Paul Ryan is a headline-grabbing "my way or the highway" kinda guy. Bad move, Republicans! The Tea Party-ers apparently didn't get the message: The People have repudiated extreme politics. They want our leaders to work together to get something done and not throw us all under the bus.
My concern is that if this is true and Ryan (or Cantor) does become Speaker, we're going over the "fiscal cliff" next year. Sequestration (across-the-board spending cuts) will automatically kick in, cutting not only fat from government (good) but meat, too (bad). And we can ALL see our paychecks reduced when the "Bush tax cuts" expire and we go back to our previous tax rates. Ouch! Ryan has said, and I believe him, that he will NEVER allow taxes to go up on the wealthy.
"If my friends can't get their tax cut, then none of you can, either."
Ryan says the wealthy are the "job creators", which is a half-truth at best. While the wealthy might be "incubators" of new businesses, they depend on middle class consumers to actually buy whatever the new businesses are selling in order to succeed. If the middle-class has their take-home pay reduced due to higher taxes, they'll buy less. New businesses will stagnate or even fail, perhaps taking us into another recession. How would that create any new jobs?
Whatever the two sides can negotiate regarding tax rates for the wealthy, so be it, but don't hold the middle class hostage in the process. The election is over. Now we need leaders, not ideologues.
S
All this talk about the Bush tax cuts, the 2 points I always make are: A) those cuts were in place all through the recession so they've done nothing to prevent or revive the economy and B) It amounts to about $20 per paycheck for me. So it will inconvenience me a little, but not that much. The people who are even closer to the financial margins probably make less money than I do and thus their benefit of the tax cut is even smaller.
ReplyDeleteSo I'm not that concerned if they all expire.
But you're right that putting someone like Ryan in charge is a terrible idea. As you said, people don't like gridlock. They want things to get done and Ryan, Cantor, etc have shown no willingness to compromise. Which really compromise is a hallmark of our democracy. Maybe the Republicans should watch "Lincoln" and see all the wheeling and dealing that happened to finally get rid of slavery. He was the founder of their party, right?
I couldn't agree with you more.
ReplyDeleteWow that WOULD be scary! And just create even more gridlock, so people can blame Obama for not getting anything done. Sigh.
ReplyDeleteObama will be blamed by the right-wing haters for whatever he does or does not get done. But Paul Ryan as leader would be a disaster, as would Eric Cantor. IMNSHO. (In My Not So Humble Opinion.)
ReplyDeleteWhen will the politicians come to their senses???
ReplyDelete