Posted by Shyam Moondra
Republican Speaker of the House, John Boehner, never misses an opportunity to say something that would demolish business confidence, which, in return, would blunt economic recovery and prolong the misery of unemployed people.
The latest Wall Street Journal/NBC News opinion poll puts Congressional approval rating at record low of 12%. The Congress has been viewed very negatively by the American people for many years but this seems to have almost no effect on Republicans. It’s as if they consider this level of low rating as a badge of honor. In the last year’s election, Republicans lost seats in the Senate and House, and they also failed to win the presidency. One would then think that this might have taught them a lesson and they would behave differently, but no such luck.
Recently, Boehner said that the success of Congressional Republicans should be judged not based on how many bills they pass but based on how many bills they repeal. Next week, Republicans are planning to repeal Affordable Care Act (referred to as Obamacare by Republicans) the 40th time, but it will again be ignored by Democrat-controlled Senate. Some Republicans are even advocating a new tactic to undo the laws passed by the Congress but not favored by a majority of Republicans and that is to unfund those programs. This is a dangerous approach which amounts to making a mockery of the democratic system and is a form of political terrorism. Given the potential huge backlash from the voters just before the next year's elections, many moderate Republicans are not in favor of such an extreme precedent, which could also be exploited by Democrats when they are in control of the House.
House Republicans marvel on their failure to negotiate with the opponents on averting sequestration, which forced across-the-board spending cuts (some of which even Republicans view as harmful to economy). The Congressional Republicans are resolute in putting their rigid political ideology above what’s prudent or in the best interest of the country. Somehow, in their twisted way of thinking, they believe it’s good for their re-election, even in the face of evidence that suggests otherwise. The House Republicans are holding the country as a hostage and they are putting their countrymen through unnecessary pain and suffering by obstructing economic recovery.
Boehner also said that he would not increase the debt limit unless President Barack Obama and Congressional Democrats agreed to cut spending substantially beyond the multi-year cuts that have already been put in place. Last time, Republicans threatened to use the government shutdown as a political tactic on the question of increasing debt ceiling; that threat led to the downgrade of government bond rating from AAA+ to AAA, the first ever such downgrade in the history of the country. That ugly debate shook up the business confidence and put brakes on economic recovery. Republicans ultimately lost that debate and they were forced to give in on tax increases for the super rich. Republicans’ intransigence, however, led to their poor performance in the 2012 elections. Now they are threatening to make the same mistake again.
Recent reports show that the federal budget deficit will fall to $759 billion for the fiscal year that ends this September, a $214 billion improvement from the projection made just a few months ago. Bi-partisan agreements on spending cuts and tax increases for the rich combined with improving economy are having a positive impact on the budget deficit outlook. If these trends continue, the issue of spending cuts, strongly favored by Republicans, may lose traction among the voters. As Obama correctly articulated in his recent speech on economy, given that corporate profits have surged to the record levels and budget deficit is declining, the government focus should now be on reducing unemployment rate which is still too high. That means the government should formulate policies that foster growth rather than be obsessed with spending cuts.
Congressional Republicans should start thinking about positioning themselves for the next election cycle of 2014, which is not that far away. Below is a laundry list of what Republicans should do:
• Reform the tax code. There is sufficient bi-partisan support for simplifying the tax code (by eliminating the special-interest deductions and rebates) and bringing down the overall tax rate for businesses. A lower overall tax rate would be very conducive to economic growth.
• Revisit sequestration and come up with more balanced bi-partisan approaches to spending cuts and individual tax increases. Some of the spending cuts triggered by sequestration (e.g., defense and Head Start program) are actually harmful and should be reversed.
• Given the dire state of our bridges, tunnels, and highways, we need to spend more on infrastructure improvements. A majority of people would have no problem with a special surcharge on gasoline to pay for these infrastructure upgrades.
• Education has been on the decline for a few years now and we need to do more to stay competitive in global trade. We need to provide more funding for pre-school and technical vocational training programs as well as find ways to reduce the rate of increase in the cost of college education.
Republicans need to demonstrate that they can be trusted to govern by becoming a part of the solution rather than being identified as a part of the problem. The Washington, DC gridlock only works against Republicans. If they can work in a bi-partisan way, their position will only become stronger by the time of the 2014 election.
