Fiscal cliff: Will liberals jump?

[Lasher]

Call them the cliff jumpers.

A growing bloc of emboldened liberals say they're not afraid to watch defense spending get gouged and taxes go up on every American if a budget deal doesn't satisfy their priorities.

Here's what these progressives fear: an agreement that keeps lower tax rates for the wealthy, hits the social safety net with unpalatable cuts and leaves Pentagon spending unscathed. In other words, they'd rather walk the country off the cliff than watch President Barack Obama cave on long-held liberal priorities.

"If the Republicans can't see their way to significant additional revenues targeted toward the people who are best off and targeted toward passive income and other things like that, then we're better off going over the cliff and readdressing this with a better Congress in January," Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.) said. "And we would have plenty of time to fix it."

http://www.nj.com/us-politics/index.ssf/2012/11/fiscal_cliff_will_liberals_jum.html

The so-called fiscal cliff looks better than any lame duck deal that I could imagine. Further, as DeFazio says, we will have a better Congress in January (more Democrats).

[msongs]

1. unfortunately it is not "liberals" who are in charge of jumping or not nt

[Lasher]

2. Liberals don't need to be in charge.

They just need to be among 41 Senators who vote against cloture.

[King_Klonopin]

3. The dems need to take advantage of their position

A Grand Bargain is completely unecessary.

1) Let the Bush Tax Cuts expire and trigger the cuts in the DOD budget.

2) Let the GOP take the heat for it -- they've been the obstacle to making a deal.
The majority of the country views them as the problem already.

3) Reinforce the truth: that they agreed to these conditions in the first place.

4) On January 21st, have the Senate introduce a bill that lowers taxes for the
99% who earn less than $250,000 per year, forcing the repubs to either vote
for or against it -- reminding the public that, if the repubs use the fillibuster,
is essentially the same as a "No" vote. Hold their feet to the fire on this, and
watch them squirm, squirm, squirm. Use Grover Norquist to your advantage as
a negative image.

5) No cuts should be made to SS or Medicare/Medicaid. AND start referring to those
programs in unison as "PAID BENEFITS", instead of entitlements, in order to reframe
the public perception/debate which has been grossly distorted and manipulated
by the repubs. Those programs are not "free stuff". That's our money being
payed back to US, instead of being redistributed to the wealthy under the guise
of "tax breaks" and "entitlement reforms".

6) The POTUS needs to be the point man, unrelenting and unwavering.

Dems, Gird thy loins !! Show some conviction.

[mac56]

5. K & R

and welcome.

[Paka]

4. It's not a cliff...

it's a little speed bump and I say jump. Love DeFazio. I grew up in Oregon and have family in Eugene, and even some of the RW part of my family likes Pete. It probably will have no effect on me, but I still say jump even if it did. We need to show them who is in charge! We won!! Have they forgotten?

[grahamhgreen]

6. It's a bluff