The greatest accomplishment of our time
by digby
PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA:… We can’t negotiate around the debt ceiling. If Mr. Boehner has ideas about– how we can grow this economy, strengthen the middle class, put people back to work in a serious way– of course we’re happy to– you know, support the negotiations that are takin’ place between– the House and the Senate.
But my orientation here is real simple. I wanna make sure that we’ve got an economy in which Main Street’s winning. And what that requires is that we’re investing in education, early childhood, that we’re investing in transportation, that we’re investing in the things that we need to grow. If we’re gonna re– if we’re gonna continue to reduce the deficit, and I think a lot of people aren’t aware of the fact that the deficit’s been cut in half since I came into office, it’s continuing on a trend line of further reductions.
If we wanna do more deficit reduction, I’ve already– put out a budget that says, “Let’s do it.” I’m willing to reform entitlements. I’m willing to– you know, cut out additional waste that may be there. And I’m spending time, even without pressure from Congress, trying to figure out how we can cut out waste in the system.
But– I– what I also think we should be doing is eliminating– corporate tax breaks that nobody can defend– but keep on– reappearing each year in the budget. If we are serious about it, there’s no reason– that we can’t do it, and do right by–
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: How ’bout–
PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: –by the– by the country.
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: How ’bout beyond the deficit? You were, you know, reelected a little more than a year ago, 332 electoral votes.
PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: Right.
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: 51% of the vote.
PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: Yeah.
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: First president since Eisenhower to do it twice.
You put gun control at the top of the agenda, immigration reform, climate change. All of it stalled or reversing. How do you answer the argument that– beyond the deficit, this has been a lost year? And how do you save it?
Not that I’m blaming him for the lack of movement on immigration reform, climate change and gun control. But if he comes out of his two terms with health care reform and deficit reduction as his main policy accomplishments I wonder if he’ll feel pleased? I suspect so. If he can get them to take him up on his repeated offer to cut even more and especially the vital social security programs (when they actually need to be raised), he will have fulfilled his Grand Bargain agenda. He certainly seems prepared to grant that deficit reduction remains extremely important and bringing it down is one of his proudest a accomplishments. He can’t wait to do more of it.
I suppose that’s partly a negotiating stance but it’s hard to see how any of his yammering over the past five years about the need to cut “entitlements” has bought him any political good will. In fact, this obsession with the deficit has now stuck us with sequestration which is slashing the very areas in which he insists we must invest. Kids are losing their food stamps and Head Start, the elderly are losing Meals on Wheels. There’s no money for infrastructure.
But apparently we ain’t done yet. According to the president we need to cut even more. So you have to assume he believes in it on the merits.
BTW: The part on Syria was quite good and worth watching. As much as Stephanopoulos tried to get him to “admit” that he somehow screwed up by not being a big swinging Commander in Chief and declaring war on Vladimir Putin, he didn’t take the bait. His reasoning is sound.
I did find it amusing that he condemns the DC press corps for being obsessed with style over substance, though. It’s not as if this administration hasn’t benefited greatly over the years from that very obsession. But, he is right. The outcome is what matters and so far the outcome is that we aren’t dropping bombs and there is a dialog.
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