Tag Archives: John Boehner

Good Jobs Report – Republicans Upset

Posted on May 4, 2013 by Terry| Leave a comment

Last month’s jobs report was abysmal, much lower than analysts expected.  After many months of improving numbers, it certainly was a downer, and prompted some to speculate that either the recovery had stalled, or even that we were headed back into recession.  Yesterday, the latest job’s report came out, and the numbers were not only solid, but revisions to the past 2 months numbers pushed those jobs numbers markedly higher.

All in all…very good news!  Wall Street certainly reacted to the jobs report as a great sign the economy is recovering.  The Dow temporarily topped 15,000 for the first time, and finished at an all-time high.  The pundits wrote about the jobs report as good news, a sign that the “spring stall” we’ve had in recent years wasn’t nearly as much of a threat this year.

So how did Republicans react?  As they ALWAYS do when ANYTHING good happens under the Obama presidency…by loudly pronouncing the darkest, most pessimistic interpretation of the news, and then squarely placing “blame” on the Obama administration. RNC Chairman Reince Priebus said that thanks to ObamaCare, future jobs numbers are “more likely to slow down than speed up”.  Cheery. John Boehner’s quote?  “We need to seize opportunities the president has been ignoring, and focus on growing our economy rather than growing more government”.    Fox News?  While every other major news website had a story about the good jobs report yesterday morning, on Fox News’ website, the jobs report was curiously absent from the front page.  Shocking!  A “news” organization (ha-ha) ignoring good news for Americans?

It must be awfully damn depressing to be a Republican right now.  Republicans are SO full of hate for this president that even GOOD news must be interpreted in a negative light.  Republicans, is there ANYTHING you enjoy in life?  Is there ANY good news that you don’t somehow turn around into an Obama negative?  Is this how Americans are supposed to live their lives, focused on hatred, negativity, and pessimism about the future?

Pat Toomy, Republican Senator and co-sponsor of the Manchin-Toomy gun-control bill that recently failed, said the bill failed because “There were some on my side who did not want to be seen helping the president do something he wanted to get done, just because the president wanted to do it.” That’s a shockingly honest, but shockingly depressing statement.  Republicans have become SO incredibly ideological that they don’t even CARE about the direction of the country.  The don’t CARE about a good jobs report.  They don’t CARE that the economy is improving.  Even with 90% of Americans supporting background checks, Republicans ADMITTEDLY voted against it, just because they don’t want to do something Obama supports.

Republicans would rather see the entire country collapse, so they can point their fingers and blame Obama.  What a pathetic party platform. What an incredibly sad way to live your life…

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Republican Meltdown – Politics First, Country Last

Posted on January 2, 2013 by Terry| Leave a comment

If their actions weren’t so harmful, it would be very easy to take delight in the Republican Party’s meltdown right now.  Ideology now rules the GOP, to the extent that the Tea Party wing of the GOP would rather sink the nation than give in on tax issues. 

This was it.  This was the best chance to seriously address budget deficits.  After the Simpson-Bowles recommendations, after serious efforts by Obama and Boehner to craft a “grand bargain” last year, and again earlier in the fiscal cliff debate, there was  real chance to tackle deficits through a balanced approach that cut spending and raised taxes.  Obama was even giving in on entitlements, offering concessions that many Democrats abhorred. 

But alas, the GOP has become a one-trick pony, a one-issue party.  The only issue the GOP seems capable of addressing is shrinking government.  That’s not necessarily bad, if the GOP held a pragmatic, rational view of how to shrink government.  Hell, I’m as liberal as they come, but I agree we need to cut spending (how about starting with the Defense budget???)  The GOP’s stance isn’t necessarily bad, if the GOP also accepted modest revenue increases as a way to help balance budgets.  It’s not necessarily bad, if the GOP had a rational PLAN to shrink the government in an intelligent manner, using a scalpel to trim the fat, instead of using a meat cleaver to decapitate the patient.

Instead, we have a GOP that has decided ideology is more important than deficit reduction.  A small number of simple-minded, ideologically rigid, inflexible SOBs in the GOP House have made compromise impossible.  They have made effective governance impossible.  By sticking to ideology, they have scuttled a deal that could have gone a long way to solving our budget issues.  Instead, we’re stuck with a very small deal that does very little to solve our long-term budget problems.  And even this incredibly minor deal was unpalatable to the Tea Party wing of the GOP, with House Republicans voting against it by a 2-to-1 margin, despite the devastating consequences to our economy if nothing were passed.

The GOP is in free fall.  They’ve become so irrational, so full of hate for Obama and Democrats, that all hope is lost for pragmatic compromises or rational governance.  We’re at a stage where the most powerful of GOP kingpins has become so “small”, literally (in terms of power) and figuratively (in terms of respectability), that John Boehner is walking the halls of the Capitol yelling loudly at Democratic leadership to “Go fuck off”. 

So here we sit, with a minor increase in taxes that does little to address our deficit issues.  Here we sit, with another manufactured crisis looming, as a 2-month delay in “sequestration”, the debt-limit increase, and funding for the government for the rest of the fiscal year all come into play at the same time.  Round 2 – a resounding, yet hollow “win” for Obama and the Democrats.  With the coming Round 3, we may just have  knockout blow where the victim/loser isn’t Obama/Democrats or the Republicans, but instead, it’s the American economy and political system.

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Folly indeed – Our Non-representative House of Representatives

Posted on December 21, 2012 by Terry| 1 Comment
GOP Cliff Diving

The House of Representatives is anything but representative. Democratic House candidates received more votes than Republicans in this past election, yet thanks to gerrymandered districts, Republicans somehow maintain House control. The non-representative House of Representatives is about to drive the economy to ruin, defying what Americans want from these negotiations.

And over the cliff we go…

Early on Monday, it appeared that a deal to avert the so-called fiscal cliff was within sight.  President Obama agreed to spending cuts, including cuts in entitlement spending.  Many Democrats weren’t happy that Obama evidently agreed to a change in the way inflation is calculated for adjusting federal benefits.  Obama also moved on his prior insistence that tax rates go up for all earners over $250,000, raising that number to $400,000.  John Boehner finally gave in and agreed that tax rates would have to rise for high earners.  With the moves from Obama and Boehner, on Monday, a deal appeared imminent.

Then, within the course of a few hours, John Boehner caved to the conservative nutjobs that control the Republican Party.  Suddenly Boehner’s “Plan B” appeared, where Republicans would unilaterally pass legislation in the House that extended tax cuts for everyone making less than $1 million a year.  It was purely a political ploy, as passage of such a bill in the House would only serve as a political tool Republicans could wield in trying to convince the public they were being reasonable on fiscal cliff negotiations.

Yesterday, Boehner pulled “Plan B” in the House and adjourned for the holidays.  They couldn’t even get enough votes within their own party to pass the legislation.  One and a half months after a disaster of an election for Republicans, and they still haven’t seemed to have gotten the message that the political winds have changed.  Republicans are still allowing the radical conservative wing of the party to dictate the party’s direction.

Why are we in this mess?  Why, with months to find a solution to this mess, are we about to merrily tumble over the fiscal cliff, even when politicians know the severe harm it will cause to our economy?  Look no further than our non-representative House of Representatives.

Conservatives constantly point to the Constitution and our founding fathers on issues such as gun rights and other issues.  I wonder what the founding fathers would think of today’s political system that allows for a House of Representatives to be composed of a NON-representative suite of politicians.  Even with the political and economic headwinds against him, Obama decisively beat Romney. Even with Democrats defending many more seats than Republicans, Democrats managed to GAIN seats in the Senate.  In the House?  DEMOCRATIC HOUSE CANDIDATES RECEIVED MORE VOTES IN THE HOUSE THAN DID REPUBLICAN HOUSE CANDIDATES!!! Yet thanks to a system that allows state legislatures to gerrymander House districts, Republican-controlled states managed to game the system and send more Republican House members to Washington than the vote of the American people would imply.

In short, our House of Representatives is anything BUT representative.  The American people are strongly siding with Obama’s positions in the fiscal cliff negotiations.  But thanks to gerrymandered House districts that allowed Republicans to control the House, despite receiving a minority of the votes, fiscal cliff negotiations are going nowhere.  Gun control legislation will go nowhere, despite the tragedy in Newtown.  ANY significant legislation is likely to go nowhere over the next 2 years, thanks to a Republican-controlled House who continues to insist on defying the voice of the American people, and instead focus on the path set forward by the hyper-radical conservative wing of their party.

Given what happened in the November election, given that the American people are behind him on the fiscal cliff issue, and given all the political clout Obama SHOULD have on the fiscal cliff issue, Obama has gone much further to meet Republicans in these negotiations than many think he needed to go.  But here we are 10 days away from tumbling over the cliff, and our non-representative House of Representatives have walked out on the Obama/Boehner negotiations, and have adjourned for the holidays.  Boehner even had the gall to say that it’s “now up to Obama and Harry Reid” to pass legislation to avoid the fiscal cliff.  WHAT THE HELL??  Republicans close up shop and leave Washington, and then have the guts to say it’s up to Obama and Harry Reid to solve this?

I hope the American people are paying attention.  In general, in mid-term elections, the president’s party losing seats in Congress.  I hope the American people say enough is enough in 2014, and, despite the gerrymandered districts, move us towards a more representative House of Representatives.  As it stands now, a handful of right-wing nutjobs are about to send the entire American economy over the cliff.

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GOP Answer to Deficit Reduction – Cutting Tax Rates for Rich

Posted on December 3, 2012 by Terry| Leave a comment

Up until today, it was easy for Obama and Democrats to ignore the bluster from John Boehner and Republicans.  Boehner and other top GOP whiners certainly haven’t pulled any punches in their whining about Obama’s initial proposal.  But until today, they didn’t even HAVE a proposal of their own, making it very difficult to take their complaining seriously. 

Today, Republicans provided a supposed counter-offer to Obama.  And…it’s still very difficult to take them seriously.

Republicans counter-proposal on taxes?  Cutting tax rates for the wealthy…but closing unspecified loopholes to somehow increase $800 billion in revenue.   To begin with, there are no details on exactly what loopholes will be closed, or how the net outcome from cutting tax rates for the wealthy would somehow result in an increase of $800 billion to government coffers.  By CUTTING rates for the wealthy, but promising unspecified loophole closures, Republicans see the best of both worlds…not going against the Grover Norquist tax-cut pledge, AND inevitably shifting some of the revenue increase burden to groups other than the wealthy.

It’s amazing how far Republicans are going to protect tax cuts for the richest of Americans.  This same farce of a counter-proposal also seeks to cut $600 billion in health costs, with one stated Republican option being to raise Medicare eligibility from 65 to 67.  Another $200 billion would be saved by decreasing cost-of-living adjustments for Social Security, as well as all other aspects of government.   While doing everything they can to protect their wealthy donors, Republicans certainly have no problem sticking the poor or the sick with additional costs.

After the election, an emboldened Obama is finally showing a backbone.  He’s finally sticking to his guns on making the wealthy pay their fair share.  I just hope to god he sticks with it, and doesn’t cave once the fiscal cliff approaches. 

Going over the cliff, even with a short-term recession looming as a result, is far more preferable than caving to Republicans who not only want to maintain the gap between rich and poor, but seemingly want to widen it.

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The “New” Face of the GOP

Posted on November 28, 2012 by Terry| 2 Comments
White Male House GOP Committee Chairs

From the DailyKos story, the 19 House Committee chairs named by Republicans this week. Hmmm...what do these 19 folks all have in common? Is the face of the "new" Republican Party, the one that supposedly learned a lesson from the 2012 elections?

Three weeks after the election, and it’s quite obvious that Republicans have already forgotten the lessons learned about the electorate, about diversity, and about moderating stances.  As these stories from Slate and the DailyKos note, EVERY House GOP Committee chair that’s been named so far is a white male.  Shocking!!!  As my wife would state, the “Hairy Old White Men” still rule the roost in the GOP house. 

After two straight presidential elections that have proven Republicans can’t rely on the “White Vote” strategy any longer, there were immediate calls from many on the right to become more inclusive.  Boehner and the GOP leadership in the House missed that memo.  As I’ve stated before, I GLADLY support the status quo in the Republican Party leadership.  As long as the status quo holds, as long as Republicans cling to policies and behavior from the past, they’re destined to lose many more elections.

There were also many after the election who claimed it was the death knell of the Tea Party, that Tea Party conservatism was too extreme for the American public.  There’s little doubt that the Tea Party backed candidates performed miserably in Congressional races, and helped contribute to the stunning Democratic gains in the Senate, when by every historical standard, Republicans should have gained Senate seats this cycle.  So have Republicans begun to move towards more moderate candidates?

Virginia Republicans certainly haven’t learned their lesson.  In a state Romney was sure he’d win, in a traditionally “safe” Republican state that’s now shifted to blue the last 2 elections, Virginia Republicans have rallied around conservative lightning rod Ken Cuccinelli for governor in 2013. Among Cuccinelli’s MANY claims to fame?  Trying to sue a Virginia climate-change scientist to release his emails…opposing ObamaCare…opposing limits on carrying guns…opposing rights or assistance for illegal immigrants…and the hits keep on a comin’. 

Bravo, Repubs.  Don’t give in!  Don’t go against what you believe in!!  Don’t deviate from your current single-minded focus on turning the U.S. into a conservative Nirvana!! 

As long as you continue to act as if the 2012 election never happened…Democrats like myself will be fat and happy for a VERY long time.

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Boehner’s “Generous” Offer for Compromise

Posted on November 8, 2012 by Terry| 1 Comment

Yesterday, John Boehner tried to set the tone for “compromise” on debt negotiations.  It sounded good.  After a very tumultuous, brutal election, it sounded good for the Republican House to come out and say they were willing to deal with Obama on the debt.

It remains to be seen what Boehner means by “compromise”.  Note the language of his statement. He specifically says they’re willing to raise ‘revenue’.   From his comments yesterday, Boehner still says Republicans are unwilling to raise tax rates on the rich.  HUH!?!?!  How is that compromise?  After the election, even some hard-core conservatives admitted that tax increases had to be part of any realistic deal to cut the debt.  Yet despite Boehner’s “magnanimous” offer yesterday to compromise, Republicans are still unwilling to raise tax rates on the rich.

How do you raise “revenue” without raising taxes?  According to Boehner, Republicans plans for raising revenue comes from a “byproduct of a growing economy, energized by a simpler, cleaner, fairer tax code, with fewer loopholes, and lower rates for all.”  WTF!?!?!   This is EXACTLY what Romney had been campaigning on!!!  It’s the same old trickle-down economics “solution”!!!  Cut taxes!! Then we will magically generate new revenue simply because the economy is growing!!!

Nice political play, Boehner.  You certainly fooled the press into getting a big headline.  Right after an election, you made it LOOK like Republicans were being magnanimous.  It sets Boehner and the Republicans up more favorably when negotiations start, and I’m sure you’ll hear today’s proclamation referenced to, when Republicans refuse to raise taxes and blame Obama.

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SOTU – Polarized, Gridlock

Posted on January 25, 2012 by Terry| 1 Comment
State of the Union - Standard Speech

My proposed template for all future State-of-the-Union speeches, and opposition party responses.

Last night, as our POTUS gave the SOTU with the FLOTUS and SCOTUS present, a few thoughts crossed my mind.  First…The State of the Union address happens once a year.  I’m not sure it’s THAT common of a concept in most people’s minds that they see “SOTU” in the headlines and realize what the hell the story is going to talk about.  Hey, I work for the government.  We’re acronym loonies.  But enough with the SOTU headlines, just freakin’ spell it out.

My second thought was…is a speech like this REALLY focusing on the “State of the Union”?  Or, is it more a political stump speech for the next election?  It’s ALWAYS the latter more than the former, but even more so in an election year.  I couldn’t stomach either the speech itself for very long, or the Mitch Daniels GOP “response”.

What bugs the hell out of me…why does there NEED to be a “response” from the “other” party after a State of the Union address?   For an event that’s supposed to bring Americans together to focus on the primary issues affecting or nation, why instead has it become an event that even further strengthens the intense polarization that typifies American politics?  In the State of the Union, the President at least has to give SOME appearance that he’s outlining a path forward for our country, that Americans as a whole need to come together to solve our problems.  For the “other” party response?  As with other opposition party responses in the past, Mitch Daniels might as well have just issued a short statement…”Obama sucks, vote Republican in November”.

Not exactly a Lou Holtz type of speech to motivate the team.  The State of the Union evening has become just one more night of campaigning for both Democrats and Republicans.  There is no attempt from either side to realistically discuss bridging the gaps between the “two” sides.  Because of course, there ARE just two types of Americans…Democrats, and Republicans, an oil-and-water combo that can NEVER mix.  Instead of a night that uplifts the spirits of the American people, where we discuss our Nation’s accomplishments and path forward, it’s become a depressing night where each side tries to out-do each other in blaming the other, where the state-of-the-union is NEVER good, and it’s ALWAYS the other party’s fault for CAUSING such a sucky state of affairs.

The thunderous applause for Gabrielle Giffords was a nice moment.  That’s about what it takes for Democrats or Republicans to work together or even talk to each other…a near-death experience.  Even that isn’t above the depressing political rhetoric though, given the AMPLE stories this week from John Boehner and others, touting the chances of Republicans taking the seat from Giffords in an upcoming special election. 

I propose we replace the State of the Union speech and response with a simple press release.  “State of the Union – Gridlock in Washington, Political Partisanship Increasing – Public Following Politicians’ Example and Becoming More Polarized”.   Three little phrases, phrases that for all intents and purposes, provide the same message as  provided by the president’s State of the Union speech and the opposition party’s response.   We’d save millions in taxpayer $$$$, as the same wording, the same press release materials, could be distributed year, after year, after year, regardless of who sits in the Oval Office.  A depressing message to be reiterated every year, sure…but no more depressing than watching the current slate of speeches on State of the Union night.

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Role Reversal – GOP Caves to Obama

Posted on December 22, 2011 by Terry| Leave a comment
Merry Christmas for Obama

Thanks to the wonderful "presents" the GOP is providing lately, Obama is going to have a MUCH happier Christmas than we would have guessed a few months ago.

Thank GOD!! FINALLY Obama stuck to his guns, and beat the Republicans at their own game.  After a summer of Obama struggling to negotiate in good faith with Republicans, after a summer of seemingly caving to Republicans when push came to shove, Obama finally was able to out-maneuver Republicans on the issue of the two-month extension of the payroll tax reduction.  Well, out-maneuver may not be the right term, as Obama simply had to watch the GOP self-destruct.  A GOP-led house that’s gone mad with power, led by the rebellious (and incredibly naive) Tea Party freshmen, has continued to overplay their hand, and finally it came back to bite them. 

A much weakened and humbled John Boehner had to cave.  As if it wasn’t enough that the Wall Street Journal and John McCain had been incredibly harsh towards House Republicans, even some of the Tea Party Repubs had begun to question the House strategy.  The GOP was being roasted in the press, and in the eyes of the public. 

Just a month ago, things looked very bleak for Obama.  Suddenly, things are swinging his way.  There are signs the economy is starting to take off.  He’s been able to strut about ending troop involvement in Iraq.  But most importantly, it’s the GOP self-destructing which seems to be pushing him up in public opinion polls.  Newt Gingrich jumping to the front of the Republican polls for a while?  There’s NO doubt that brought some energy to Obama’s reelection campaign, as a Gingrich presidency would be a nightmare in a majority of Americans’ eyes.  The House GOP implosion on this issue certainly helps.  Heck, GOP Congressmen are now even calling out Michelle Obama for having a big butt!  Thanks to a good news cycle over the last month, and the GOP implosion, polls that showed Obama losing in 2012 to Romney now have him up by 8 percentage points, and up by 16 points in a matchup with Gingrich.  

Remember when Obama took office, and Republicans fretted about a long-term minority in Congress?   Well, that certainly didn’t last very long, thanks to the GOP sweep into House control in 2010.   Remember after that election, where Republicans were salivating about 2012?  Heck, even a couple of months ago, Republicans were SURE they were going to re-take the Senate and the presidency.  If there’s any lesson we should have learned about D.C. politics, it’s that these folks just can’t seem to handle success.  No matter who is in charge, they’ll get over-confident, they’ll over-reach, or they’ll shoot themselves in the foot in some other fashion. 

Republicans are learning that lesson this week.  Obama couldn’t have asked for a better Christmas present.  Thank you, John Boehner and the House GOP.

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House GOP Shoots Self in Foot

Posted on December 19, 2011 by Terry| 1 Comment
Boehner Crying

WAAAAAAAH!!!! I can't control the "kids" in my House!!! WWWWWAAAAAAAHHHH!!!!

You know, if I didn’t think John Boehner was such a sniveling little political weasel, I just might even start to feel sorry for him (nah, not really).   Don’t get me wrong, he’s a HUGE part of the political dysfunction in Washington, but just as Obama has been dealt some awfully difficult cards to deal with during his presidency, Boehner has been dealt an almost equally tough hand…dealing with the idiocy that are the GOP freshmen and the Tea Party. 

It does my heart good to see the complete and utter failings of the GOP-led House.  It does my heart good to see the party of “NO” continue to shoot themselves in the foot.  Given the still struggling economy, there’s no way in hell Obama should have a chance to win in 2012, as the incumbent president usually gets way more “credit” for either an up or down economy than he really ever deserves.  But, thanks to the completely inept GOP-led House, Obama has more than a fighting chance.  Thanks to a Congress with record-low approval ratings, Obama shares the blame for the economy along with a do-nothing Congress where neither party can ever seen to agree within themselves, much less with the opposite party. 

Boehner is a freakin’ WIMP, and I’m lovin’ it.  Speaker of the House?  Hah!!  He’s got about as much power and control over his caucus as I seem to have over my very spirited (but wonderful!!) little 8-year old at times!!   After the GOP and Dems settled on a two-month compromise extension of the payroll tax cut late last week, agreeing to a Keystone Pipeline provision that Boehner said had to be part of the final deal, his frolicky lil’ freshmen Tea Partiers have rebelled and refused to vote for the Senate bill that passed 89-10.  With a “yes” vote in the House very much in doubt thanks to Boehner’s complete lack of control over his own caucus, he has been forced to delay a vote on the bill.  As a result of the House ineptitude and inability to agree on ANYTHING unless it’s as bat$hit right-wing crazy as possible, we’re just 12 days away from a defacto tax-hike on Americans, just when the economy is starting to show signs of life. 

Obama HAS to be lovin’ every minute of it (Loverboy is reverberating through my mind as I type that).  The same weasly Boehner who backed out of the “Grand Bargain” negotiated with Obama this summer over a deficit reduction deal is getting his butt handed to him in the House by his own rebellious young freshmen.  Boehner might as well be CAMPAIGNING for Obama right now, given how everything the GOP-led House does (or more often, DOESN’T do) seems to be a political windfall for Obama.

Sorry Boehner, cry all you want, but your biggest problem isn’t Obama or the Democrats…it’s your own wimpiness and inability to control your own caucus.

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And the Rich get Richer…

Posted on September 19, 2011 by Terry| 2 Comments
U.S. Wealth Gain

Of all wealth gained in the U.S. since 1983, almost 82% went to the richest 5% of Americans, while the poorest people actually lost wealth.

Class warfare.  That’s what John Boehner, Mitch McConnell, Paul Ryan, and pretty much the entire group of GOP presidential candidates have called Obama’s proposal to (gasp!) tax the rich.   As this story points out though, since 1983, the vast majority of America’s growing wealth went to those who didn’t need it.   An astounding 81.7% of all new wealth generated since 1983 went to the richest 5% of Americans.  ONLY the top 40% of Americans by wealth gained wealth over the period, while the bottom 60% of Americans actually lost wealth since 1983. 

I feel like I’m beating a dead horse lately with the topics I’ve been addressing, but given the news lately, the topic keeps rearing its ugly head.   Wealth inequality in the U.S. continues to grow, the rich do indeed keep getting richer and the poor do indeed keep getting poorer.  But in very dark economic times, when “shared sacrifice” is supposedly needed, we can’t ask the richest Americans to pay their fair share?   An attempt to raise taxes on the wealthiest Americans, the ONE group the recession hasn’t seemed to harm, is decried as “class warfare” by the GOP?

Don’t shoot the messenger here, but in some ways, you know who is partially to blame for the growing gap between rich and poor?  The working poor themselves.  WAIT!  Let me explain!!  As I’ve stated before out here, I will NEVER understand the motivations that have somehow led to SO many working class Americans to identify themselves as Republicans.   When over a period of many decades, wealth distribution is continually skewed towards the rich, why would SO many working class Americans relate to a party that wants to reduce or eliminate their right to collectively bargain and form unions?  Why would SO many working class Americans relate to a party that supports a tax structure where, as he himself states, Warren Buffett pays the lowest tax rate of anyone in his office, including his lowest paid secretaries? 

Obama tried to change “politics as usual” in Washington.  He spent much of the last 2 years attempting to compromise with Republicans, only to find that Republicans weren’t the slightest bit interested in compromise.  He agreed to extend the Bush tax cuts without asking for anything in return.  He tried to negotiate with Boehner and the GOP over the debt ceiling debacle, and came off the fiasco of a “negotiation” looking very, very weak.   Thank GOD Obama has started to take the gloves off and play hardball.  As he has found out, you simply can’t change the politics in Washington all by yourself.  You can’t attempt to negotiate with those who are unreasonable, and in trying to do so, he just kept coming away with a bloody nose.

With Obama’s jobs program he recently announced, and now with Obama’s stance on long-term deficit reduction, including his threat to VETO any attempt to reduce social welfare programs if tax increases weren’t included in a debt deal, it appears he’s finally realized that the only way to deal with the Republicans is to beat them at their own game.  Obama has learned to call the GOP’s bluff…now we’ll see if the GOP continues to bank on the American public supporting millionaire tax cuts over a more equitable system.

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