Wiseacre
Retired USAF Chief
This is my biggest pet peeve for the democrats - they will not even talk about reforming the entitlement programs that everyone knows are on an unsustainable path. These things, Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid are the largest spending areas in the budget; the trustees, OMB, CBO, everybody says they are growing too large relative to GDP. We simply cannot afford to continue the status quo, and yet for political reasons the democrats adamantly refuse to make any changes. The republicans have at least put forward the Ryan Plan to address the issue; the democrats have done nothing.
This is not the leadership we should be getting from Washington. Problems should be faced and addressed by both sides, deals worked out and compromises made, regardless of the political costs. I wouldn't say the Republicans are blameless in this, and we do have a major difference of opinion over which way to go: gov't centered vs private business. Pretty hard to work out an agreement when each side is diametrically opposed to the other in terms of ideology. In such times, I think you go with what the public wants, both in terms of desired policies and payfors. I would like to see the next president lay it all out to the American people in an unbiased manner - here's the deal, these are the choices, and here's how we can pay for it. Then he should sit down with the leaders in Congress and strike a deal, however onerous it might be to either side or both sides. I don't want somebody trying to sell me on what he wants, like a used car salesman trying to unload a lemon. I want the truth with no spin.
In my view it is the democrats who are the most intransigent; they are showing a total unwillingness to offer a plan to deal with these issues. It is political cowardice and a lack of leadership from the top people in their party. I think Obama could've had a deal over the debt ceiling last summer, but he tried to change it to be more in his favor at the end and it all fell apart. A president is supposed to get things done with the opposition party, and he didn't do it.
This is not the leadership we should be getting from Washington. Problems should be faced and addressed by both sides, deals worked out and compromises made, regardless of the political costs. I wouldn't say the Republicans are blameless in this, and we do have a major difference of opinion over which way to go: gov't centered vs private business. Pretty hard to work out an agreement when each side is diametrically opposed to the other in terms of ideology. In such times, I think you go with what the public wants, both in terms of desired policies and payfors. I would like to see the next president lay it all out to the American people in an unbiased manner - here's the deal, these are the choices, and here's how we can pay for it. Then he should sit down with the leaders in Congress and strike a deal, however onerous it might be to either side or both sides. I don't want somebody trying to sell me on what he wants, like a used car salesman trying to unload a lemon. I want the truth with no spin.
In my view it is the democrats who are the most intransigent; they are showing a total unwillingness to offer a plan to deal with these issues. It is political cowardice and a lack of leadership from the top people in their party. I think Obama could've had a deal over the debt ceiling last summer, but he tried to change it to be more in his favor at the end and it all fell apart. A president is supposed to get things done with the opposition party, and he didn't do it.