Posted on 11/30/2012 2:54:55 AM PST by Kaslin
Negotiations can’t be going too well if the Senate Minority leader is openly scoffing at President Obama’s “bipartisan” plan to solve the looming “fiscal cliff” crisis. Yikes:
Mitch McConnell, the Senate Republican leader, says he “burst into laughter” Thursday when Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner outlined the administration proposal for averting the fiscal cliff. He wasn’t trying to embarrass Geithner, McConnell says, only responding candidly to his one-sided plan, explicit on tax increases, vague on spending cuts.
Geithner’s visit to his office left McConnell discouraged about reaching a “balanced” deal on tax hikes and spending reductions designed to prevent a shock to the economy in January. “Nothing good is happening” in the negotiations, McConnell says, because of Obama’s insistence on tax rate hikes for the wealthy but unwillingness to embrace serious spending cuts.
Geithner suggested $1.6 trillion in tax increases, McConnell says, but showed “minimal or no interest” in spending cuts. When congressional leaders went to the White House three days after the election, Obama talked of possible curbs on the explosive growth of food stamps and Social Security disability payments. But since Geithner didn’t mention them, those reductions appear to be off the table now, McConnell says.
Obama is pushing to raise the tax rates on couples earning more than $250,000 and individuals earning more than $200,000. But those wouldn’t produce revenues anywhere near $1.6 trillion over a decade.
In fairness, President Obama’s unwillingness to embrace “serious spending cuts” has been a staple of his presidency. Just look at his most recent budget proposal, for example. That being said, it’s abundantly clear now (as if it wasn’t before) that when John Boehner told the nation hours ago that “no substantive progress” had been made regarding solving this impending crisis . . . he wasn’t kidding. Indeed, some conservatives are now openly urging congressional Republicans to simply give up -- that is, let Democrats have their way and when the US economy goes bombing off the man-made “fiscal cliff” on January 1st -- Republicans can absolve themselves of any wrongdoing. This isn’t true, of course, and would be disastrous for a number of different reasons -- as Guy pointed out below -- but it’s certainly an interesting proposition. In the end, however, I suspect some sort of 11th hour deal will be struck before the New Year; but what the details will be I can’t say.
In closing, I’ll leave you with a few words from the man who has perhaps done more than anyone living to raise awareness about the devastating consequences of reckless government spending and the dangers of -- to borrow a phrase recycled ad nauseam these days -- kicking the can down the road:
The Path to Prosperity (Episode 1): America's two futures, visualized
If you go back to the first year of the administration and the various overseas trips of Geithner, there was that trip to Germany where he wanted to advise them on the way to economic recovery. After the trip....the general comments made by those in attendance was that Geithner didn’t know much about national economic policies or historical trends in moving an economy back to ‘normal’. They didn’t come out and say it....but you got the impression they felt they were dealing with some college professor who never did real economic planning in life.
I doubt if any meeting with him in attendance amounts to much. He’s like Ms Rice....he’s just there to mouth talking topics and not much else.
In fairness, President Obama’s unwillingness to embrace “serious spending cuts” has been a staple of his presidency.
Now we are getting somewhere!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
In fairness. Isn’t that what the President has been after all along?
I better not need a /s on this one.
I don't know why you would say that ..... our hothouse affirmative-action _Resident has surrounded himself since Day One with rock-solid performers with long resumes positively bulging with accomplishment.
<snort!>
Yeah, it’s funny all right. There’s some real comedy coming out of Washington these days. What else would you expect from a buffoon and his clownish regime?
Well, it’s the truth. The rats don’t want to cut spending except the military budget
cutting the DoD budget used to be a bad thing before the liberals loaded the military budget with ridiculous spending on nonmilitary social frivolous items and backdoor subsidies to “green” energy by forcing the military to buy outrageously expensive inefficient “green” energy
an audience of Chinese also laughed at Geithner to his face, as I recall
just like the commercial the GOP ran during the campaign
It goes back further than Clinton.
In fairness, the way to raise revenue and maintain existing rates is to make reductions to the Standard Deduction and exemptions.
The loss of revenue is directly attributable to exemption and Standard Deduction creep.
Nice timing, Mitch. Where were you when we were told that Timmy was the most-qualifed man in the country to be Treasury Secretary? Where were you when he floated the TurboTax defense for being a tax cheat?
What’s laughable is that you and the other clowns on both sides of the aisle let this guy become our financial ‘savior’.
Count me in as another who has cast his last vote for a Republican over a Democrat simply on the basis of trying to elect the ‘lesser-of-two-evils’...
If you are waiting for a perfect candidate you will never vote again.
Oh, yes! I remember!!
It was under President Reagan that there was a “Grand Deal” where Reagan agreed to a tax increase in exchange for spending reductions later. I think the deal was a dollar spending decrease for two dollars tax increase. Then, after the tax increases went into effect the Democratically controlled Congress said “Oh, I had my fingers crossed!” and there were no spending decreases. In fact there were increases.
What is the probability of the Democrats keeping there word this time around.
Didn’t say that I expected perfection. I voted for Romney, despite my disagreeing with some of his positions. I would vote for him again, given the choice between him & Obama.
I just won’t automatically flip a lever for a Republican over a Democrat. If I don’t like a candidate, I will no longer hold my nose and give him my nod.
Don’t sign off on anything. Let Obama fail.
“In fairness, the way to raise revenue and maintain existing rates is to make reductions to the Standard Deduction and exemptions.”
Fair to whom? The government takes to much and spends too much. Nothing fair about that.
Obama & his family will be out of Washington DC and off the mainland Dec 17 thru Jan 6.
He will not be here when some of the wheels start to seriously come off his little red wagon.
Is his choice of a ‘holiday’ vacation—Most likely Kwanza—really a dodge to get him off the mainland and closer to Indonesia? He could bolt if things get too hot.
Once Obama bolts, will he activate the 45 Czars he and only he controls???
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