Everybody is angry over the current state of affairs in Washington. In two days our country may effectively go bankrupt, unable to borrow more money and pay for the goods and services we have already bought, despite the world wanting exactly the opposite and being willing to loan us money at interest rates approaching zero. The media shows us clips of this or that politician making statements about how the other side isn’t listening, isn’t playing ball, or is unwilling to compromise. Americans see this, rightfully feel angry and frustrated, and start thinking about throwing all the bums out next election cycle.
Fair enough. But have both sides really been equally idiotic? I get the feeling that the mainstream media, often maligned as having a liberal bias, has, in this case, bent over backwards to try to portray both sides as equally culpable. But the media is dead wrong. That’s not just my opinion, but the opinion of the media in Japan, Europe, and China right now, with the Chinese going as far as to call the Republican party irresponsible. Even The Economist magazine, a notably fiscally conservative magazine with impeccable economic credentials, called the Republicans “economically ignorant and disgracefully cynical.”
Look at the facts: The White House has moved significantly in the direction of the Republican Party’s position in terms of spending and where the cuts should take place. While we may reasonably disagree on whether the current position of either party is acceptable or not, the fact is that the Democrats have compromised by reducing tax revenue demands and accepting certain cuts to key Democratic Party pillars such as Medicaid and Social Security. Has the Republican Party done the same? No. True, Speaker Boehner has tried, but the Tea Party faction has held him and the American economy hostage to that “economically ignorant and disgracefully cynical” path The Economist dislikes so much. The key demands of no new taxes, a stop-gap raise to the debt ceiling that would require this circus to run again in 6 months, and a full Constitutional amendment prior to authorization are still in place. Speaker Boehner understands this, but he cannot reign in his unruly party, and he cannot proceed with co-brokering a centrist solution among adults in both the Democrat and Republican parties without losing his position as Speaker to Eric Cantor.
So, are both sides equally at fault here? No, there are a lot more idiots on the right side of the aisle this time — mostly concentrated in the Tea Party-backed 87 freshman House Republicans that care more about some fairy-tale view of politics and governance than they do in the actual business of getting our country back up on its feet and stable again. Think of it in terms of what the liberal left would have to be demanding in order to put them at the same liberal extreme as what the right has staked out at the conservative end of the spectrum: a 50% income tax rate on the very rich, a 30% reduction in military spending, and a Constitutional amendment to enshrine the sanctity of gay marriage. The cynicism of right wing media and the current Republican leadership is that they portray their position as center-right and scream in outrage at the “socialist” demands of a White House that has done nothing but try to uphold the American tradition of political compromise.
The media does us no favors when they abdicate the facts in the name of appearing “fair and balanced”. What we need is objective, informed journalism. Unfortunately, you tend to find that more outside the United States now than inside it. The nice thing about this, however, is that you can be relatively sure that there is only a limited effect of US political influence on the content of the news. That makes it believable.
There is no doubt in my mind that the US needs to reign in some spending. I am equally sure, however, that this must also involve some tax increases, some closing of loopholes, some elimination of subsidies, and a re-evaluation of where our priorities as a country lie. In this, my opinion lies squarely with The Economist, as does my evaluation of the Republican Party right now. The Big Tent party has turned into a garrison, with the only entrance being a heavily guarded gate at the far right side.
Unfortunately, we’re stuck with the current situation, and this is unlikely to change until the Tea Party gets out of its childhood and its members start acting like rational adults instead of hormone-addled teenagers with a strong sense of superiority. My guess is that the adults will prevail, but not until the children have burned part of the house down. How the American people decide to punish these children will have to wait until the next election to be seen. The parents may also deserve some punishment as well, but anyone who argues that the scolding neighbors and others in the community are equally culpable is simply refusing to take responsibility for what they helped allow to happen.
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