Why the Republicans will cave – again

It’s sad to say but we’re in another round of fiscal cliff episodes, this one titled “The Sequester” where government agencies are all crying wolf. They are claiming that the end of the world is coming at month’s end unless they are allowed to continue to waste spend vast amounts of money taking care of themselves the public.

Even the Pentagon is moaning that it will be a disaster if they can’t continue to waste money, and will even have to furlough 800,000 civilian workers for one day a week. That’s far in excess of what would be reasonable given the tiny reduction in their budget. Clearly, they are doing this to panic the civilian employees so they’ll complain to the pliable congressmen and women.

If you read the furlough story carefully, you’ll see the basic facts – 800,000 civilian workers furloughed for one day a week. What you won’t see until you dig, is that it’s only for 22 weeks. Why does the Pentagon bury that information? It’s so you’ll do the simple math in your head that these 800,000 will have a salary cut of 20%! In fact it will be only be a fraction, 8% less reductions in taxes. You can use these numbers to easily calculate that these workers make at least $60,000 a year and up, probably way up.

So, unfortunately, why will the Republicans cave again? It’s because President Obama must make the “draconian” spending cuts (that are for the most part reductions in spending increases, not cuts) actually hurt. If they don’t, then the public will realize that they are being conned and that will effect Democrat electability. They will all be tarred with the same brush.

So he will order all manners of immediate cuts so that the Republicans will be positioned as the evil-doers, a phrase President George W. Bush liked to use.

Whats more, it’s because President Obama can’t be reelected and the Republican congressmen and women can. As the primary role of our congressional representatives is to seek perpetual reelection first and foremost, raise money from (and do favors for) corporations second… and somewhere down the list, work for their constituents best interests they will cave. The president knows this, the Republicans (privately) know this as well. I hope they don’t.

After all, caving and increasing the national debt is a lot easier alternative than being branded by the Democrats as the cause of any short term economic problems, thus risking Republican jobs during the next election cycle. They don’t realize that the reelection process won’t occur until late next year and we’ll have another dozen fresh crises by then.

This crisis will be long forgotten.

In Georgia, the Democrats are claiming that these draconian (tiny) budget cuts will have this effect on education funding. They are working hard to stir up parents who will pressure their representatives.

“Georgia would lose $28.6 million in funding for primary and secondary education, putting nearly 400 teacher and aide jobs at risk. About 80 fewer schools would receive funding. Paying for teachers is or should be a state issue, and paid through property taxes.

Head Start would be eliminated for 1,700 children in Georgia, reducing access to critical early education. Why isn’t this funded by the state, if at all? After all, if all states get this funding, then its real purpose is to leverage the states, rather than help the kids.

37,000 Georgia civilian jobs in the Department of Defense would be furloughed, devastating military base communities around Columbus, Savannah and elsewhere. I covered this above.

Over 4,000 fewer Georgia children would receive vaccines for diseases like measles, mumps, and whooping cough. Isn’t this a parent responsibility to make sure that their children are taken care of? Why is the federal government even paying for this? Don’t parents have the responsibility to look after their children and get them vaccinated as needed?”

Is the era of personal responsibility over? Is the nanny state the only way forward? I hope not.

If you want to read the White House’s Georgia “be very afraid” scare sheet, click  GA-Sequester.

If the Republicans had any backbones, they would stand up to our president. Unfortunately, that takes a collective backbone. That’s why they will almost certainly cave. I hope they don’t.

We’ll see if they have one in a few weeks. I’d like to be wrong. I’m not holding my breath.