The Ryan-Boehner, Boehner-Ryan Shell Game

Rep. Paul Ryan has a great idea for getting the U.S. budget in shape. He’ll cut tax rates, and Democrats will decide which tax write-offs to eliminate. “Everything will be on the table,” Rep. Paul says, and he means everything. If the Democrats want to eliminate deductability of health insurance costs, home mortgages, tuition, he’ll listen. And when it comes to spending, it’s the same deal. He’ll set an overall ceiling, and then the Democrats can decide how to meet that ceiling. If they want to cut education programs, farm subsidies, Food Stamps—anything!—again, he’s all ears. Just tell me what you want to cut!

And now House Speaker John “Brown John” Boehner is making the same pitch to President Obama with regard to the upcoming increase in the U.S. debt ceiling. We’ll increase, you cut! Fair is fair!

It is “funny” that Republicans warn that the U.S. can turn into Greece if we’re not careful, that if don’t shape up people will lose confidence in the ability of the U.S. to pay its debts. Because the great goal of the Tea Party movement, the goal towards which they are pushing the Republican Party, is the repudiation of the U.S. debt. They don’t want to pay it. As I’ve said before, they are the new Jacobins. The once “Regular Republicans,” like Boehner, are under constant pressure from the new right wing, and they are finding it easier and easier to give way, and harder and harder to stop. The Wall Street bad boys who are walking away from Obama because he won’t, in the words of Lyndon Johnson, kiss Wall Street’s ass in Macy’s window at high noon and say it smells like roses, are going to be in for a surprise.