http://post-gazette.com/pg/10339/1108103-192.stmBarnyard debate: Boehner shows himself to be an unserious leader
Sunday, December 05, 2010
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Americans should start being concerned that Republican House leader and soon-to-be speaker John A. Boehner of Ohio is up to the job his party has given him.
On Thursday, in a press conference, Mr. Boehner called discussions and maneuvering in Congress by Democrats and Republicans to try to reach a consensus position on the fate of the Bush tax cuts "chicken crap."The subject matter of the discussions is serious. It is basically whether and to whom the tax cuts which President George W. Bush granted during his administration to the rich and the middle class alike, scheduled to expire at the end of the year, should be extended. Options include extending the tax cuts a) to no one, b) to middle class taxpayers earning under $200,000 for individuals and $250,000 for joint filers, or c) to everyone, including America's millionaires.
The "to no one" and, to a lesser extent, "to the middle class only" advocates point to the trillion-dollar budget deficit and the $14 trillion national debt to support their position. The Republicans fall back to the "trickle down" argument -- tax breaks that go to the rich cause them to create jobs -- that the country's experience with the Bush tax cuts does not bear out.
Serious stuff. Mr.
Boehner doesn't look like a serious leader so far. There is an argument for candor in public speech. There is also a stronger argument for America's leaders to maintain a standard of dignity that Mr. Boehner has so far not showed. America's taxes and its debt are not "chicken crap," as Mr. Boehner seems to think. They are at the core of the nation's prospects for the future.