The budgeteers: Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL), Rep.Paul Ryan (R-WI), Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA)
and Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD)
Good news from budget negotiating land. Common sense—namely, that more spending cuts for people already hurting in this recession isn't such a great idea—seems to be prevailing, as does the
message from liberals that there are more important problems for the country than the deficit.
The left’s influence will be on display in coming weeks when a high-profile congressional committee formed after the government shutdown faces a deadline to forge a budget agreement. Under strong pressure from liberals, the panel has effectively abandoned discussion of a “grand bargain” agreement partly because it probably would involve cuts to Social Security.
Of course, if Republicans had any inkling at all to raise any kind of revenue, those cuts would be probably be put right back on the table by some Democrats. Because there are still the Very Serious People who have invested Very Serious Money in austerity. That includes the corporate tax-cut lobbying behemoth that calls itself Fix the Debt. They're getting a little whiny
about apparently losing this round.
“It’s a stupid way to run a country,” said Maya MacGuineas, head of the Campaign to Fix the Debt, a non-partisan advocacy group whose members include business leaders and former lawmakers. “Change comes from two possible things: a crisis or leadership.” [...]
“The uncertainty has a chilling effect on job creators, households and anybody who’s trying to see around a corner,” said MacGuineas, who is also president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a fiscal advocacy group.
You know that Fix the Debt is rooting for more crisis, because crisis is the austerians' best bet for getting the agenda of the supposed "job creators"—namely tax breaks for them funded by huge spending cuts for everyone else—enacted. But for this round, anyway, it's not working.