/Image via www.davegranlund.com
Almost everybody agrees that it's a bad idea to raise taxes across the board and cut federal spending as the U.S. economy continues struggling to recover from the Great Recession.
I'm hoping President Obama plays the peacemaker and finally helps craft the "grand bargain" that the White House and House Speaker John Boehner have flirted with for the past two years. It's a defining moment for Obama and Boehner, with their actions at the Fiscal Cliff precipice likely to reveal the presence or absence of statesmanship mettle.
From a pure political perspective, Obama can let the federal government go over the Fiscal Cliff and get the higher taxes on the wealthy he wants. He would also have a measure of executive control over the Fiscal Cliff's automatic budget cuts to federal departments. But a statesman wouldn't risk sending the economy back into recession even if he could score big political points.
House Republicans seem unable to vote in favor of a tax hike on wealthy Americans as part of a grand bargain, even if it means higher taxes for everyone, especially wealthy Americans. Boehner's statesmanship has already taken a hit with the House GOP rank-and-file rebellion over his Plan B proposal last week. The speaker's ability to lead the House Republicans is on the line as the clock ticks to the New Year deadline in Washington.
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