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Is the Republican Party For or Against Trillion Dollar Deficits?
The Next Right —
Jon is right. The addition of some $300 billion in temporary tax cuts to the massive $775 billion Obama stimulus is a risk politically and Bushonomics (e.g. tax-cut-and-spend) on steroids policywise.
What's the main reason Republicans are dispirited right now? Because the Republican Party no longer represented less spending and limited government. What do we propose to do to fix it? Why... double down on this strategy by throwing in with the biggest spending bill in U.S. history if does enough tax cutting! As Jon infers, if the GOP accepts massive stimulus spending of any kind, it will sever the GOP from its base for years, keep ...
A Really Simple Federal Candidate Litmus Test
The Next Right —
Patrick is right when he states that Jon is right in: "Is the Republican Party For or Against Trillion Dollar Deficits?"
A couple or three CPACs ago, I ran into Grover Norquist and chatted with him for a few minutes about GOP priorities. This was the first time I ever heard Grover say that he wished, in retrospect, that he had placed much greater emphasis on reductions in federal spending. I later heard him say pretty much the same thing at an event at his house.
I spent much of the evening of July 4, 2007 with the late John Berthoud of the NTU. He expressed the same general sentiment as we watched the DC ...
OBAMA’S STIMULUS STRATEGY: A trap for Republicans?
UPDATE: Kudlow likes the cut of Obama’s jib,…
Instapundit —
OBAMA’S STIMULUS STRATEGY: A trap for Republicans?
UPDATE: Kudlow likes the cut of Obama’s jib, but thinks the Republicans should offer a “bold alternative.” (How about making mortgage interest a refundable credit for three years? That should help the housing market!)
Meanwhile, Arnold Kling is against the stimulus bill.
...
Obama’s Clever Fiscal Stimulus Strategy
RedState: Conservative News and Community —
Jon Henke lays out the danger to Congressional Republicans of supporting Barack Obama’s stimulus package:
Here’s the calculation on fiscal stimulus: If Obama gets his way, he’s looking at massive, trillion dollars deficits, and much more government intervention in the economy. The public may tolerate this due to fears about economic crisis, but if it works out well and the US gets a relatively soft landing from the recession, then the costs will still be visible (deficit, intervention), but the benefits will be intangible (the crisis that didn’t come).
What’s more, the Democrats have only one ...
Obama Mimics FDR’s Failed Policies
RedState: Conservative News and Community —
President-elect Barack Obama is trying to bribe Republicans with $300 billion in tax cuts as part of a much larger economic stimulus proposal. Will the GOP take the bait?
As hard as it might be for Republicans to walk away from a large tax cut, they shouldn’t be fooled by Obama’s big-spending approach. The president-elect wants to spend hundreds of billions of dollars on unemployment insurance, Medicaid eligibility, infrastructure projects, and even bailouts for states such as California, New York and New Jersey.
Government spending will not spur long-term economic growth or reduce the economic pain felt by ...
1/6: Leon At Langley?
Blogometer —
... of Obama's tax cut proposal, and it's obviously important to see the details before trying to pass judgment. For now, though, Obama's support for major tax cuts can only be seen as one more pleasant surprise from the incoming administration." The Next Right 's Jon Henke thinks GOPers should be wary about supporting the Dem stimulus bill: "If Obama passes the perfect progressive stimulus bill without much Republican help, he owns the spending, the deficits, the tax hikes and all of the pain that comes with it. Republicans will be happy to run against those problems in 2010 ...
A Brief History of Spending Compromises
The Next Right —
Blogging on Obama's stimulus strategy, Jon writes:
Republicans are in a difficult situation here.
If they oppose the bill and it fails, they will be blamed (fairly or not) for any economic problems.
If they support the bill and it passes, they will share the blame for the enormous costs it will entail.
If they oppose the bill and it passes, the lack of policy leverage would leave the bill much worse than if they had forced potentially valuable compromises (e.g., sunset provisions and exit strategies).
I agree that Republican's face a "difficult ...
Obama's Strategy: Get the Republicans a Little Bit Pregnant With Stimulus/Socialism
Ace of Spades HQ —
Obama's Strategy: Get the Republicans a Little Bit Pregnant With Stimulus/Socialism So then we're on the hook for it -- for good or for ill -- along with himself and the Democrats. This is a common reaction to Great Big Crises With Unpredictable Outcomes. No one wants to be left behind on the losing team when a crucial, era-defining vote comes up -- witness John F'n' Kerry voting in favor of the Iraq War. So Obama's trying to get us on board with trillion dollar (Trillion!) deficits by offering some modest tax-cutting. Here's the calculation on fiscal stimulus: If Obama gets ...
More On “I Won”
RedState: Conservative News and Community —
... That’s because we recognize that Obama is not negotiating with us because he wants to do us a favor. He’s doing it because he wants us all on the same hook together. ...
