Have a Common Sense New Year

On December 4 I posted some observations regarding the Payroll Tax Holiday. At that time I actually thought a Congress would just pass the thing and give us all a Christmas present in the form of a grand less tax for another year. However what has happened in the last couple days surprises even me....wow

“GOP Senate leader Mitch McConnell famously said a year ago that his main task in the 112th Congress was to make sure that President Obama would not be re-elected. Given how he and House Speaker John Boehner have handled the payroll tax debate, we wonder if they might end up re-electing the President before the 2012 campaign even begins in earnest.

The GOP leaders have somehow managed the remarkable feat of being blamed for opposing a one-year extension of a tax holiday that they are surely going to pass. This is no easy double play”.

No easy double play indeed, however not surprising considering the current United States of America House of Representatives uncanny ability to shoot itself in the foot! The quote above is from the 12/21 edition of the Wall Street Journal, and personally I find it rather ironic that sitting tea party republicans would engage in this kind of political masochism.

But then, we have been here before now haven’t we. Anyone remember the debacle that ensued this summer when it came time to raise the deficit ceiling? Congress famously disagreed to disagree and passed the buck to the “super committee” and simply kicked the can down the road. Of course, the super heroes of this mega-partisan, invitation- only party of 12 failed to achieve jack shit and let the sequestration process kick in. Of course in reality they just kicked the can a little further and started immediately into the blame game for political gamesmanship and further exposed their incompetence to the rest of us.

So I really wish anyone and I mean anyone could explain to me the logic involved in opposing something that you are really for just because your opponent is for it too. The fact is, there is no logic involved, no common sense, absolutely no logical thought process at all.

Let’s get this straight, the tea party influenced House of Representatives really supports tax cuts as a means to stimulate economic growth and ultimately “grow” our way out of the massive federal deficit we find ourselves in. Ok I get it, basic Milton Freedman stuff. Hey, Uncle Sam’s tax bite hurts me in the ass just like everybody else and any less pain is ok fine with me. What I don’t get is that now that the other side has not only acquiesced to an additional year payroll tax reduction, but actually pushed the agenda; the same tea party types are blocking the whole thing!!!!!!!! I mean it’s a gift, take it and go home for Christmas. Buuuttt Nnnnnoooo …..Just hand me the gun and let me blow off my big toe!

House Republicans yesterday voted down the Senate's two-month extension of the two-percentage-point payroll tax holiday to 4.2% from 6.2%. They say the short extension makes no economic sense, but then neither does a one-year extension. No employer is going to hire a worker based on such a small and temporary decrease in employment costs, as this year's tax holiday has demonstrated. The entire exercise is political, but Republicans have thoroughly botched the politics.

Well, welcome to the “House of dysfunction” where we all disagree to disagree…..even if we actually agree. Pardon me, but I find this really stupid.

I realize I’m getting on a bit of a rant here but gee whiz, you would hope that after an economic collapse the size and scope of which has not been seen in fifty years, that our elected leaders could actually work together for the benefit of families, elders, children, workers, all of us, rather that become more polarized and unwilling to compromise on anything. Personally, I am more interested in results than a particular ideology. More interested in accomplishing something to reduce the humongous national Public debt (that is the fault and responsibility of both parties) than waist time fighting and blaming the other guy. More interested in taking action to improve our GDP, economic growth, and standard of living for everybody than bicker and waist time trying to unseat the other party and save my own ass. More interested in tolerance than wasting time trying to force personal values on everybody else.

Call me crazy, but since my tax dollars are paying the salaries of 535 public employees in the House and Senate, I would like to humbly request a little bit better job performance, and an adjustment in priorities. As I have said before, I truly do not believe the current divide within the halls of Congress does not represent the general population of the country. If Common sense cannot prevail within the present system than maybe it is time for a Common Sense Party that represents those of us that have an open mind, are disposed to the need for compromise, and call upon logic rather than a rigid pre set ideology, to make decisions.

I do hope for a resolution to the Payroll Tax Holiday extension, so we can all spend (at least that’s what the Fed economists are hoping) the extra thousand bucks in our pockets as a result. I would say that I also hope for Members of Congress to be able to come home and spend Christmas with Family…..but that would be disingenuous.

Merry Christmas and a Common Sense New Year.