Shut 'er down

Right wing deficit whingers continue to espouse tax cuts, especially for their rich donors. The Bush tax cuts are the single largest driver of short-term debt, repealing them would stabilize the debt for the next decade.

Since the days of Saint Ronnie, Democrats have had to clean up the mess left behind by slash and burn Republicans. Cutting revenue and going to war after war has cost this country dearly. So-called conservatives are screaming about the deficit, but their manufactured outrage only ever applies to a Democratic President  or a Congress. Once again they set the place on fire and then complain about how much water is being used to bring the blaze under control.

A misinformed public buys this nonsense .... again!

Thank goodness the President is not playing along. This time he's essentially ignoring the conservatives and their proposals to retry failed economic strategies. There are some serious spending cuts and revenue increases in the White House budget proposal. This is indeed a modest proposal, perhaps too modest, but a far sight better than the Republican alternatives. If the Senate can hold their footing through all this we should come out ahead at the end of what promises to be a giant game of chicken, played out at our expense.

As the public bluster and swagger escalates, we may be on the brink of another government shut down. The last time it happened, the overplay cost Republicans the House. Could we be so lucky as to have them blunder into this failure again? Hope with me, won't you?