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.
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.