In an Act of Political Cowardice House Republicans Shove America Off the Fiscal Cliff

Last updated on February 8th, 2013 at 12:21 am

Cowardly House Republicans will shove America off the fiscal cliff because they are afraid of voting for tax increase on the wealthy.

House Republicans are saying that they can’t vote tonight on any agreement to avoid the fiscal cliff because the bill will take time to get through the Senate. However, CNN is reporting the suspected real reason for the non-vote, “GOP sources admitted there is an added benefit to the Senate’s delay: taxes would already be up, so lawmakers could argue that they are voting for tax cuts, as opposed to tax increases.One GOP source also said that may help get more House Republicans to vote for the deal.”

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In plain English, Speaker Boehner does not have the votes to pass any agreement tonight. Rank and file House Republicans are such cowards that they would rather shove America off the fiscal cliff, so that they can claim that they are voting for tax cuts instead of tax increases.

All of this drama is because House Republicans want to pretend like they aren’t raising taxes.

The flaw in this “logic” is that no matter when the vote occurs, House Republicans will still be voting to keep in place a tax increase for someone. I suspect that this is fact is the main reason why the likelihood of the House passing any agreement is questionable.

Remember, this is the same legislative body who would not vote on Boehner’s Plan B which would have raised taxes only on millionaires. Enough House Republicans will be lured in by the idea of being able to say that they “cut” taxes for the 98% to probably pass any agreement, but how many Americans do they really think they can fool with this claim?

Once again House Republicans have manufactured a fiscal crisis, only to see it blow up in their faces.

After taxes go up on those earning $250,000 or more, one has to wonder what incentive President Obama will have to pursue a deal? I suspect that if House Republicans don’t act quickly a.k.a. tomorrow, President Obama will force them to sweeten the pot. The House had best pass any agreement as soon as it is offered to them, or there may not be a deal left on the table.

House Republicans caused this mess, and because they refuse to take responsibility for their actions, they are set to push the country off the fiscal cliff in a desperate attempt to give themselves the slightest political cover.

The events of today demonstrate that it isn’t our government that is broken and dysfunctional. The Senate and the White House have been trying to do their jobs. The reason why Washington can’t get anything done begins and ends with the Republican control of the House of Representatives.

Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.

Awards and  Professional Memberships

Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association