I’m tired. I’m absolutely exhausted. Every media outlet, in an effort to seem “fair and balanced” has taken the position that Washington is broken and what just happened with the debt ceiling debate is the fault of both parties. This is simply not true and we have to stop pretending that it is.
The debt ceiling has been raised 89 times since its institution. It is, as stated by Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels (R) when he was Bush's Budget Director, a "housekeeping matter." http://bit.ly/qAEQL2 The Constitution requires that we honor our debts. That should be enough to inspire our legislators to vote up the debt ceiling, which is simply the authority to borrow enough money to pay our already incurred debt. However, we have a new brand of Republican in Congress. And this new brand is willing, nay wanting, to take down the full faith and credit of the United States if they do not get their way. Never mind that they are a minority of the majority party in one half of Congress. Never mind that a majority of the people of this country elected Democrats, in majority, to govern. Never mind that every poll shows that the majority of Americans want compromise and want taxes increased for the wealthy. None of this matters. Not if you are willing to throw America off a cliff. And that is what happened. And it was the entire fault of one party.
The S&P downgraded our rating, not because of the failure of the government to compromise, but because of the “political brinksmanship” of the process. Rep. Boehner said he got 98% of what he wanted. Why do you suppose that is? Does that sound like a fair negotiation to you?
In every negotiation there is a give and a take. You have a list of the things you want and a list of things you will sacrifice to get the most important things you want. Inevitably, depending upon the leverage you have, you get some of the things you wanted and give up some. Here, although in the majority with a mandate from the people, the Democrats felt it necessary to give up an increase in revenues by taxing the wealthy and closing loopholes and instead, to give the Republicans 98% of what they wanted. Is it that the GOP had that kind of leverage? What would give them that kind of leverage? Insanity. That’s what. These elected officials not only used the full faith and credit of our country as a hostage, but yelled as loud as they could to anyone who would listen, that they would take the country down, in violation of the Constitution (a document they claim to revere) if they didn’t get what they wanted.
The Democrats gave everything to make sure we did the responsible thing as a country. They would have preferred an up or down vote and would have agreed to address the deficit separately. This did not have to happen. It is a crisis manufactured by the GOP. It could have been handled responsibly. In his September 26, 1987 radio address, Pres. Reagan said:
Congress consistently brings the Government to the edge of default before facing its responsibility. This brinkmanship threatens the holders of government bonds and those who rely on Social Security and veterans benefits. Interest rates would skyrocket, instability would occur in financial markets, and the Federal deficit would soar. The United States has a special responsibility to itself and the world to meet its obligations. It means we have a well-earned reputation for reliability and credibility – two things that set us apart from much of the world.
However now, in direct opposition to the man they claim as a god, the GOP insists they will continue to govern in this way. As Senate Minority leader McConnell said: “I think some of our members may have thought the default issue was a hostage you might take a chance at shooting,” he said. “Most of us didn’t think that. What we did learn is this — it’s a hostage that’s worth ransoming.”
What the GOP did is not negotiation. This is not a situation which is the fault of “both parties.” This is terrorism and we are the victims.
