Memo to Washington: America still matters
Budget talks in Washington have reached an impasse, with the two sides dug in and not budging. I can’t comment on the respective merits of the Republican and Democratic positions
But I do want to poke a little at one of the ideas that I think is framing the debate, and the public’s perception of it. That idea is that America has already pretty much gone to hell.
Depending on who you ask, ours is a debt-ravaged, divided land filled with underachieving slackers, illegal immigrants and poor people who can’t get decent healthcare.
The Chinese are more productive and competitive than we are. The Europeans are more civilized and more fair. And what about those Canadians? Why can’t we be that nice?
A lot of us have accepted that classic French joke that America is the first society to proceed from barbarism to decadence without any intervening period of civilization.
Even America-first conservatives have taken to looking overseas for their role-models, idolizing Margaret Thatcher and Winston Churchill, adopting the ideas of the Austrian School of economists, and embracing the theories of Russian-born novelist Ayn Rand.
This gloomy attitude, deepened by the recession, surely colors the current debt negotiations in Washington DC.
A lot of politicians appear convinced that we have nothing to lose. America is on the brink, or maybe already in the toilet. If we’re a third world nation, why not act like one?
If that means defaulting on our debt and pitching the planet into economic chaos, so what? If Greece can do it, why can’t we?
The tragic joke of all this is that none of it is true.
For one thing, America’s problems — real as they are — are currently being faced by every nation on earth. Countries from Europe to Asia to South America are all trying to figure out how to bring their national budgets back into line.
They are all struggling with decaying infrastructure, with complicated questions of immigration, of civil liberties, and economic fairness.
These struggles are serious, to be sure, but they’re nothing compared with the crises that America has overcome in the past.
It’s also worth pointing out that America remains the world’s absolute, unquestioned sole superpower. And I’m not talking here about military might.
Walk the streets of any European city and you will see the vast majority of people talking on and using handheld devices built by American companies, generally Apple or Motorola.
You will see bookstores filled with American authors and cineplexes filled with American movies. Roads are busy with American cars.
When I lived in Europe in the 1980s, it was controversial when a McDonald’s or Disney tried to move into a nation’s cultural space. Now, for better or worse, Big Macs, Colonel Sanders and Mickey Mouse are hard-wired into global culture.
People across the planet get their coffee at Starbucks, their information from Google, and their social fix from Facebook.
Europe’s pop music, its clothing styles and even its graffiti are dominated by American influences.
It may also surprise you that America is still the world’s leading manufacturing nation, with an economy far more diverse and stable than that of China or Germany or Japan.
Yes, it’s true that America is in a rough, ugly patch. Unemployment seems stuck around 9 percent. Some regions, and some groups — African Americans in particular — are in really dire straits.
But when I go shopping or to a restaurant, I see crowds of people out and about. The streets are bustling. Entrepreneurs are opening new businesses, investing, moving forward.
Finally, it’s clearly not true that politicians can’t work together to resolve this kind of train wreck.
New York state — once written off as ungovernable — has faced down its own budget nightmare with a Democratic governor, a Democratic Assembly and a Republican state Senate.
We haven’t defaulted, we haven’t seen a government shut-down and we haven’t seen the quality of life implode.
But if the Federal government defaults on our debt and pitches the economy into a tailspin, all that might change.
America’s century may truly and finally end, not because another nation transcended us, but because a handful of short-sighted politicians in Washington turned out the lights.
So as we slouch toward the August 2nd deadline, here’s my message to Congress and the White House:
For the next few days, put aside your labels — progressive, tea party, whatever — and remember that you are charged through your oath to the Constitution with the sacred task of governing the greatest nation on earth.
Tags: politics
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I think at this point the problem is we don’t have a sustainable solution to the economic issue and revenue/spending issue. Unfortunately gov’t can’t simply put 29 million people to work and manage to pay them. We can barely meet our current obligations. So right now there’s a big fight. It will be hashed out, taxes will go up and spending will be cut. No other way to do it. As for the jobs, I don’t think we’ve seen the worst of it yet.
Brian,
I totally agree things here are not as bad as some complain that they are. I still can’t think of another place I would rather live.
What increasingly bothers me is the “Johnny One Note” people. The “my way or the highway” types who simply refuse to discuss anything. I guess you could say there are way too many people who are willing to cut off their nose to spite their face.
On your morning news today you had a guy suggesting we should get rid of the debt ceiling. I tend to agree because it tends to disregard the facts on the ground. It is similar to the 2% tax cap. Sure, cut and control spending wherever possible. God forbid, raise taxes if it is needed. These things should be done. But when you draw lines in the sand, you are only asking for trouble.
What’s wrong with us?
that’s just grossly inaccurate. one side (the democrats) has been bending over backwards to try to compromise. the other (the republicans, especially the tea party wing) refuses to take yes for an answer.
The market response to this whole thing is fascinating.
Brian’s post reminds me of my parents’ old adage of “regardless of how bad you think you got it, you can find somebody worse off.”
It would seem that these politicians have come to understand “compromise” as you agree with my idea and forget about yours. It is frustrating to see elected officials conduct themselves in this manner. Unfortunately, the feds don’t have a monopoly on this type of foolishness. You can see the same polarizing behavior in some of the local townships.
There are times when this comment section mirrors that behavior, as well. Instead of “we disagree, but I can appreciate your point of view”, it can turn to “we disagree, therefore you are a ****”
Thankfully, it is not that often.
I’m with Hermit. The crazies who now control the Republican party (and I’m a registered Republican myself…only so I can vote in the local Republican primaries I might add) don’t seem to understand when they’ve got a victory on their hands. This all or nothing attitude is bizarre. Boehner and McConnell, and now the country as a whole, have a real problem on their hands.
This is beginning to look like a huge missed opportunity that is in danger of turning into a disaster.
This is not doomsday stuff, this is politics, the market seems to understand that. The republicans are in a good position. They will play it for as much as they can. Then they will take some more. Remember this is more about politics than money. Remember the president will not let a default occur. He and the treasury secretary have made that clear. Even if they have to take a last minute temporary raise that will just allow the debate to go on they will take it no question.
There is zero percent chance that the president would rather run on financial turmoil that he helped create by not playing along than run in the wake of another debt ceiling debate. Everyone in Washington knows that like NPR was saying this weekend the republicans really can’t lose on this one. Just wait for the debates between the president and the republican nominee. The president is going to be in a terrible position. I do believe that republicans believe (like some have said) that they cannot fix this debt problem with this president in office so their top priority is to get him out in 2012.
The republicans, for the most part, seem determined to do one thing: derail government. Their mantra is basically “no government.” So, proving to the country that washington cannot govern is, paradoxically, a victory for them. And they are winning that case. The debt limit and the spending cuts and even revenue increases are not the issue. If they were, they would have settled for the conservative victory offered them by a weak democratic leadership. They don’t want that. They want to discredit the idea of government. that’s their goal. Then, all good things come.
Michael,
That may be true but I find it a failure of government that this issue was not avoided with a reasonable budget plan being put on the table by the democrats a long time ago. It seems like that part also wanted things to deteriorate to this point.
‘party’ above not ‘part’
paul – the democrats did put a reasonable plan on the table – and its still there.
Peter and Paul: The democrats’ plan in my view has gotten less and less reasonable. There are no revenues in the Reid plan. The majority of economists agree that spending is required during times of unemployment–that is, government spending–and increasing taxes to those good old wealthy so-called job creators is one way to finance it, but that’s now a no-go. But as i said, the republicans, who took over the house and have a a rowdy contingent of Grover Norquist purists (he says he wants not to abolish government, but make is so small he can “flush it down the toilet”), are dug in and intractable. They don’t want to reach anything but the flush-handle.
michael is right on the money, except that norquist wanted to drown government in the bathtub, not flush it. (unless he’s been indulging in some new bathroom metaphors that i’m not aware of.)
I don’t know if it will be all bad for the President. The no tax, no compromise purists are only a small percentage of the electorate. The polls now certainly indicate that the no compromise people will get blamed. But I think that is the problem; both sides are mainly concerned with who gets blamed not with solving any problems at all.
I think there is a segment that wants a downgrade of our credit and wants us to default.
Ironic that the naysayers with their heels dug in, intent only on derailing Obama’s reelection, ARE government. And they are obstructing what’s good for our nation, and the rest of the world.
Good perspective and analysis, Brian Mann.
Bush ran this country into the ground, ans now the rest of his Republican cronies are chocking it to death
I really don’t see why it should be a problem to raise taxes. For those in government to refuse to raise taxes would be like me refusing to take a pay increase.
I guess some people just don’t want a government. Okay. Let’s not have a government and see what happens. Maybe China will come and take over the country.
Did we lose all of our sanity after 911? Acting like we are acting now, we could not have one a single war. Hell, we couldn’t even have become the United States. We would have lost to the British during the American Revolution, acting the way we are now acting.
Selfish, selfish, selfish!
I don’t think i would trust Boehner to leash my dog.
Correction, i know i wouldn’t.
I don’t see why, based on ANY of our past history, this dilema is new or an insurmountable problem.
Term limits of two for Congress and Senate, just like for the Pres. They’re acting like bloodclots.
If Social Security checks bounce, then so should their Government paychecks.
My DOG wouldn’t let Boehner leash her…
Well it is kind of an impossible situation. Most economists both conservative and liberal would agree that in the short term any reduction in aggregate demand, be it lowering government spending or increasing taxes, will hurt the economy particularly when it is in a major recession/depression like we are now.
We need long term restructuring and that may come about. But cutting government spending right now or raising taxes right now are both going to make things worse.
Two Cents I agree with your term limit idea completely.
I haven’t been following this every second, but as I understand Boehner was on board with $800 Billion in new revenue and Obama was good with that and then the “Gang of 6” came out with new taxes and Obama demanded another $400 Billion in tax hikes and then Boehner said no. Is that pretty much correct? ‘Cuz if it is then it seems to me Obama is as guilty of holding things up as Boehner.
oh how i wish we had more sensible conservatives like mervel!
the biggest problem we’re facing right now is the depressed economy and unemployment. not the federal deficit. not the national debt. the deficit and debt are problems in the medium-to-long term. but they’re not problems at all right now. interest rates on treasury bonds are and remain extremely low. in fact that’s how you can tell the market is clamoring for more federal debt. and indeed more debt could be put to excellent use by mobilizing idle resources. this would spur economic growth and ameliorate the actual problems we’re facing now, those being the aforementioned the weak economy and unemployment.
to having this big to-do over raising the debt ceiling right now is insane.
There is this bizarre belief hermit that balancing the budget and massively reducing government spending will help the job market.
There are things that do create unemployement, things like over regulation, things like increasing the cost of hiring employees but not government spending in the short run. (Sure long run government spending as a % of the economy reduces productivity makes you less competitive etc.).
I don’t believe in accidents happening over and over, this is intentional there are a group that want a default.
The gang of six made their reccommendations, everyone either Ignored or disliked, (except for Obama).
Obama and Boehner were on the same page for awhile, then the rest of his party squawked about tax hikes, which are really tax break stops on the wealthy, which the Tea Party-ists paint as an assualt on the common man’s pocket book.
Meanwhile it won’t matter if or when our rulers compromise or hold their breath and stamp their feet.
The Rest of the world is watching, and the ones we owe money to can’t like this goat and monkey show at all.
They will adjust accordingly for all future deals, as we are displaying how innept we can be now.
This needed to be acted on fast and smooth, bi-partisenly (?) like a run-of- the-mill ante, if not just for appearances, to be hammered out more in private.
Right now we blew the bluff, and exposed our weakness.
The third war we’re fighting is the one against Economic Disaster, the real Boogie Man.
Bret, yes- two terms then addios. New brooms sweep clean.
If Republicans truly cared about the deficit, they would realize that a default would dramatically _increase_ the deficit by increasing the cost of servicing our existing debt. Clearly, they are simply using the deficit as a political tool to attack Obama. That they’re willing to risk plunging the nation (and the world) deeper into economic melt-down in order to defeat Obama in 2012 shows just how cynical their approach to governance has become. It is also a reflection of how gullible they believe the American public is– they may be right, but it’s also just possible that they may have miscalculated this time.
Term limits, tax caps, balanced budget amendments — all bad ideas. An educated public that can tell when they’re being lied to is all we need. Maybe we’ll get it, someday.
If the public could tell, we wouldn’t be where we are now…
Sorry Walker, I don’t have a lot of use for the so-called Republicans these days, but lets look in all the closets. When this mess started the very first thing Obama threatened was Social Security, Medicare and Veterans benefits! Now if that isn’t a political ploy, I don’t know what is.
HT- Please enlighten us on just what you mean by “mobilizing idle resources”? And the artificially low interest rates were certainly helped by QE1 and 2, so maybe you can explain how that affects these “markets that are clamoring for more Federal debt”? I agree they want the ceiling raised, but more debt?
Mervel- “We need long term restructuring and that may come about. But cutting government spending right now or raising taxes right now are both going to make things worse.”
But those are the only two options these guys see. You talk to them about long term plans, things taking 10-20 years and their eyes glaze over or they hang up the phone. They WILL raise taxes. No doubt in my mind. Any cutting will be little snippets that are delayed or aborted scheduled increases, just like always. These guys will just play the game, declare the other guys the losers and move on to re-election.
Knuck- The problem is a good portion of the public doesn’t care if they’re being lied to as long as their rice bowl keeps getting filled. Subsidies, grants, salaries, pensions, Social Security, assistance, now health care. Give them bread and Circus, just like Rome.
Bret – re the 400 billion extra revenue (taxes) deal breaker. We dont know what happened exactly. Thats Beener’s version, so it cant be the whole story, or even more than arguably true. Obama evidently offered even more that the gang of 6. The Dems were upset and wouldnt go for it and wanted more revenue, less cuts. But obviously, the republicans wouldnt go for it either, so the whole thing was a waste.
i think walker is giving the republicans (or at least the tea partiers) too much credit. while it’s true that some republicans are happy to use economic destruction as a tool to attack obama (the thinking being that the incumbent president will get blamed for whatever happens, no matter what), i think that many tea partiers are actually crazy and genuinely believe that default will somehow be good for the country. it’s something like default is forcing us to take our medicine? or maybe that’s the wrong analogy — maybe it’s that we’ve committed a grave moral transgression by running up so much debt, and default is a way to pay our penance? yes, i think that sounds a little better. but holy cow it’s still totally crazy!*
* ht disclaimer: maybe that’s still wrong. i’m the opposite of a tea partier, so i definitely don’t understand it. your guess is as good as mine.
Hermit, don’t second guess yourself, they’re crazy. The same kind of crazy as that nut from Norway. Not crazy like they aren’t responsible for what they are doing because their brain doesn’t function properly. Crazy like they will turn themselves inside out to believe that the obvious truth is a lie.
I don’t believe people as a group are consistently crazy over and over. One person maybe and even then there is a difference between a one time error or crazy decision and consistently being wrong.
There has been a line of thinking that if government was bankrupt; if it spent so much into deficit that all it could do was pay the old debts, it couldn’t do ANYTHING else, and this would be a good thing.
Look at the impacts now, we can’t pay for our current programs, so how are we going to have the government “do” anything new in the future? New infrastructure, new entitlements, new Universal Health Care, those are all gone; has anyone really talked about universal health care in this budget talks we are now facing, it is essentially dead without new money. If you just have enough money to pay your old commitments everything else is gone. This is the goal among some people; to put the government in such bad fiscal straights that it is essentially hobbled for generations to come.
I mean we can talk all we want about what we want and need the government to do. But the fact is we borrow right now 40% of every dollar we spend each month, we can raise taxes through the roof and it would not fill that gap.
I don’t even know what to say. Knuck you have truly sunk to a new low. HT is just a tax and spend arrogant liberal, but I thought better of you. The animal from Norway is the same as a person who wants our nation to be fiscally responsible? Kiss my grits.
I don’t believe term limits would solve anything. Politicians would still be bought and paid for by the special interests and the wealthy. We need public funding of elections.
Lets call a spade a spade folks. This is what was said by The King of Arrogance and Elitism- “and indeed more debt could be put to excellent use by mobilizing idle resources. ” What does that mean? HT apparently means having Gov’t seize the assets of private business’s with a cash surplus and use it as they see fit. I can think of nothing else that could possibly explain such a statement and HT’s history in wanting to do that is clear. That is called THEFT. And what’s more, since doing that would open the door for more of the same, how long will be before they take your pitiful savings to fund HT’s version of utopia.
Some of the things said here disgust me. I thought this place was above such low shots.
Just a thought. You hear about bi-partisan this and bi-partisan that. Has bi-partisan become an excuse not to lead? Is it a way to avoid having the buck stop anywhere?
What we might need are some elected officials who are willing to not be re-elected, politicians who are willing to tell their base to grow up or go to hell.
Actually- Dale, Brian, whoever, just remove all my comments. I will not have anything to do with website that allows the posting of such vile trash as Knuck and HT have done. To dignify their posts with any sort of recognition is insulting.
On the term limits idea, we’ve had three consecutive “wave” elections, with a lot of people swept out, thus a lot of turnover in Congress in the last five years–kind of like you’d have with term limits. And the positions, especially with this new group of Tea Party Republican conservatives, have really hardened, with no room for compromise from the most recently elected faction.
So my question is, how much would term limits really help? Seriously, just asking.
I think a more effective way than term limits would be the stipulation that you OR your immediate family could never profit from your government services as a Senator or Representative. No books, no lobbying jobs, no government jobs, no speaking junkets etc. no work for any subcontractor of the government.
I think term limits might stop career politicians. Term limits keep new blood entering the system, for the better or worse, and if worse at least they don’t take a trench hold on the office like a bad flu.
In the past when i saw an eighty-something year old throw-back in office for 40 years i would throw up a little in my own mouth.
Talk about entitlements?
Social Security is not an entitlement, it’s my money lent to the government, from my paychecks, in agreement i get some back, hopefully.
When Obama asks which checks he should or shouldn’t write, if in default,
why is S.S. mentioned and not the paychecks of the Congressmen and women–who obviously are hurting this nation?
Term limits, i hope would, filter out lifelong politicians, making room for a new functioning mix of people, which their seems to be a lack of lately.
How many farmers out there would keep on the same work crew, if year after year your yeild went down, and the livestock was barely fed?
bret,
i agree that the comparison to breivik is out of line (though at least khl explained exactly what he meant by it) but otherwise you’re being completely ridiculous. i don’t know that i’ll have time to reply today, but i will get around to it eventually.
I think the comparison was of the insanity, not the person(s).
As in– crazy is crazy–
Hi gang – I agree with Bret. The Breivik comparison is over the top. I know we get frustrated with each other and “don’t understand” each other’s points of view. But we are observing a political process in Washington that is democratic, peaceful and follows the rule of law. Remember, the more complicated the ideas and the disagreements, the more important it is to keep the rhetoric civil.
Thanks,
Brian, NCPR
Sure, Brian, but name-calling is fun! You Arrogant King of Such-And-So!
http://andrewsullivan.thedailybeast.com/2011/07/the-gop-special-victims-unit.html
If it wasn’t for all the media hype this would have been solved long ago. There is too much political gain to be had on both sides by dragging this out till the bitter end. The media has turned it into doomsday blame game scenario. Too bad.
Let’s be realistic, the rating agencies should downgrade the US, it isn’t as good a bet as it used to be no matter how this goes. Interest rates are ridiculously lower than they should be. We are living in a fiscal fantasy.
OA, thanks for the link. It makes me ashamed to be a liberal.
Actually, Brian M., I don’t believe the comparison is completely over then top.
Reporters digging into Breivik’s manifesto are finding references to the same types of right-wing American “thinkers” that are driving some of the far-right agenda, and far right Christian causes behind the de-railing of the Republican Party.