You Can’t Always Get What You Want: Post-Cliff Reactions

Published

January 2, 2013

Capital & Main

Just a few years ago, the tax deal pushed through Congress on Tuesday would have been a Republican fiscal fantasy, a sweeping bill that locks in virtually all of the Bush-era tax cuts, exempts almost all estates from taxation, and enshrines the former president’s credo that dividends and capital gains should be taxed equally and gently. But times have changed . . . and before the bill’s final passage late Tuesday, House Republican leaders struggled all day to quell a revolt among caucus members who threatened to blow up a hard-fought compromise that they could have easily framed as a victory. (Jonathan Weisman, New York Times)

. . . the final deal is a fraud. Every working person earning up to $113,700 in wages this year will shoulder an instant tax increase of 2%. That’s because the payroll tax holiday enacted in 2010 is expiring. The tax holiday, which cut the employee’s share of the Social Security tax to 4.2% from 6.2% of income up to the annual wage cap, was always designed as a temporary stimulus measure. But few people expected that it would expire at a single stroke — and without a countervailing working-class tax credit to soften the blow. (Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times)

“We all knew the President was going to get his way. He campaigned on raising taxes, he wanted to raise taxes. He wins.” (Rep. Steve LaTourette, R-OH)

The White House’s and Democrats’ single biggest failure in the cliff negotiations was not getting Republicans’ agreement to raise the debt ceiling. The last time the debt ceiling had to be raised, in 2011, Republicans demanded major cuts in programs for the poor as well as Medicare and Social Security. They got some concessions from the White House but didn’t get what they wanted—which led us to the fiscal cliff. (Robert Reich, American Prospect)

SOBER New Year: First it was Chief Justice doing the dirty. Now Republicans raising taxes on ON 77% OF HOUSEHOLDS! Surrender guns next… (Matt Drudge tweet)

Despite the media’s “fiscal cliff” hysteria and relentless propaganda from the monied interests, their “big lie” politics has lost. The people won. At least the people did not lose. This result is a promising sign for the political conflicts that lie ahead—another indication that “big money” does not always have its way. Liberal-labor progressives must make the most of this opportunity, mobilize folks for the next round of battles and force their progressive values upon the often ambivalent President Obama and other hesitant Democrats. (William Greider, The Nation)

The gop has been engaged in a two month dance of defeat and surrender! I hope tonight is the end of this self defeating strategy (Newt Gingrich tweet)