AdamVsTheManRT on Jul 12, 2011
The countdown is on! D-22 days until the U.S. defaults. So will anything ever come out of Obama's debt default discussions?
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The Republicans have staked their positions: no new taxes and massive spending cuts, in particular to entitlement programs. The presence of a vocal and uncompromising Tea Party contingent makes it difficult for the more moderate Speaker of the House, John Boehner, to deliver votes on a compromise deal with Barack Obama. Consequently, the odds of an historic deal between Obama and the Republicans appear very remote.
Obama, having realized that his re-election depends on capturing a majority of the independent voters and keeping his political base intact, seems willing to go some way on spending cuts, but insists on increasing revenue to some extent. Meanwhile, the Democratic left has grown worried the president’s concessions could upset the Democratic base. At issue for Democrats are the Congressional elections of 2012 and regaining control over Congress. http://www2.macleans.ca/2011/07/11/how-politics-have-come-to-dominate-the-debt-ceiling-debate/