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"Voters are split on whether they are concerned about a possible government shutdown, and if they agree that a temporary shutdown would be a good thing because it will force spending cuts. Democrats, however, are much more likely than Republicans to be concerned and much less likely to think it would be a good thing."
It's an institutional failure, not just a political one. In the end, if negotiations fail, America's least approved institution, the Congress itself, will find itself rejected and disrespected by more Americans!
Make no mistake: behind the rhetoric, the hard-line ideological right is on a war footing. They don't care who they will hurt, and are hell bent in shutting down the government, in defunding any programs Democrats like or people need. They are not into compromise, conciliation or even dialogue.
In response, the center operates more like the flabby do gooders of the Salvation Army, trying to save what it can, trying to keep their unraveling coalition together, compromising and colluding with whomever it can.
In contrast, the right is more like a more muscular Marine Corps, determined to seize that hill, in this case, Capitol Hill. They are, in one sense, true Jihadists in suits, on a mission from God, and in this case, the great deity's chosen representatives on earth like the Billionaires, Koch Brothers and Rupert Murdoch.
This is not about Money; it is about power. And it is coming to a head soon. Each party is scurrying to get the best deal but a large number of diehards have wrapped themselves in "live free or die" banners and are willing to take the government down with them.
It is a calculated tactic, akin to holding the country hostage, by creating a crisis that only they can solve, when their opponents cave into their demands, that is.
In essence it says to pols in Washington and the people; do what we demand or we take your government away!
Writes David Johnson of the GOP, "Their election strategy for 2010 was to obstruct everything and keep the economy from creating jobs, and then blame Democrats. It worked. So now they're doing it even more. But is that the whole plan? In every instance Republicans are obstructing the very things that can help the economy recover and provide the jobs people need. Everything they do is aimed at making things worse. It is hard to understand their actions except as a systematic attempt to blow up the economy."
Tom Franck called Republicans the "Wrecking Crew" in a book of the same name well before they were able to beat up on a flabby, dispirited and poorly organized Democratic Party led by a President who wants to be everyone's friend. Time Magazine said of his book,
"Frank offers one damning anecdote after another. The Wrecking Crew explains how cynical conservatives have wrested control of the government by railing against its very existence, all while using federal perches to funnel billions into the pockets of lobbyists and the corporations they represent."
A Steve Koss explains, "According to Frank, the conservative worldview is totally committed to "the ideal of laissez faire, meaning minimal government interference in the marketplace, along with hostility to taxation, regulation, organized labor, state ownership, and all the business community's other enemies.
"The
conservative movement promotes the interests of business exclusively over all
else in accordance with the motto, 'More business in government, less
government in business.' So-called 'big government,' also tagged as the liberal
state, is the enemy; in fact, virtually all government is the enemy, other than
the national defense.
That said, where are we now?
The Daily Beast reports, "Senate Democrats are preparing to offer $20 billion in new spending cuts in order to avoid a government shutdown- but will it be enough for the Tea Party? (DS: They are now up to $30 B) The offer, which is Democrats' highest yet, comes on top of $10 billion in cuts that have already been enacted. The House GOP, however, has so far stood by its demand for $61 billion in cuts as it faces pressure from the Tea Party activists. Congress returns from recess Monday and has until April 8 before funding runs dry."
On the sidelines is an emboldened Wall Street, "resurrected" in the words of the National Journal, into "a global financial elite even less under U.S. control than before the crash." Its many lobbyists are hard at work toning down the rules that will govern the financial reform bill.
