{"id":3359,"date":"2010-12-08T08:47:00","date_gmt":"2010-12-08T13:47:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.northcountrypublicradio.org\/inbox\/?p=3359"},"modified":"2010-12-08T12:02:08","modified_gmt":"2010-12-08T17:02:08","slug":"i-found-president-obama-weirdly-convincing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.northcountrypublicradio.org\/inbox\/2010\/12\/08\/i-found-president-obama-weirdly-convincing\/","title":{"rendered":"I found President Obama weirdly convincing"},"content":{"rendered":"

Yesterday, President Barack Obama defended his decision to partner with Republicans on a sweeping tax deal that the New York Times<\/a> describes this way:<\/p>\n

Mr. Obama effectively traded tax cuts for the affluent, which Republicans were demanding, for a second stimulus bill that seemed improbable a few weeks ago.<\/p>\n

Mr. Obama yielded to Republicans on extending the high-end Bush tax cuts and on cutting the estate tax below its scheduled level.<\/p>\n

In exchange, Republicans agreed to extend unemployment benefits, cut payroll taxes and business taxes, and extend a grab bag of tax credits for college tuition and other items.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Liberals, as we all know, were furious about the deal.\u00a0 Here’s how MoveOn.org described it.<\/p>\n

Republicans successfully held the middle class and unemployed Americans hostage until they could make the nation’s wealthiest 2 percent even richer.<\/p>\n

Now billionaires will get thousands of dollars in new tax breaks, while teachers get pink slips and hard-working Americans fall even further behind.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

But in his press conference yesterday<\/a>, Obama laid out pretty clearly that he’s not interested in winning battles against Republicans, or in thumping wealthy people.<\/p>\n

My number one priority is to do what\u2019s right for the American people, for jobs, and for economic growth.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m focused on making sure that tens of millions of hardworking Americans are not seeing their paychecks shrink on January 1st just because the folks here in Washington are busy trying to score political points.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I was prepared to accept the conventional wisdom that Obama got rolled in this deal.\u00a0 But after listening to his remarks, I’m not so sure.<\/p>\n

Instead, the President made a pretty good argument that he’s finally got the message that the only priority for his administration right now is jobs.<\/p>\n

Yes, this deal was terrible as a deficit-cutting measure.\u00a0 It was an obvious show of weakness as the new GOP majority takes power in the House.\u00a0 And it was terrible politics in terms of shoring up his base.<\/p>\n

Obama made it clear that he doesn’t care about any of that — or at least not as much as he cares about propping up and jump-starting the feeble economy.<\/p>\n

And isn’t that the message we all wanted him to get in the lead-up to the 2010 midterms?\u00a0 It’s about the economy, stupid.<\/p>\n

Liberals, meanwhile, haven’t made a very clear case for why this was a must-win fight.<\/p>\n

Do they really care about deficit reduction?\u00a0 Uh, no.<\/p>\n

Did they really think a new tax on the rich would lead to passage of a big new stimulus bill, that would hire back a bunch of those laid-off teachers?\u00a0 No one believes that’s politically possible with the GOP taking control of the House.<\/p>\n

And it’s a little suspicious that liberal stimulus-hawks who were looking for any way to fluff the economy would suddenly want to raise taxes on anyone — except as a way of getting their digs in.<\/p>\n

Yes, tax cuts for the rich are a lousy way to stimulate the economy — most credible economists agree on this point — but it does still provide some<\/em> boost, right?<\/p>\n

It also shores up Obama’s argument, at least a bit, that so many conservatives are opposing this plan, accusing their own GOP leaders of getting rolled.<\/p>\n

So maybe, just maybe, this is what bipartisan compromise looks like?\u00a0 Or is the In Box getting spun?<\/p>\n

As always, your comments welcome.<\/p>\n

So what do you think<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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