I was skeptical about the Occupy protests when they began and I remain skeptical about where they are heading, but I sure am glad that there are people on the streets demanding that the most affluent people in this country pay their fair share when I see shit like this happening in Washington DC.
As time wound down to a Monday night deadline for an agreement [of the Supercommitee], Capitol Hill lacked the frenzied negotiation typical of a Congressional race to beat the clock. Instead, many members — well aware that Congressional approval ratings are near historic lows in polls — seemed resigned to the fact that Democrats and Republicans remained far apart on major budget issues, especially tax increases on the affluent, which Democrats insist must be part of any deficit solution and which Republicans oppose.
What we are not seeing is any people on the streets demanding that the Democrats make concessions on entitlement spending or the discretionary budget. In this case, no deal is a good deal for the 99%. It’s not a great deal, as there will be negative consequences from yet another demonstration that our government is paralyzed. The stock market will probably react negatively, and that will trickle down. The credit rating agencies may exact some retribution, further damaging the country’s reputation and probably costing us more jobs. And the president will not come out of this smelling like roses, even if people correctly assign most of the blame where it properly belongs…on the Republicans.
But the left has definitely won this argument. The Democrats went into this fight with modest and reasonable demands. Their negotiating stance was actually quite weak, as they began with a willingness to make concessions that their own base would hate. But they weren’t even allowed to make those concessions because their opponents were so incredibly intransigent and unreasonable.
In the end, the Democrats correctly concluded that the automatic cuts that will kick in if no deal is reached are preferable to anything that they have been able to negotiate. And the people in the streets have given them the confidence to hold their ground and accept whatever criticism they might receive for allowing large cuts to the Pentagon’s budget.
So, even though I can’t say that the Occupy protests are going to accomplish much, they have already accomplished something. It’s a modest accomplishment, but it’s significant.
TPM’s been saying this for the last day or two, but I can’t bring myself to believe it until it happens. Seems like the whole nature of gov’t this last year has been last-minute deals.
I was thinking the other day about one very concrete–OK not concrete, literally, but huge and significant–accomplishment of the Occupy movement is how it’s injected the concept of the 99%/1% into the public consciousness. Everyone’s using these terms in conversation now. It’s way more powerful than “tax and spend” or “class warfare” or what have you. And it goes beyond party affiliation, to some extent. It may not look like much right now, but it’s going to have consequences.
Amen to this:
For me that is the one big achievement so far and it makes an excellent start. Just getting people in this country to realize that we are on par with an inequity not seen since 1929 is major. This has become a theme addressed throughout many media outlets – often on realistic and truthful terms.
OWS weren’t the first to notice or describe the inequity, but they are the ones who drove it deeper into the awareness of Americans.
agree, it’s absolutely taken hold and that is good
The left will embrace nothing. They’ll turn around and declare it all to be further proof that Obama hates America. And puppies.
It’s just how the left is. May as well wish for better behavior from nascar people.
Speaking of Nascar….http://gawker.com/5861253
Can you imagine the reaction if Republican wives were booed in a public sphere? Especially while being involved in a noble cause like helping families of vets? Right wing talk show hosts would have overdosed on their outrage.
You really thought I came up with that example at random? lulz
It is pretty amusing though, watching firebaggers declare every good thing that happens to be THEIR victory.
Hey I just saved a bundle on my car insurance! THANKS OWS!!!!
lolol!
Off-topic, but for all the Ron Paul lovers out there:
Such a lovely fellow, truly. He wants to “take us back” alright…
Perhaps.. just perhaps.. This whole thing is classic ‘kabuki’ to get the impossible done: $600 billion in defense cuts.. and .. no one is to blame because.. everyone is! Who sez our gov’t is disfunctional? It’s not.
It’s bizarro-functional.
Perhaps.. just perhaps.. This whole thing is classic ‘kabuki’ to get the impossible done: $600 billion in defense cuts ..
Is there any way Harry Reid will be able to block a bill from coming to vote when it’ll get enough votes to override the President’s signature? Because we know the House will pass a bill rescinding the cuts to the military. The question is what will the Senate do.
The republicans will rush to repeal the military half of the automatic $1,200,000,000,000 cuts. The democrats will cave on it, extracting almost no reduction in the non-military cuts in return. Hence, there will be $600,000,000,000 in non-military spending cuts and no increase in taxes on the wealthy. A giant tactical win for the republicans.
Would Obama not have to sign such a bill? The Republicans will likely try use it as some poison pill down the line but no way the bill passes into law. The Pentagon and Medicare provider cuts will happened along with expiration of the Bush tax cuts. The President’s strategy seems pretty apparent and obviously effective. I do not why those seem so indifferent to assign President credit for boxing the GOP in against their own allies and themselves.
Obviously, this can all go away with complete GOP control in 2013 and that appears to be their play.
nonesense
Yes, I think that’s pretty much how it will go.
All the more reason to keep sending money to those people on the front lines for us, the occupiers all over the country.
I am certain that boehner’s congress will act to restore the military spending cuts. I don’t see that ending any other way but with a presidential veto – the republicans control the house.
Ymmv.
As I said, how will Reid prevent a vote on that bill once the House passes it? Because we all know that enough Senate Democrats will vote to rescind the scheduled cuts in military spending.
I don’t expect Democrats to hold the line when Republicans begin demagoguing them for being willing to cut defense. I’ll be glad if I’m proven wrong, though.
I think the Occupy movement has accomplished a spiritual change, not necessarily a political one, by illuminating the fact of powerful people abusing that power against a united community that wants a different way to live.
Sorry Booman, this isn’t an OWS victory and the left didn’t win any argument. Democrats said they weren’t budging on the Bush tax cuts from the start. The left, as usual, called them a bunch of pussies and said they would cave. The left never liked the supercomittee and had to be convinced that the triggers wouldn’t have grandma eating catfood. They probably still aren’t convinced and will spread more misinformation about the Medicare provider cuts. OWS had jack squat to do with this as their DC protests were very tepid especially compared to prior DC protests.
Nope. Can’t go with you on this one.
Geez!! Talk about Debbie Downer!!
Slightly off topic – David Frum’s piece is epic. http://nymag.com/news/politics/conservatives-david-frum-2011-11/
…and they shall eat their young.
Trigger….Trigger….Triggger
The automatic cuts are estimated to cut $7 trillion over 10 years, not that Congress will allow that to happen. But that figure exceeds the amount sought for the “Grand Bargain”.
The dirty little secret about Republican offers was that they increased the deficit and debt. To keep pressure on cutting “entitlements”.
If Democrats want to reach the folks of the mood that spawned Occupy Wall Street, their platform needs to include an end to the entitlements that the temporary workers in Congress receive. It’s time that the folks in Congress realized that Congress is not a career. The Congressional bubble of privilege must pop for these guys and gals to actually start listening to the people against. And treating individuals as persons instead of a pencil mark in the voting booth.
someone sent this to me when they read what you had posted, BooMan:
This is some crap to give credit to OWS for doing nothing and having nothing to do with the deficit debate. .. IF any thing the one person who was right about the deficit commission and actually read the details of the supercommitee and was vilified by Huffington Post, DKOs, Keith Olbermann was
The People’s View who did a crisp analysis of the deal making process and in which even OFA used their analysis for its members.
Why is it so hard to give the president credit? What is it about the Left that just needs to create some illusion that it succeeded in anything.
Deaniac and the People View were right all along before the Hill, TPM started stealing their analysis.
It’s interesting that i’m getting pushback from some of Obama’s strongest supporters for crediting the Occupy Movement with doing anything positive.
But I’m not certain I am being understood.
I think the protesters in the street talking about the 1% dovetailed nicely with the spectacle of the Republicans fighting like dogs for the 1%. It not only worked as media narrative, but it gave courage to the Democrats on the Supercommittee and it kept Blue Dogs from opening their traps.
So, it’s not really about giving or denying Obama credit for anything. He may have set up the committee to fail, but that was no guarantee that it would.
Because OBAMA did this. He started it before there was such a thing as ows. ows-ers are nothing more than anti-Obama white “progressives”. Their movement is nothing more than pouting sucking their thumbs because daddy won’t kiss it all and make it better.
Obama did this. No-one else.
Well, I don’t agree.
Yes, he started his jobs pitch and made the debt ceiling deal before OWS got started. But the Democrats could have caved and they didn’t. The Republicans could have compromised and they didn’t. Obama didn’t have much control over that element.
The Occupy protesters had a message perfectly designed to make the Republican argument look maximally bad. And that helped the congressional Democrats maintain a spine.
So, no, I don’t give all the credit to Obama. I think he knew the Supercommittee would fail, but even he couldn’t be certain.