That´s right, there is no incentive to even go through the motions of making a deal with the resident. He wouldn´t honor such a deal anyway.

A couple of disincentives to work bit the dust and will probably not be reenacted outside of a deal. As much as the Democrats have blamed tax cuts for all the nations problems, they don´t want to be blamed for raising taxes across the board. They certainly don´t want to raise them on the poor (read their base). If taxes are raised 4.5 trillion, they will have a hard time cutting spending only 1 trillion when it comes to borrowing limits.

I´ve been convinced that it is better for us to start understanding the cost of the government for which we keep voting (not me, but the majority).

Bring on the cliff--and more. America is not--and was never meant to be--a welfare state!

When Ponzi schemes run out of money, it is always ugly.

Federal Government is the Mother of all Ponzi schemes.

To me,this just says obama didn´t have the cheating apparatus to steal votes in conservative districts,or simply figured he didn´t need them in the first place.The same areas of states that carried Obama.also carried dem senators up for re-election.


On my state´s ballot,the top block for every position was a dem making it easy for low info voters to vote for a dem.Systematic cheating was part of this election´s DNA.

It´s an outright lie by this writer to say republicans would gladly go over the cliff.There´s no way republicans want military contractors to take a hit for one.They´re fighting against tax increases,so why would they want cuts to expire on everybody.

Obviously,this story´s theme came straight from a WH back room to start the blame game.

The republicans make the deal, they cease to exist. Even relying on "appealing to the hispanics and black americans" will not save that party. I´d be interested to know how many supporters the republican party has bled in the last two potus elections.
The announcements of becoming more like the dems after the last election, lost this 40+ year republican.

Republicans stand your ground, take the initial heat. Obama is the one who will suffer long term. We cannot suck trillions out of the private sector to grow government to 25% and grow an economy. If Obama wants to do it let his and his party´s fingerprints be the only ones on it.

Boehner was ready to make a deal last summer and Lucy took the football away.

There is a snake in the Oval Office.

Someone finally noticed that 48% of Americans opposed Obama and everything he stands for. It´s hard to throw that many people under the bus.

Once again confirming the genius of the founders. They may get us through this mess yet. Our system was designed so the country would survive ill-guided presidents, judges, senators, and representatives.

Be prepared for a press attack on the voters who will be holding senators and representatives accountable in 2014. Time to dust off the old Wal Mart voters stories.

This is an amazing article in its sheer disregard for what is best for America, rather than what is best for each Party:

Yes, Obama won the election and did so quite convincingly. And, no, he doesn’t ever have to worry again about being reelected, which should, in theory, embolden him. But he is the only person involved in the fiscal cliff talks who has that luxury. Everyone else needs to keep one eye (at least) on their next race.

Cillizza writes as though the only consideration is political. I find this revealing.

No deal means they might — with the emphasis on “might” — face some blow back from constituents who want them to get something done for the good of the country and put the partisanship and politics aside.

Are the constituents wrong for wanting their reps to cut a deal for the good of the country? The problem is that what each side calls "good", the other calls bad.

And so, if you are wondering why congressional Republicans won’t, in the words of Obama, just “take the deal,” now you know. They have every political reason not to.

There it is again -- blaming the GOP for something that hasn´t happened. Worse is the underlying assumption by Cillizza and other liberals that what is good for America can only be what Democrats propose, never what the GOP proposes.

How sad that the Parties have drifted so far apart that only one side is viewed as having the right solution while the other side is always viewed by the Left as being stubborn, obstructionist and wrong-headed.

This isn´t simply a battle of political ploys; it is a fundamental tectonic shift in worldviews that cannot be reconciled. America has never faced such polarization in her history before. Thank you, Mr. Obama & Co.

Let it go!!

WE conservatives are a strong and hardy bunch....

WE will survive....

LZK

Posters above are correct, it is the opening salvo in the blame game. The real story is that the terms of the fiscal cliff were advantageous to Dems. Howard Dean went off message saying it was not so bad and that taxes need to go up on everybody! They get tax increases on everyone and cuts only to military but never to their core welfare recipient base. Obama knowing his advantage doubles down on his demands with more taxes, more stimulus spending, UI extentions etc. The GOP are in effect asked to cut their own throat to sign this insult to themselves. Now they are called obstructionist because they didn´t sign. The real problem is a Dem overreach. GOP weakness encourages the Dems to believe they can have total political victory and the destruction of the GOP. The GOP only push back when they are looking down into the Abysssssss.

No matter the outcome, Republicans will be blamed. We´re used to it.

If/When we go over the cliff, 30 million new taxpayers will be included in the tax rolls. How many of them voted for Obama? I´m guessing most of them.
That´s got to terrify Obama. True, he´ll no longer need them to be re-elected, but his base will turn on him big time.
That means the upper hand for GOP policies and elected officials going into the 2014 mid-terms and beyond.

Of course the other big reason we are where we are is Reid´s strategy of protecting vulnerable Senators by not holding votes on anything of import. Like a budget.

It´s been a long long time since Democrats put the nation before their party. They´re not going to start now. They don´t have the strength of character or the moral compass required. I´m pretty sure half of them are dumb as a box of rocks.

As I write this Rep. Tim Scott is saying farewell to the House as he prepares to move to the Senate. More like him please. Fast.

Raising taxes on the very wealthy does not violate any high moral or philosophical principle. It is not only foolish, but electoral suicide for the GOP to continue to let itself be characterized as the “party of the rich.” Republicans should turn the table on “progressives” and avoid the “fiscal cliff” public relations trap they have set by proposing a 1% higher tax rate on the very wealthy above what Democrats are now demanding.

We all know that top earners can afford it or will continue to find loopholes to avoid the additional hit on their incomes. And we all know that increasing taxes on the rich won’t put even a small dent in our deficit. The issue of the wealthy paying their “fair share” is purely a Democrat PR ploy.

However, this “consessional” move on the part of Republicans would take the wind out of the Democrats’ sails and free the GOP to focus on the economic issue that is really, really important: stopping and then reversing the growth of government borrowing and spending.

By out-trumping progressives on the issue of higher tax rates for the very rich, even the “low-information” public will be forced to acknowledge that Obama got more than he wanted, and afterwards, when the economy remains flat, or worse, goes into recession and is hit with another credit downgrade, Obama and his congressional cronies will get the blame they deserve during the next couple of election cycles. Republicans can then begin to repair the damage the left is causing.

The extension of emergency unemployment costs 30 billion a year. Obama´s tax manipulations make it more economical for a mother to continue to earn 30,000 a year than to work a bigger/better job and earn 60,000 a year (in essence the taxpayer is contributing as much as she earns). Those provisions die without a deal. Let them.

The value of higher taxes on everyone is two-fold. First, everyone learns the real cost of big government. The second is that with 4.5 trillion in new revenue, the House can demand an additional 3.5 trillion in government cuts. And that size cut must be from the entitlement side which is where the huge unfunded liabilities are.

"Only please, Brer Øbama[sic], please don´t throw me into the briar patch."

Let´s get real about a few things:

1. Conservatives are going to be blamed, regardless. Just do what´s right

2. Taxes are going up on the rich, regardless. Jobs will be lost.

3. There will be a recession, regardless. Government statistics notwithstanding, we’re still in a defacto recession.

3. Taxes on the middle class must go up, regardless. Taxing the rich alone will not balance the budget, and we all know it. It´s not a matter of whether - it´s a matter of when.

4. Democrats place their agenda above all else, regardless. We must follow the Alinsky playbook and meet out some punishment.

5. The GOP elite are stupid, regardless. Their inability to negotiate effectively is well established.

6. We´re all going to feel pain, regardless. There is no "good" way out of this mess. None. Period. Time to "suck it up" and remember what others have sacrificed for the country.

That is why the cliff, bad as it is, is our "least bad" option. It’s the only one that imposes real spending cuts - now. And then comes the debt ceiling ...

No deal until spending cuts are specific. The Cuts NEVER happen ! #8 is correct as is # 14. ob does not compromise. It´s 100% his way or nothing with him. Give him nothing. We will be blamed no matter what. Take the hit now or we will be bankrupt before obama finishes his term. The spending will not stop (even Regan was ´taken in´ by the dems on this). Taxing alone will not cover the expenses. bo´s plan to tax the rich has no basis in the reality of math and economics. The numbers on welfare and disability will skyrocket past the current record breaking numbers. When the money runs out and we cannot support the ´entitlements´ the depression will look like the good ole days. I´d rather go over the cliff than suffer a slow death.

I say lets take the plunge. I want those 30 million new tax payers to feel the bite. Those of us who work, pay taxes and take responsibility for our own selves and our families, have planned for disasters like this. As LZK says above, we conservatives will survive.

Since I´m retired and live on a fixed income, I know that going over the cliff is going to harm me. However, I´m willing to take the hit if we can eventually get some good out of it. And I´m not planning any long term purchasing either. The car I drive could stand replacing. It´s 12yrs old, but still runs good and gives me good service. So, I´ll keep it until it dies before I buy a new one. It´s only got 125k miles on it!

Sorry #17 - Raising taxes on the rich is blatantly immoral in more than one sense. First, the populist battle cry of "Make the rich pay their fair share" is entirely fueled by envy - a sin in every one´s book.

Second, although most people would acknowledge that visiting the rich person´s home and helping yourself to their possessions is stealing and wrong, even if you justify it by assuring yourself that they don´t deserve their ill-gotten gain, many of the same people have no problem with electing an ´agent´ to acquire the wealth on their behalf. Just because it´s legal to do so, doesn´t make it moral. It´s still stealing.

Finally, God Himself sets the standard for fairness in ´taxation´ by His example in tithing. His requirement is 10%. His requirement is the same, regardless of whether you are rich or poor. Hence, if you make a dollar, your requirement is a dime. If you make ten dollars, the requirement is a dollar. As in all things, God´s wisdom is obvious and on display. It both removes envy and requires the rich to pay more. It is the gold standard in fairness.

Progressive taxes are an homage to man´s greed and envy. It is little wonder that Marx advocated them as a requisite to the hell he envisioned on earth.

I´ve given up on any notion that the GOP is looking out for "the middle class." Trillions have been borrowed with their assent, of not consent. Expensive give-away government programs have been built in recent years with their active participation. The "housing bubble" was inflated with as much Republican hot air as Democrat - and the Republican Chief Executive and his Federal Reserve Chair were full participants. Reform isn´t coming from this bunch, especially led by Boehner, who apparently refuses to exercise the House´s power of the purse strings.

Just remeber, it would take a human being, thirty-two thousand years (32,000) counting as in 1..2..3..,like that,to count to a Trillion.
So lets keep the bling going. Obama´s supporters think it is funny.

Obama and the Democrats won on November 6. I am not sure why the Republicans are trying to provide them cover. Boehner should pull a Hillary and be unavailable.

I propose a 100% tax on anything the entertainment industry produces. Do you think the hypocrites in Hollywood would oppose such a thing? Paying $30 to watch a George Clooney movie just doesn´t appeal to me. But then again paying anything to see that liberal POS never appealed to me.

AP is reporting a deal. Wonder what dumb agreement the GOP has made?