Sunday, July 31, 2011

In defense of the Tea Party...

I know, I've been hard on the Tea Party of late, telling them to get out the Kiddie Pool and offering the opinion that they might have to accept some tax increases as a part of the debt ceiling deal (I was wrong on that one, the Democrats have caved). All that being said, is it really fair right now to blame the Tea Party for this mess?

Last I checked, the Republicans PASSED a plan that the Democrats unilaterally rejected. While I still hold the position that the Tea Party is going to have to accept some compromise going forward, it's very hard to make the case that they're the drivers of this mess.

The Democrats have gone from a request for a clean increase, to the demand that no increase without a tax increase would be unethical, to now (apparently) abandoning the call for tax increases. Paul Kurgman this morning on "This Week" on ABC called for kicking the can down the road until after 2020 (Is Bill White advising him now?) Meanwhile the clock is ticking on the deadline imposed by the President, a deadline that may, or may not, be a real time for worry.

Today the thing to follow is the Grand Agreement 2.0. If one is reached, and is passed through the Senate, will Boehner and Co. be able to ram-rod it through the House. The unasked question, by the media, is whether or not they should.

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