Ezra Klein: "The closest thing to a plausible case I’ve heard is some kind of negotiation that Democrats portray as a deal to fund the government and replace sequestration and that Republicans portray as a deal to raise the debt ceiling. But for that to work, the two sides actually need to agree to something. The Obama administration isn’t going to delay the health care law for a year or accept heavy new cuts without tax increases. Republicans aren’t likely to accept tax increases. So, what’s the case for believing they can reach a deal, exactly? - The Democrats’ quiet hope is that House Republicans will overplay their hand and, as terror mounts over the debt ceiling, Senate Republicans will cut a meaningful deal with Obama and the House will let the package pass by waiving the Hastert rule. That’s possible, of course, but hardly likely. House Republicans don’t like getting jammed by the Senate, and powerful conservative groups have been policing Hastert rule violations much more aggressively of late. - And then there’s the possibility of simple miscalculation. Remember when Boehner’s “Plan B” failed on the floor of the House? When the farm bill failed on the floor of the House? When the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development appropriations bill failed on the floor of the House? The odds of Boehner and Cantor thinking they can pass something and simply being wrong about that are not zero."
Posted on: Thu, 29 Aug 2013 14:06:32 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015