Posted on 02/05/2013 8:33:43 PM PST by SeekAndFind
In November 2011, President Obama lamented that “some in Congress are trying to undo these automatic spending cuts” that were part of that August’s deal to raise the debt limit. “My message to them is simple: No. I will veto any effort to get rid of those automatic spending cuts to domestic and defense spending. There will be no easy off ramps on this one.”
Now, it’s Obama who is looking for an off ramp. With the automatic spending cuts about to go into effect, the Associated Press reports, “President Barack Obama will ask Congress to come up with tens of billions of dollars in short-term spending cuts and tax revenue to put off the automatic across the board cuts that are scheduled to kick in March 1, White House officials said Tuesday.”
Ever since the election, Republicans have been frustrated by their lack of leverage against Obama. Taxes would have gone up by $4.5 trillion on Jan. 1 if nothing was done, so Republicans were forced to agree to limit the damage. If there were no increase in the debt limit, any economic chaos that followed would have allowed Obama to blame Republicans and distract attention from the problems posed by the nation’s mounting debt, so they agreed to suspend it — a strategy I had described as Maneuver X.
Now Republicans have turned the tables on Obama. If nothing happens by March 1, about $1 trillion worth of spending cuts will go into effect automatically. Ideally, Republicans don’t want the military spending cuts, and they have voted in the House to replace them with other cuts. But they can live with them if nothing happens. Coming off the fourth quarter in which the economy contracted by 0.1 percent and was hurt by defense cuts, Obama doesn’t want to have headlines of defense contractor layoffs eroding his political capital in the short window he has to advance his second term agenda.
His suggestion that Republicans agree to raise taxes again to delay the sequester is laughable — they have zero reason to do it. Either he agrees to spending cuts of an equal amount, or the sequester will kick in.
I agree completely.
...But you can get flamed for saying it here by the platoons of (mostly newer) FR trolls.
Over 10 years ago, the congress of that time passed the terrific Bush tax cuts, and they were for everybody. Deservedly, for everybody. Their stupidity was in accepting the "sunset" provision - - and what the heck, they weren't worried about ten years down the road. Well, that chicken came home to roost and the Bush tax cuts finally DID expire on January 1, 2013. Taxes went UP for everybody.
A day or two later congress passed the same Bush tax cuts for 98% of taxpayers (everybody up to an income of $400,000) and this time they were made permanent (ie., no "sunset" provision). In other words, congress raised taxes on nobody.
Boehner stumbled along (or did he?) playing footsie with the African communist scumbag Ubama for a month during the so-called "fiscal cliff" negotiations, and appeared to nearly blow it twice, first by proposing "eliminating deductions and closing loopholes" - - as if that's not a massive tax hike - - and second by proposing something called "Plan B".
"Plan B" would have had the GOP House voting to raise taxes on upper income taxpayers since the vote would have occurred prior to the automatic "tax hikes" which took effect when the Bush cuts expired. Had "Plan B" been passed, the Democrats could have legitimately crowed forever about how the Republicans agreed with Democrats that taxes had to be raised. Republicans would never have heard the end of it, and it may have killed the party.
Somehow, Ubama talked himself out of going along with the first proposal, and the House conservatives killed "Plan B".
Astonishingly, the Republicans are now in a position where they have not only made the Bush tax cuts permanent for nearly everybody, but they can make the solid case, as Mitch McConnell already did, that the "debate over taxes is behind us now". After over a month of the issue dominating their television sets, no way do Americans want to hear about the Democrats coming back yet again to demand more taxes - - and even threatening a government shutdown over the issue.
The Republicans are sitting in the catbird's seat, no doubt about it. Whether they finessed their way there, or stumbled into it doesn't matter now - - the ball is most definitely in the Democrats' court, and everybody knows it.
Thanks for taking the time to line out the details of the tax play.
The second play was the sequester which Boehner again played well.
We are no where near a great victory here, the election results made that impossible, but we are in a much better position than I thought possible.
The “conventional wisdom” all along has been that it would be the Republicans choking on the sequester cuts, that it would be the Republicans who would do almost anything to stop them.
LOL, it looks to me instead like the rats threw the Republicans into the briar patch.
He REALLY doesn’t give a damn about American economic or military security.
He is required by law to submit a budget proposal and IIRC that deadline has been missed for THREE straight years.
The assclown would rather force sodomy down our throats, pontificate about guns, and try forcing Christ followers to fund infanticide.
Thanks, I misread that too. 4 Billion in education cuts.
Is the Dept of Education going to have furloughs and 10% pay cuts like the Defense Dept? I bet not.
My understanding is that that's all they could get with a 51 vote majority.
To get a permanent change, I believe they would have had to have a 2/3rd majority.
In November 2011, President Obama lamented that “some in Congress are trying to undo these automatic spending cuts” that were part of that August’s deal to raise the debt limit. “My message to them is simple: No. I will veto any effort to get rid of those automatic spending cuts to domestic and defense spending. There will be no easy off ramps on this one.” Now, it’s Obama who is looking for an off ramp...T axes would have gone up by $4.5 trillion on Jan. 1 if nothing was done, so Republicans were forced to agree to limit the damage. If there were no increase in the debt limit, any economic chaos that followed would have allowed Obama to blame Republicans... If nothing happens by March 1, about $1 trillion worth of spending cuts will go into effect automatically. Ideally, Republicans don’t want the military spending cuts, and they have voted in the House to replace them with other cuts... Obama doesn’t want to have headlines of defense contractor layoffs... His suggestion that Republicans agree to raise taxes again to delay the sequester is laughable -- they have zero reason to do it. Either he agrees to spending cuts of an equal amount, or the sequester will kick in.Thanks SeekAndFind.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.