Obama's line in the sand

It's hard for me to really imagine that Obama has drawn a line in the sand in his negotiations with Republicans.  The man is a moderate Republican as far as I can tell and he's already shown his willingness to concede too much in negotiations, delivering poorly-timed short-term spending cuts at a time when the economy needs money.

Nevertheless, apparently the president took a stand today, telling reporters that he will veto any debt deal that does not include raising taxes on the rich.  I hope Obama means it.  America hopes Obama means it.  Deficit reduction should still be a secondary priority but since our priorities are misplaced and we seem unconcerned with putting Americans back to work, we might as well try to fix the problem we have chosen to address.  Deficit reduction is going to take serious entitlement reform - something the president offered today - but it is also going to take higher taxes on the wealthy.  Why Republicans are intent on protecting people whose low tax rates do little or nothing to contribute to job growth is beyond me.  Warren Buffett is pleading with the government to raise taxes on the wealthy.  Would Berkshire Hathaway really have to lay people off if his tax rate were higher?  It seems unlikely since he is doing everything in his power to get Congress to tax him more.

Somehow - despite all the polls showing Americans believe the rich should pay more, despite all the evidence that low tax rates for the super rich is doing nothing to create jobs - Republicans are intent on protecting the wealthy at the expense of the rest of us.  It's somewhat mind-boggling.

Obama's initiative is a good first step.  The president needs to force Republicans to back down from positions that will undermine exactly what they want to do - cut the deficit.  However, Obama needs to show further leadership on entitlement reform.  Social Security and Medicare both need revamping.  It would be nice if Obama were willing to put in place a long-term plan to raise the eligibility age.

Still, I applaud Obama's efforts.  Despite the fact the deficit reduction is a misplaced priority, it is still the priority and if we are actually going to cut the deficit, we will need both more revenue and less spending.  Today the president showed a willingness to address both of those things while simultaneously forcing Republicans to defend positions that are not only politically unpopular, but bad for our country.  Let's hope that the president's stand today forces some serious reevaluation by Republicans.  It would be a good day for America if that were to be the case.