By Greg Sargent
<...>
In remarks to reporters just now, Obama left little doubt that he views this move as a preemptive strike against Republicans in the war for the moral high ground over who really cares about the deficit. He called for the GOP to join him in "making sure that we're not dragged down on long term debt."
"This is a challenge that both parties have a responsibility to address: To get Federal spending under control, and bring down the deficits that have been growing for most of the last decade," Obama continued.
Even though the freeze is largely symbolic, Obama seems to think it's a way for him to say to Republicans: "I made a move to prove I'm serious about the deficit. Your move."
In purely political terms, this probably doesn't hurt. If the goal is to signal that he "gets the message" on spending that the voters supposedly sent on election day, as the Beltway consensus has it, this is a relatively easy way to signal that he's "listening." But it's hard to see how this increases leverage over the GOP in any meaningful sense.
Indeed, in a statement just now, Eric Cantor, the number two in the House GOP leadership, seized on the news as proof that Republicans, not Obama, are setting the governing agenda. Cantor said he was "encouraged" by Obama's proposal, noting that House Republicans had already "offered the very same spending-cut proposal on the floor of the House." Cantor continued:
"We are pleased that President Obama appears ready to join our efforts. As the recent election made clear, Americans are fed up with a government that spends too much, borrows too much and grows too much."
more
Printer-friendly format
Email this thread to a friend
Bookmark this thread
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore