Robert Reich on the McConnell option on the debt-ceiling negotiations

Economist Robert Reich agrees with analysts like David Dayen and Digby that while the Beltway Village will celebrate something like the Mitch McConnell surrender option on the debt-ceiling vote as a victory for President Obama. His blog post is called, oddly, Why Mitch McConnell Will Win the Day07/13/2011. Still, though in some sense it actually is a win for the President:

Washington insiders will consider the McConnell compromise a win for Obama. But the rest of the country hasn't been paying much attention and won't consider it much of a win for either side. Their attention is riveted to the economy, particularly jobs and wages. If those don't improve, Obama will be a one-term president regardless of how the GOP wants to paint him. [my emphasis]

Because Obama and Democrats approached this in such a way that it was really a losing situation for them no matter the outcome.

And since the Republicans not only got Obama to join them in pushing for Medicare cuts but also to take the lead in calling to cut Social Security, it has been a disaster for Democrats.

Tags: barack obama, debt ceiling, robert reich

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