Imagine if the Democrats offered Republicans a deficit deal that had more than $3 in tax increases for every $1 in spending cuts, assigned most of those spending cuts to the Pentagon, and didn’t take a dime from Social Security, Medicaid or Medicare beneficiaries. Republicans would laugh at them. But without quite realizing it, that’s the deal Republicans have now offered to the Democrats…In August, Republicans scored what they thought was a big win by persuading Democrats to accept a trigger that consisted only of spending cuts. The price they paid was 1) concentrating the cuts on the Pentagon while exempting Social Security, Medicaid, Medicare beneficiaries, and 2) delaying the cuts until January 1, 2013. That was, they figured, a win, as it eschewed taxes. Grover Norquist’s pledge remained unbroken…But 12 years earlier, George W. Bush had set a trigger of his own. In order to pass his tax cuts using the 51-vote budget reconciliation process, he had agreed to let them sunset in 2010. A last-minute deal extended them until the end of 2012…So now there are two triggers. One is an extremely progressive spending trigger worth $1.2 trillion that goes off on January 1, 2013. The other is an extremely progressive tax trigger worth $3.8 trillion that goes off on…January 1, 2013. If you count reduced interest payments, the two policies alone would reduce future deficits by about $6 trillion. That’s far more than anything the supercommittee came close to discussing. It’s distributed far more progressively than anything the Democrats have even considered proposing. And all that needs to happen for it to pass is, well, nothing.
More from geeky dreamboat Ezra Klein on the Republicans’ dual trigger nightmare here. (via ibad)
I love Ezra Klein so much.
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This is a lovely little theory that’s been bandied about recently, although it gives me cold comfort to think that the best thing Congress can do for the country at this point is absolutely nothing. But usually the only thing you can trust Congress to do well is somehow delay inevitable situations such as this. So I’ll believe it when I see it.
(via aatombomb)
Whatever, I’ll take it!!
If Occupy is not going to field any candidates, it would be nice if they could connect the dots for people about getting rid of the worst Congressmen—you have to vote, is the thing!!
(via aatombomb)
