Newsflash: If GOP won’t accept tax increases, there won’t be any `grand bargain’

[Pirate Smile]

Newsflash: If GOP won’t accept tax increases, there won’t be any `grand bargain’

By Jonathan Bernstein

A quick update on the Joint Select (Super) Committee: Its work marches on, with reports today that the Democrats have made a new offer for larger deficit reductions than the deficit deal required, but without increases in the Medicare age eligibility that liberals oppose. Republicans are rejecting this overture as a stunt designed to position Dems for the political battle that will come if the supercommittee fails.

Here’s what you need to know about this: There’s no reason at all to expect any deal in the end, because nothing has really changed. As long as Republicans refuse to consider any tax increases, there’s just not going to be a grand bargain.

And there’s no reason at all to expect Republicans to agree to tax increases; even if the committee did, their bill would be dead on arrival in the House. As near as I can tell, the Democrats would be willing to negotiate a deal if one were available, and even give up some liberal priorities in order to win other things, but Republicans just aren’t interested: there’s nothing they care about that they would be willing to sacrifice lower taxes on the wealthy for. Sure, some Republicans really oppose defense cuts, and if there’s no deal it’s possible that down the line the trigger will actually take effect and those cuts will happen, but they would prefer even that to having to vote for tax increases. And clearly none of them considers the federal budget deficit to be anywhere near as important to keeping high-end taxes low.

So what we’re seeing with today’s developments isn’t about bargaining, it’s about the spin both parties hope to take away from the deadlock. And for the Democrats that is once again a main course of reasonableness (they’re willing to cut a deal if only Republicans were willing) along with healthy side dishes of increased taxes on rich folks and new job creation measures. In other words, the items Barack Obama has been talking about that have been polling well for the last several weeks.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line/post/newsflash-if-gop-wont-accept-tax-increases-there-wont-be-any-grand-bargain/2011/10/26/gIQATvVkJM_blog.html

[vi5]

1. Wrong....

The Democrats will give them 90% of what the GOP wants, and then strut around claiming "victory" because they didn't give them 100%.

Then the Republicans (with the help of the media) will call the shit sandwich a "Democratic plan" when it does what it's intended to and bankrupt the country and hurt the middle class and the poor.

The only thing that is up in the air are the final details of how they shoehorn this into fit the parameters of the Supercommittee and the triggers but rest assure that will be done and they will find a way. But there's absolutely zero reason to believe that this "negotiation" will turn out differently than any other one from the past few years.

[tularetom]

2. Nah, they'd never call it a "Democratic plan"

They'd get kicked out of the party for that.

It will be a "Democrat plan".

[vi5]

3. You're right.....

I don't know what I was thinking.

[totodeinhere]

7. self delete

[msongs]

4. only more obama/dems sell outs and caves nt

[Yupster]

5. My prediction

There will be no plan come out of the Supercommittee.

At the last minute congress will give the president a short term continuing resolution which will fund the government for a month with a few cuts attached. That will happen a few times and then the whole thing will be folded into next year's budget negotiations.

[DCBob]

6. yep. that is what I think too.

kick the can.. over and over.