There has been a lot of talk in the media recently about the "fiscal cliff", and Republicans are trying to scare the American people into believing instant economic disaster will happen if drastic cuts aren't made to Medicare, Social Security, and programs that help hurting Americans (poor and disadvantaged, unemployed, etc.) -- while continuing the Bush tax cuts for the richest 2% and giving more money to the already bloated military budget.The media seems to have bought into this disaster scenario, and are treating those lame Republican positions as though they actually have some validity. They don't. Those are the same policies that threw this nation into a recession and cost millions of hard-working Americans their jobs -- and those policies were soundly defeated by the majority of voters in the last election. The real truth is that almost all Americans would be much better off if Congress did nothing at all, than if they gave in to the ridiculous Republican economic demands -- and most people know it.
For the first time in a long time, the Democrats find themselves in a position of advantage in the Congress. They have the support of the voters (most of whom support raising taxes on the rich, and would blame the GOP if a compromise was not reached maintaining the tax cuts for the bottom 98%), and need to leverage that support to do some things to help ordinary Americans and put the economy back on the right track.
Robert Reich (writer, college professor, former Secretary of Labor, president of Common Cause) has some advice for the Democrats, which he has boiled down to eight concise and cogent points. I agree with all of the points he makes, and provide them here for your consideration:
1. HOLD YOUR GROUND.
The wealthy have to pay their fair share of taxes. That’s what the election was all about, and we won. It’s only fair they pay more. They’re taking home record share of national income and wealth, and have lowest effective tax rate in living memory.
2. NO DEAL IS BETTER THAN A BAD DEAL.
You’re in a strong bargaining position. If you do nothing, the Bush tax cuts automatically expire in January, and we go back to rates during Clinton administration. Which isn’t such a bad thing. As I recall we had a pretty good economy during the Clinton years.
3. MAKE REPUBLICANS VOTE ON EXTENDING THE TAX CUTS JUST FOR THE MIDDLE CLASS.
After all the Bush tax cuts expire, have Republicans vote on an extending the Bush tax cut just for the middle-class. If they refuse and try to hold those tax cuts hostage to tax cuts for the wealthy, it will show whose side they’re on. They’ll pay the price in 2014.
4. DEMAND HIGHER TAX RATES ON WEALTHY, NOT JUST LIMITS ON DEDUCTIONS.
Don’t fall for Republican offers to limit some tax deductions on the wealthy. Demand we go back to higher tax rates on the wealthy and eliminate their unfair tax loopholes, so they truly start paying their fair share.
5. DON’T CUT SAFETY NETS.
Don’t sacrifice Medicare or Social Security, or programs for the poor. Americans depend on these safety nets and can’t afford any benefit cuts.
6. DON’T CUT INVESTMENTS IN OUR FUTURE PRODUCTIVITY.
Education, basic R&D, and infrastructure aren’t spending; they’re investments in our future prosperity. If the return on these investments is greater than the cost, they ought to be made, period.
7. CUT SPENDING ON MILITARY AND CORPORATE WELFARE.
You want to cut, cut spending on the military — which now exceeds the military spending of the next 13 largest military spenders in the world combined. And cut corporate welfare — support to agribusiness, oil and gas, Big Pharma, big insurance, and Wall Street.
8. PUT JOBS BEFORE DEFICIT REDUCTION.
Finally, Don’t cut the budget deficit as long as unemployment remains high. Otherwise you’ll cause the economy to contract, making the deficit even larger in proportion. That’s the austerity trap Europe has fallen into. We need to create American prosperity, not European austerity.
