloated waste-a-thon Defense (read Offense) Dept intact.
This position on "Defense" is an article of faith with this pack of chicken
hawks. While ideologically demonizing Keynesian counter cycling
spending on our bedraggled infrastructure, they are all for 'Warfare
Keynesian' spending especially since a lions share of the defense industry is
now located in their Republican controlled Sunbelt and Old Dixie
States but it is also strategically spread out elsewhere.
So
to reiterate this Fiscal Cliff debacle is a direct result of the GOP
refusing to do what they did routinely annually for George W. Bush as
he was running the national debt through the roof with unpaid for wars, expanding the size of the government (Homeland Security)
and Part D Medicare. It was Obama's last ditch deal with the devil
that created this “Fiscal Cliff” mess. The idea was that they
create a outcome so dire that both parties would be forced to
compromise, something so disastrous and over-the-top that both political
parties' bases would be livid with rage. And furthermore the entire
(nascent and weak) recession recovery would be kicked in the nuts. The thinking was that the
new Prez and a 'lame duck' Congress would be forced to put together
a spending package that could pass the reactionary ideologue controlled House.
This
agreement passed because each side was counting on winning the 2012
Presidential election. Now the Demos have won, the Repubs still want to demand their pound of flesh. The Repubs, whose
bargaining position should have plummeted, somehow think they still
weasel out a deal from Obama who they believe in his is his 'heart
of hearts' is a closet moderate Republican (as was Bill Clinton.). No such animal as a "moderate Republican" now exists in the extant Repub Party. They call 'em RINOs and excommunicate them.
Their ploy as always is to maneuver the Demos into doing their dirty work –
remember it was Clinton who finally cashiered AFDC.It was under
Clinton that Glass Steagle was jettisoned. It was Clinton who
balanced the budget by reigning in the social sector side of the
government accounts.
As I
write this a stopgap deal has passed the Democratic Party controlled
Senate w/o the Republicans filibustering it, and is now awaiting a vote in the
House. It delays the worst elements of Fiscal Cliff, the recessionary
tax hike for the middle class while it levies a modest tax increase on the top tier Richie Richs (annual incomes
over 450K) of 4.5%., and it keeps the Fed
unemployment extension going. But allows the big spending cuts to be postponed. In short it kicks the can down the road. The deal was cooked up with Republican participation (Repub Senate leader Mitch
McConnell) so it will probably pass with enough bipartisan votes as
John Boehner, the Speaker of the House, was probably in on it by
phone. All he has to do is allow it to be voted on.
We shall see ...
What
will happen today? Quite a soap opera.
