Post by sophiago116 on Dec 4, 2012 19:07:40 GMT -5
There has been battling between opposing political parties since the creation of the United States. Members of competing factions rarely waver from their respective party lines for fear of alienating those in their party, and more importantly, those they hope to receive votes from. Too often, politicians get so caught up in their own party’s agenda and the act of restricting their adversaries, while staying within the consensus, that they fail to make decisions that would benefit the nation as a whole. With the current “Fiscal Cliff” situation, the Democratic President and the Republican-controlled Congress are attempting to reach a compromise. However, the extreme partisanship of both parties pushes each of them into their respective tyrannies of consensus that prohibits the execution of a successful plan for the country.
By January 1, if both parties do not come to an agreement on a fiscal plan, then the terms of the Budget Control Act of 2011 will go into effect, ending the Bush tax cuts and cutting many government programs. Taxing the rich has become a major point of contention of the fiscal cliff debate. While right wings are strongly opposed to taxing the rich, left wings feel that in order to lower the deficit, it is necessary. Members of either side who choose to sway from their party’s position on taxes risk moving outside the consensus. While the debate has come to a head the past few weeks, it has been building to this point for the last few years. The two parties were especially stubborn during the past year, leading up to the election. Republicans had vowed, when Obama became president, to do everything in their power to keep him from being elected to a second term. The Republican tyranny of consensus lead to utter gridlock in Washington. John Boehner and his Republican party made their first priority the defeat of their political adversaries, forgetting that their job is to serve the good of the people. During the election year, it was clear that both candidates had different approaches as to how they were going to lower the deficit. While both parties agree on not raising taxes for the middle class families, the Republicans are adamant about not raising taxes for the wealthy either. Since the House of Representatives are overwhelmingly Republican, Obama’s plan to raise taxes on the rich will never pass without politicians reaching across the aisle. Just as, in The Crucible, the residents of Salem feared the repercussions of going against Puritan beliefs, the Republicans resist going against their tyranny of consensus within their own party because they fear losing votes from their Republican constituents. Likewise, President Obama is under pressure from his party and his constituents to not back down from the Democrats’ belief that the richest Americans need to pay more in order to keep the economy from spiraling downward again.
By the new year, the two parties need to step outside of their tyrannies of consensus, or the country will step over the fiscal cliff. About $500 billion in tax increases and $200 billion in spending cuts are scheduled to take effect if both parties do not come to an agreement on how to handle the tax cuts. The tax increases could potentially put America into another recession. Blind allegiance to one’s party cannot overshadow the good of the country. Republican and Democratic politicians should feel free to vote without fear of repercussions from their parties. The tyranny of consensus over both parties is impeding the ability of Congress and the President to come to a decision and the fallout could be devastating.
Word Count: 600
Works Cited
Khimm, Suzy, et al. "The Fiscal Cliff: Absolutely everything you could possibly need to know, in one FAQ." The Washington Post. N.p., 27 Nov. 2012. Web. 2 Dec. 2012. <http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2012/11/27/absolutely-everything-you-need-to-know-about-the-fiscal-cliff-in-one-faq/#goover>.
Sahadi, Jeanne, and Rich Barbieri. "Fiscal cliff: Tax cuts still partisan tripwire." CNN Money. N.p., 9 Nov. 2012. Web. 2 Dec. 2012. <http://money.cnn.com/2012/11/09/news/economy/obama-fiscal-cliff/index.html>.
By January 1, if both parties do not come to an agreement on a fiscal plan, then the terms of the Budget Control Act of 2011 will go into effect, ending the Bush tax cuts and cutting many government programs. Taxing the rich has become a major point of contention of the fiscal cliff debate. While right wings are strongly opposed to taxing the rich, left wings feel that in order to lower the deficit, it is necessary. Members of either side who choose to sway from their party’s position on taxes risk moving outside the consensus. While the debate has come to a head the past few weeks, it has been building to this point for the last few years. The two parties were especially stubborn during the past year, leading up to the election. Republicans had vowed, when Obama became president, to do everything in their power to keep him from being elected to a second term. The Republican tyranny of consensus lead to utter gridlock in Washington. John Boehner and his Republican party made their first priority the defeat of their political adversaries, forgetting that their job is to serve the good of the people. During the election year, it was clear that both candidates had different approaches as to how they were going to lower the deficit. While both parties agree on not raising taxes for the middle class families, the Republicans are adamant about not raising taxes for the wealthy either. Since the House of Representatives are overwhelmingly Republican, Obama’s plan to raise taxes on the rich will never pass without politicians reaching across the aisle. Just as, in The Crucible, the residents of Salem feared the repercussions of going against Puritan beliefs, the Republicans resist going against their tyranny of consensus within their own party because they fear losing votes from their Republican constituents. Likewise, President Obama is under pressure from his party and his constituents to not back down from the Democrats’ belief that the richest Americans need to pay more in order to keep the economy from spiraling downward again.
By the new year, the two parties need to step outside of their tyrannies of consensus, or the country will step over the fiscal cliff. About $500 billion in tax increases and $200 billion in spending cuts are scheduled to take effect if both parties do not come to an agreement on how to handle the tax cuts. The tax increases could potentially put America into another recession. Blind allegiance to one’s party cannot overshadow the good of the country. Republican and Democratic politicians should feel free to vote without fear of repercussions from their parties. The tyranny of consensus over both parties is impeding the ability of Congress and the President to come to a decision and the fallout could be devastating.
Word Count: 600
Works Cited
Khimm, Suzy, et al. "The Fiscal Cliff: Absolutely everything you could possibly need to know, in one FAQ." The Washington Post. N.p., 27 Nov. 2012. Web. 2 Dec. 2012. <http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2012/11/27/absolutely-everything-you-need-to-know-about-the-fiscal-cliff-in-one-faq/#goover>.
Sahadi, Jeanne, and Rich Barbieri. "Fiscal cliff: Tax cuts still partisan tripwire." CNN Money. N.p., 9 Nov. 2012. Web. 2 Dec. 2012. <http://money.cnn.com/2012/11/09/news/economy/obama-fiscal-cliff/index.html>.