Surrender on the debt ceilling

Paul Krugman is adamant that what the President and the Dems did was capitulate completely yet again to the fanatical Tea Party extremists. And of course he's right. And worst of all it was further debilitate an already anemic economic recovery, and likely send it back into another recession. Which is exactly the goal of the conservative plan. The myth that increased spending cuts are somehow magically going to instill business and consumer confidence to the point of a turnaround has been proven a failed policy for so many years now that anyone still clinging to this ideology surely has lost any credibility with those with "half their brains tied behind their backs," to steal a line for one of those half-wits.


Now it the time when government spending, or rather to correctly frame it, investment, is necessary in key areas like infrastructure and education is paramount to creating present and future jobs. Krugman's metaphor is apt to the absurdity of conservative mythical thinking in that it's like using bloodletting to cure a problem when in fact it only makes it worse. Conservatives are still locked in a draconian and feudal economic ideology that went out with the fricken chastity belt. Which is no surprise they still believe in that too if the likes of Sarah Palin and Michelle Bachman are any indication.

Per Robert Reich there is no revenue enhancers int the proposed deals. All of Obama's posturing on the rich getting off scott free was obviously simply that, hot air. He surrendering and not one cent of increased taxed is proposed, now or in the future. And he agrees with Krugman that the cuts will only further delay at best and more likely reverse any economic recovery. And yet Obama could have averted this specious linking of the budget to the debt ceiling. He could have made it a condition of giving in to retaining the Bush tax cuts on the top 2% last year but instead he unconditionally surrender then too. He could have revealed this conservative strategy months ago and begun to re-framing, unlinking the budget to the debt but failed to do so. He could have re-focused the debate to job creation and necessary government spending but was too intimidated by the tea party to speak up.

By not doing so both Krugman and Reich agree that his repeated surrenders to the conservative agenda only empower them more and further weaken him. The American people do not want compromise with economic terrorists. Compromise is not the solution in this case but rather standing firm to principles that benefit all of us as a whole. If some people don't get that then too bad. Some people really are just too stupid to know what's good for them, like children, and tough love is the only remedy. Instead Obama is enabling spoiled brats to run the show.