It does seem like the Grand Bargain has been abandoned, at least for now. We’ll see:
Even Obama’s proposed grand bargain leaves tax rates in place, and raises revenue by reducing tax deductions. The plausible small deal would probably entail something even smaller — a user fee here or there, perhaps a couple of high-profile tax loopholes. As I pointed out, it’s notable that Cole and Obama have not only moved toward each other’s position on revenue but crossed over, with Obama seeming to demand even less revenue than Cole is now offering.
Obama’s budget offers $200 billion in mandatory budget savings that are not major safety-net programs. It’s all completely boring stuff, that doesn’t touch major cornerstones of the New Deal, but adds up: cuts to farm subsidies, cuts to retirement benefits for federal workers, aviation fees, higher contributions for unemployment insurance, selling off under-utilized federal property — I’d go on, but you’re probably already half asleep. This is the tedious guts of the likely agreement that will take shape.
As I wrote, plenty could go wrong. A conceptual agreement between the main negotiators is only the first step. Then we get to the conservative freak-out. Failure remains a highly plausible outcome, but, if you look closely enough, the signs of a desire on both sides to make a deal are there.
A Grand Bargin of any kind will not rear its ugly head again until after the 2014 elections. If the Democrats win back the House and keep the Senate watch out. The Progressives will no longer have the T-baggers to help them defeat Obama and the other conservative, Capitalist, Democrats ram through 1 percenter demands.
Some of those items sound like real crap. “…Selling off under-utilized federal property…” Oh? Underutilized by whom? By some fracking company that wants to blow up bedrock in the middle of one of the less well attended national parks?
And “…cuts to retirement benefits for federal workers…”. Republican dogma constantly attacks any group, notably teachers, who get anything in the way of benefits. All they want to do is pay minimum wages to anybody, and no benefits. For now. Their ultimate goal is to do away with any minimum wage, and eventually any wage, at all.
So, you might think holding the line on benefits to workers instead of jettisoning them off might be the appropriate response by a Party that supposedly supports “labor”, and the rights of working people.
But no. Just another sell-out. Way to defend your base, Corporate Democrats.
Hey, Obama already has allowed huge cuts to food stamps, in a time of increasing need, massive long term unemployment, and great difficulty for even the young and well-educated to find decent middle class –or close to that– jobs.
That’s a bad enough start on a Grand Bargain, aka Grand Betrayal, for me to feel sick to my stomach.
Worst Democratic President Ever.