Legal Commentary

Norquist Triumphant

By Big Tent Democrat

Digby:

On Hardball this afternoon Matthews was talking about "cut-go" with Todd Harris and Steve McMahon, the Tweedledum and Tweedledummer of the Village and he ranted and raved about how both parties promise spending cuts to bring down the deficit but refuse to give any big specific items that would really make a difference. [. . .] After Harris babbled for a while about "entitlements" destroying the country, Matthews again said how frustrated he was that Republicans always refuse to say what they will cut [. . .] McMahon piped up at that and said:

[McMahon:]I'll give it to you right now. Democrats are going to come with a bill to take away the tax cuts for people making 250 thousand dollars a year. That's 700 billion dollars that we borrowed ...

Matthews: I hate to break it to you, but that's not a spending cut it's a tax increase. [. . .] Just remember the difference, it's a tax increase.

The problem is not the deficit sez the Beltway. The problem is government spending. This is what Obama's Deal has wrought. Grover Norquist has won. As Digby says:

The debate has officially shifted from "deficit reduction" to "cutting spending to reduce the deficit." This has to be one of the fastest internalization of GOP propaganda in history and that's saying something."

This victory for Norquist was achieved by the "most progressive President of ALL TIME!!!!!!!!"

Beltway Dems, bloggers and wonks have never understood how central tax policy is to progressive (and what used to be Democratic) values and objectives.

For progressives, and for the country, the first 2 years of the Obama Administration are a failure mostly because President Obama has handed Grover Norquist his triumph. No more taxes. Only spending reductions.

Incredible.

Speaking for me only

Full post as published by TalkLeft on January 05, 2011 (boomark / email).