Thursday, December 22, 2011

Merry Christmas, Mr. Obama ***Updated***

"Has this place become so dysfunctional that even when people agree to things we can't do it?"
-President Obama, concerning this.

I'm not sure if Fox News is covering this, but what it amounts to is the Congressional Republicans have decided to dig in their heels and not extend a payroll tax cut. I know, weird right? Just as unemployment drops again they seem to think the best thing for the country is to raise taxes on the middle class. Maybe they are upset because there hasn't also been an even bigger tax cut for the rich. Maybe they somehow think that the country will blame Obama for the failure, even though he's all over the news saying please extend this and John Boehner is all over the news saying, no, no, forget it.

It's not just me pointing out this looks bad for Republicans. The Wall Street Journal, for example.

The GOP leaders have somehow managed the remarkable feat of being blamed for opposing a one-year extension of a tax holiday that they are surely going to pass. This is no easy double play. Republicans have also achieved the small miracle of letting Mr. Obama position himself as an election-year tax cutter...
Anyone outside of the liberal mainstream media think the same way? Karl Rove. Of course to be fair, Rove did more than anyone to ensure that a Democrat won the 2008 election. Don't trust him!

***Update*** The House finally voted on the bill a few hours after I wrote this, apparently on the assurances by President Obama that he wouldn't veto it with the provision to approve the Keystone Oil Pipeline included. What this means to me (yes this is spin) is that Republicans are willing to raise taxes and even throw their own poll numbers into the toilet as long as they can serve Conoco. Conoco is a harsh mistress!

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