After what was both an exhilarating and exhausting presidential election race in late 2011, ever since we have been bombarded by never-ending exasperation surrounding the dreaded fiscal cliff. Much as I would rather be discussing the exponentially more appealing Cliffs of Moher (above), I feel we have no choice but to dig a little into the fiscal cliff fiasco, but we can do so with a beautiful image as a form of pleasant distraction!
And so the so-called "government" in the US has come to a "deal" to avert the fiscal cliff, for now, thereby averting driving the entire nation into a spiralling financial vortex headed towards the fiscal End of Days itself. Well, whoop-di-doo. If anyone expects any back slapping or chilled champagne they can forget it - this bunch of (theoretically) grown-up schoolboys (sorry, but most of the major players are men!) are the face of one of the most playground-like dysfunctional excuses for a Congress that we may ever have seen.
To say that various Republicans are unhappy with the way things turned out would be an understatement. Some are saying that the Republican party itself is on the verge of a civil war; they are a party as divided and directionless as many can remember them being, fighting now among themselves, as well as with the Democrats. House speaker John Boehner has been accused of putting his own job before either his party or the people who voted for him.
When the speaker draws criticism from within, but in a public fashion, it is a sign of considerable unrest and lack of harmony among some of the major players. Republican congressman Peter King (NY) ripped into Boehner in a shocking speech on the house floor on Wednesday, calling him "dismissive" and denouncing his "cavalier attitude" towards the crisis still ongoing in the northeastern states following Sandy. Boehner had walked off the floor the previous night with no warning, stating he would return to address the impending bill for $60B of aid, but he then left the building. It seemed as if he had walked straight off his very own cliff, and could not or would not take anymore.
New Jersey governor Chris Christie, who had been criticized for being too touchy-feely friendly with Obama during his Sandy tour and pre-election campaign, also ripped into Boehner and the Republican leadership. He accused them of playing politics while delaying the bill for aid, and even displayed a remarkable level of mistrust with the lot of them:
"There is no reason for me at the moment to believe anything they tell me because they've been telling me stuff for weeks and they haven't delivered," he said recently.
That this comes from a man believed to have presidential aspirations as a Republican candidate himself underlines the divisions rife among a party that seemingly has lost its leadership and direction. Christie, like King, is furious with the delay in passing this bill. As it happens, they will vote on the first $9B of aid this Friday, with a second vote for the outstanding $51B of aid to be held on January 15th.
John Boehner himself, no doubt feeling enormous pressure, ran into Senate majority leader Harry Reid who had described Boehner as a "dictator"the day before, and with no introduction reportedly told Reid to "Go f*** yourself!" in front of witnesses -twice! Total high school nonsense, only they're way better paid and have bigger cars.
Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell, who is known to be a hardliner, stated that while the deal on the fiscal cliff is far from perfect, he felt they had to do something to prevent further hardship on the great majority of Americans. But he did point out that while Obama has gotten his desired tax on the rich, the real problem facing the country is out of control spending, which Obama has refused to address. For sure, more fire and brimstone is coming.
A brand new Congress comes into power today, and God only knows what newly elected members face, coming into this playground brawl while they are still trying on their school uniforms. For the rest, it's the same old: gun control, immigration, the debt limit, sequestration, Sandy, and so on. Given how little they have managed to achieve recently, I wouldn't hold out much hope.
One thing is clear: Congress is not inspiring anyone in 2013, and if the House is supposed to be some type of example of "leadership" to a nation's youth, never mind their parents, then God help us all. They ought to be ashamed of themselves, and for their lack of real achievement and inability to work as a team, well, like the rest of us, they should be eligible for dismissal. How come Joe Public gets evaluated on a quarterly basis and warned to improve on this or change that, due to an inability to "get along" in the workplace, while these clowns get to relive high school on huge salaries while answering to basically no one?! It is a disgrace!
I cannot help but restate that this all stems from a lack of real leadership, at the very top. Just like when a football team of diverse personalities/talents fails, or a multifaceted tech company crumbles, the coach or CEO is the one who shoulders the blame. Obama may be many things, but as we have discussed before, a stellar leader of Congress or further of a nation, he isn't. He merely seems weary.
Quite naturally, he wasn't in the Oval Office when the fiscal cliff deal hit his desk for signing - he is sunning himself in Hawaii, of course. But panic not, we are assured that he will sign by "autopen". Phew, another crisis averted! Why he is not in town as major bills hit his desk and a new Congress is sworn in is beyond me. None of us are on holiday anymore, so why is he?!
The bottom line? Frankly, I truly cannot see it any other way than de facto, these next four years are going to be more or less an extended vacation in US politics. Obama's is on a cosy four year business-as-usual vacay, but keeping the Democratic seat warm in the White House, until a significantly better new candidate and truly inspirational prospective leader (who can deliver) emerges. Ergo, 2013-2016 is going to be of more interest with regards to who is going to emerge and the subsequent race for the nomination, than for anything this guy is going to achieve. He has lost the House, totally, inside four years, and I don't see any chance in Hell of that being turned around, especially given that in political lifespans, he is already on the way out.
My guess? Keep a very, very close eye on Hilary Clinton because if she runs, she might just upstage the man who beat her in a vicious fight in 2008 as he became the first black President. She has become so popular across the board as a dedicated Secretary of State that she could well become the first female President in history - if that also means that charismatic ol' Bill Clinton goes back to the White House for his "retirement" years, well I think that might just be the cherry on the cake!
Hmm, speaking of cherries, I do have a particularly tempting warm black cherry and walnut muffin waiting for me, so off I go! ;) - Kevin Mc
No comments:
Post a Comment