GOP made its own bed

President Obama and the democrats, whose objective it all along has been to raise as much in taxes as possible, must be feeling pretty content these days.  After all, the table has been set for the largest tax increase in American history, and somehow they can blame it on a GOP that is solidly pledged not to raise taxes.

How did we find ourselves in this situation?



First, when the "Bush tax cuts" originally were enacted in 2001, they were adopted by the Republican House and a Republican Senate, and signed into law by a Republican President.  And they, the Republicans, insisted on including a sunset provision on those tax cuts of December 31, 2010 (why, God only knows).  The House, with the assent of now-Speaker Boehner, consented in 2010 to extend that through December 31, 2012, conveniently after the Presidential, Senate and Congressional election campaigns.


So, President Obama was able to name his own terms and his own timing for the debate that now is unfolding, for imagine how different this debate would be if it were held in September or October of this year, with elections in front of all of the players, Republican and Democrat, House and third of the Senate, instead of behind them.

We allowed ourselves to be outfoxed, outwitted, and outgunned not just on the electoral battlefield, but where it also matters, in the legislative battlefield.

So, now that we have made this bed.  Let's sleep in it.  Speaker Boehner needs to start negotiating on our terms, from our strength.  And our strength is not in taxes (that now automatically will rise), but in spending, where the House must originate all spending bills.  We control the purse strings to actually reform Social Security, Medicare, ObamaCare, and Medicaid.

It is the GOP House's job to cut (i.e., eliminate, tear them out by their roots) the hundreds and thousands of wasteful programs emanating from Washington and contorting the free market economy so that it is unrecognizable.

Speaker Boehner, we the voters handed you the House two cycles in a row, not to occupy space, but to change policy in D.C., to make a difference in reducing, in a substantial way, the size and scope of government in Washington.

The GOP House, we are counting on you to make this happen.