Attention Congressional Democrats: Reality Calling.

It feels very odd to be on opposite sides from Congressional liberals/progressives and commentators who I normally look to for leadership and wisdom. Rarely if ever have I found myself disagreeing with the likes of Chuck Schumer, Barney Franks, Anthony Weiner, Bernie Sanders and Keith Olbermann (although I find myself disagreeing with Olbermann more often these days). However, in resisting President Obama’s tax cut compromise, these liberals/progressives and others like them have lost touch with what passes for “reality” in the US Senate.

That reality is governed by the Republican filibuster—the need to craft legislation which will attract the support of two or more Republican Senators needed to reach the 60 vote threshold to break the Republican filibuster of virtually all legislation.

It doesn’t matter that a majority of American’s support something. It doesn’t matter that a majority of Senators support a bill. It requires 60 votes to break a filibuster and that means—even if all the Democratic Senators and Lieberman vote to break the filibuster, which is itself rare—a minimum of two Republican Senators have to vote with the Democrats. All year Democratic Senators and liberal/progressive commentators have descried this until their throats were raw, but they haven’t been able or willing to use the tactics necessary to break this rule.

Democrats in the Senate have to have the support of at least two Republican Senators to pass any meaningful legislation; that is the reality. And no Republicans will vote to extend the Bush tax cuts, unless the extension also applies to those families making more than $250,000 a year. This, as President Obama has said, is their “Holy grail.” Huge tax cuts for America’s wealthiest is the payback they owe those who anonymous contributions paid for the Republican attack ads last election. It is what they owe their masters and they will accept no compromise on it.

The repeal of “Don’t ask don’t tell,” the Dream Act, funding for medical care for 911 first offenders, and military appropriations all have failed to come to a vote because of an unbreakable Republican filibuster of all bills which the Senate Republicans have sworn to continue until the Bush tax cuts are all extended. The Senate Republicans are quite willing to let all the tax cuts lapse and destroy the American economy in order to get their way.

This November, American voters rewarded the Republicans with huge electoral gains after having spent two years obstructing legislation which would have helped the economy. Now they are certain that, whatever they do, they can persuade the American voters in 2012 that the economic distress caused by failing to extend the Bush tax cuts for the middle class and extended unemployment benefits (the extension of which is part of the Obama compromise) is the Democrat’s fault.

If the Democrats fail to support President Obama’s compromise, the Republicans think they will still have won. That is the unfortunate reality that President Obama has faced and those liberals and progressives who are fighting the compromise have not. The Obama compromise is the best deal the American people are apt to get.

Comments

[anita_margarita]

I agree with you. While I'd like to have things go more to the left, the truth is that the Dems are in no position right now to sit back and squall that the bill isn't exactly what they want. Compromise is the order of the day, at least right now, and we have to go to the other side of the aisle, hat in hand, and try to gain some support. That means we'll have to give up some things we hold dear - like letting Bush's tax cut for the wealthy expire: it isn't going to happen.

But perhaps in 2 years the country will see the Republicans in office for what they are: greedy, uncaring, rich, and far removed from how ordinary people live.