Robert Reich: Ransom Paid

[FourScore]

Robert Reich
Ransom Paid
Monday, August 1, 2011

...More than a year ago, the President could have conditioned his agreement to extend the Bush tax cuts beyond 2010 on Republicans’ agreement not to link a vote on the debt ceiling to the budget deficit. But he did not.

Many months ago, when Republicans first demanded spending cuts and no tax increases as a condition for raising the debt ceiling, the President could have blown their cover. He could have shown the American people why this demand had nothing to do with deficit reduction but everything to do with the GOP’s ideological fixation on shrinking the size of the government — thereby imperiling Medicare, Social Security, education, infrastructure, and everything else Americans depend on. But he did not.

And through it all the President could have explained to Americans that the biggest economic challenge we face is restoring jobs and wages and economic growth, that spending cuts in the next few years will slow the economy even further, and therefore that the Republicans’ demands threaten us all. Again, he did not.

The radical right has now won a huge tactical and strategic victory. Democrats and the White House have proven they have little by way of tactics or strategy.

By putting Medicare and Social Security on the block, they have made it more difficult for Democrats in the upcoming 2012 election cycle to blame Republicans for doing so...

http://robertreich.org/post/8331408301

[Liberalynn]

1. Thanks for posting this

I am always interested in reading and hearing Reich's take on things.

[Skink]

2. He must have some big time debt.

[spanone]

3. k&r...

[mmonk]

4. damn. I was going to use that.

[mmonk]

6. I'll use ransom delivered.

[Mimosa]

5. Excellent. Thank you, Four Score. n/t

[woo me with science]

7. K&R nt

[DURHAM D]

8. Reich is so right -

"By putting Medicare and Social Security on the block, they have made it more difficult for Democrats in the upcoming 2012 election cycle to blame Republicans for doing so..."

We will lose more House seats and lose the Senate in 2012 because of this whole strange episode.

[neverforget]

9. And what's really pathetic, they'll do it again and again and again

:argh: :banghead: