The past week has done an enormous amount to illuminate the contours of the struggle for fiscal sanity in America. It is increasingly clear that one party is committed to denying the reality of the challenges we face and wants instead to bury its head in the ground and pretend all is well, and that another party is slowly coming to terms with the fact that it will have to lead the way if we are to avert a disastrous debt crisis.
President Obama’s
budget, released Monday, was the epitome of cynical denial. It proposed to take none of the steps required to address the fiscal collapse of our welfare state—no real tax reform, no real entitlement-spending reform, no real discretionary-spending reform. No change of direction at all.
The president then followed up his denial with dishonesty, asserting in his
press conference on Tuesday that “what my budget does is to put forward some tough choices, some significant spending cuts so that by the middle of this decade our annual spending will match our annual revenues. We will not be adding more to the national debt.” In reality, his budget never comes close to balancing, instead increasing the debt every year and
doubling it over a decade.
House Republicans did not answer this denial of reality with a politically convenient denial of their own. Instead, their response to Obama’s budget was that if he wouldn’t lead then they would. In a
statement Tuesday afternoon, House Republican leaders said that their forthcoming 2012 budget would:
include real entitlement reforms so that we can have a conversation with the American people about the challenges we face and the need to chart a new path to prosperity. Our reforms will focus both on saving these programs for current and future generations of Americans and on getting our debt under control and our economy growing. By taking critical steps forward now, we can fulfill the mission of health and retirement security for all Americans without making changes for those in or near retirement. We hope the President and Democratic leaders in Congress will demonstrate leadership and join us in working toward responsible solutions to confront the fiscal and economic challenges before us.
But that hope was clearly misplaced. By Wednesday, Democrats were explicitly acknowledging a cynical political strategy behind their denials of the entitlement problem — they hope to goad Republicans into proposing entitlement reforms and then bash them for it instead of offering alternatives of their own. “They are suckers,” one “senior Democratic congressional aide” told
Politico, “they have painted themselves into a corner.” A true profile in courage for Washington Democrats.
And of course, similar courage is on display in the states. This week it was Wisconsin, where a new Republican governor has proposed to have many of the state’s public employees start contributing modestly toward their own pension and health benefits (though still not as much as essentially all private-sector workers do), and proposed limiting their collective bargaining rights to negotiations over pay rather than benefits. Change along these lines is obviously unavoidable as Wisconsin and many other states confront enormous budget gaps and daunting unfunded retirement liabilities. But in Madison, no less than in Washington, Democrats are intent on avoiding the unavoidable and denying the undeniable. Public employees, most notably teachers from all over Wisconsin, have called in sick and shown up at the steps of the legislature demanding to keep all their benefits. And Democratic state senators, meanwhile, have literally fled the state to avoid voting on the governor’s proposal. Undaunted courage, again.
Needless to say, President Obama has injected himself into the state budget fight and expressed strong support for the public employees and their unions in Wisconsin. While
acknowledging that “I haven’t followed exactly what’s happening with the Wisconsin budget,” Obama nonetheless accused the governor of an “assault on unions” and, as the
Washington Post put it this morning, “the president’s political machine worked in close coordination Thursday with state and national union officials to mobilize thousands of protesters to gather in Madison and to plan similar demonstrations in other state capitals.”
In Washington and all over the country, then, the Democratic party is mobilizing to defend our failing system of entitlements and runaway spending by cynically denying reality, while Republicans are mobilizing to take on difficult governing choices and confront at last the reality of what the liberal welfare state has wrought.
Too often, there is not much of a difference between the parties, and people inclined to care about policy are driven to call a pox on both their houses. But as this remarkable week has shown, this is not one of those times. The Democrats are shaming themselves on the premise that American voters can’t handle the truth and that there is political advantage in appealing to the country’s worst instincts. Republicans, whether by choice or by default, are taking up the challenge of telling voters the truth about our problems and persuading them that effective, responsible, and gradual solutions are possible — without taking benefits from current seniors and without abandoning our obligation to fellow citizens in need. There have not been many opportunities for conservatives to be proud of being Republicans in recent years, but this week has certainly been one.
Republicans and Democrats are both at fault for the mess we are in, and for ignoring and denying it for far too long. But so far only one party seems interested in changing that. Voters will notice. And then we will find out who is right about American voters: the party that thinks they are selfish children or the party that thinks they are responsible adults. I have a feeling Republicans will not regret their judgment that the time has come to get serious.
It's been a clarifying week on top of a couple of clarifying years. Two years and a few months ago I would have said Obama's election would be an unmitigated disaster for the nation. Now, I think it's a mititaged disaster. The mitigation is that now many more people understand the lengths to which social progressives/liberals/the far left/whatever term best fits will go to in pushing for their agenda. Had McCain won, they would have continued pushing, but in small, perhaps nearly invisible, steps. Obama's election and the resulting over-reach has indeed been clarifying, and, if we can restore fiscal sanity and get the people to understand, once and for all, what lies at the heart of social progressivism, maybe not altogether a bad thing.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI think the public is getting more than a little tired of unionized State Employees whining about their sacrifices.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseGet off the cross, princess, we need the wood.
Thanks for the good write-up. I hope you're right about the voters. I'm not so certain at this point.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseHow many of those Democrat state senators could be put through a recall election in abstentia and replaced with a Republican? It would only take one...
With the Great Polarization in American society we are going to see more an more of these storms. But take heart, we will win this time.
The decade of conflict in the Middle East has prepared a large portion of our younger people to stand up to it, I think. After IED's and live fire, a bunch of aging yuppie teachers protesting is not going to intimidate. The crucial block needed to face down the left's tired old 60's tactics (up to and including bombing buildings and people, eg Obama's friend Axelrod) is up to the job.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI like Boehner (sp?). I really do. He's taken his position to heart, and outside of competence, there's not much more you can ask of a leader. He has an oppotunity to earn the trust of the American people, and I think he knows what a tremendous responsibility that confers.
In the Coal Strike of 1902 the public was wary of siding w/either side in the debate. The spokesman for the workers, whose name I can’t presently recall, presented himself honorably. The owners, on the other hand, assumed a position of divine dispensation and openly declared that God had given them the right to rule over the miners as a father does his children or something to that effect. It immediately turned public opinion against the mine owners and made President Roosevelt’s threat of inserting the Feds into their business affairs more ominous.
The Wisconsin teachers will find very little sympathy unless the Governor or his spokesmen assume some similarly disastrous position. This wouldn’t be easy, even if one were trying, which I don’t think is the case.
Change has to come if the Nation is to thrive, and I’m bullish on that ever recombining, practical and decent 59% of the American people.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseTerrific essay, Yuval. Spot-on.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseIn 1995 the Republicans were blamed for the government shutdown. This time around they will get credit for it. The Democrat's policy of no cuts ever, is a huge mistake that will haunt them.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI cannot help but be heartened and ashamed all at the same time with all that is happening in Madison. If there was ever ANY doubt, the democrats have proven that they are 100% in the pockets of the Unions. I have to give the Dems credit though, when they are bought, they stay bought!! Impressive!
By leaving the state, those 14 State Senators have shown themselves to be cowards and enemies of the hard working families of Wisconsin. I ONLY WISH that I only had to pay 12% of my health insurance and 5.8% of my pension!
I pray that the remaining Republicans and their faith keeping Governor stay strong, they are the vanguard of America!
Reply to this commentLinkReport Abuse"one party is committed to denying the reality of the challenges we face and wants instead to bury its head in the ground and pretend all is well"
Perhaps the Democrats are fully aware of what they're doing. We're close to a tipping point. If things aren't turned around soon, the federal government will have to turn to new sources of revenue (European style VAT?).
I am afraid that's exactly where they're taking this show. And I'm terrified that they are going to succeed. It just might be too late for us to turn back.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseThe GOP war on the middle class is on.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseWhat a superb post, Yuval. It's a keeper for my kids who are usually too busy to worry about this Gordian Knot.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI'll believe it when I see it - Chapter 7: "...we can fulfill the hope for health and retirement security for all Americans...." That does not sound like a commitment to fiscal sanity or smaller government to me, espescially when it's said by a politician.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseThe Wisconsin Democrats remind of the T-shirt worn by Adam Savage on 'Mythbusters.' It reads, "I reject your reality and substitute my own." Seems to me Democrats have been denying reality since the 1930s.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseAgain and again, the single worst and most terrifying aspect to all of this is Obama's willingness to use the unions to mobilize to shut down the duly elected government in Wisconsin. A President who is willing to countenance open insurrection in support of his policies does not belong in the White House.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI think the majority of citizens in this country are ready for difficult decisions made by adults.
I think the President has finally made a horrific decision in showing his true colors prior to the '12 election. Thank God his teleprompter wasn't in use during his radio interview.
On teleprompter he sticks with the script - off teleprompter he shows his true intentions - Joe the Plumber.... sometimes you take the blue pill.... coal companies can still mine, we will just make it so expensive they go broke...................and given enough time I could come up with many more.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI believe Paul Ryan's (R-WI)plan to 'privatise' Social Security will benefit retirees and those under the age of 55 to 'OPT IN' or 'OPT OUT' is an excellent idea!
The present Social Security 'Ponzi Scam' steals your money to 'give' to the laggards who do NOT work in the form of Welfare and many other entitlement programs that pay them more than a job pays.
When you retire at the age of 62 or 65 you begin collecting your retirement from a 'fund' that does NOT exist, but has IOU'S instead of cash that would be in the trillions if the 'fund' had been kept in the proverbial 'lock box'!
When you die the Social Security retirement payments STOP!
IF you 'OPT OUT' to have a portion of your Social Security payments placed into a "PERSONALISED" investment port folio with millions of others who 'OPT OUT' is a very wise move.
When you die your "Personalised' investment continues to pay your heirs in pepertuity and the federal government has less money to waste on socialist entitlements for the laggards.
Reply to this commentLinkReport Abuse"...without taking benefits from current seniors..."
What makes current seniors so special that they should be exempt? (Those who have built up enough net worth to look after themselves, that is.)
They had a huge hand in making this mess. They need to make sacrifices too as we try to clean this up.
I'm sorry, Mr. Levin...but if you're pretending that we could or should exempt current seniors from the great reckoning ahead, your pretense to being more serious and grimly determined than the Democrats is just that: pretense.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseDear Blog Goliard,
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI am a senior (age 70)who paid into Social Security for 47 years. Your anger should be pointed toward those in congress who stole my money and gave the nation a bucket load of IOU's. I am one who was taught by my depression era parents to save and not go into massive debt that I could not pay. Why should I not benefit from my labors?
Years ago, as I looked foreward to the inevitablity of the welfare state running out of "other people's money" I anticipated riots in the streets by welfare receipants suddenly deprived of their government checks. How wrong I was. I would never have dreamed that the riots would be by middle class, well paid government employees. I guess when you've got a lot you really resist giving up even a little. Or is it that people who would take government jobs in the first place are the type who are terrified of having to compete in the private world?
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseIndeed, the contours are becoming clearer with every uprising--both here in America and in other nations facing the necessity for austerity. This was a very good article, and well worth the time to read and share.
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