From the Department of Bad Timing: I wrote a diary late last night explaining why I believe President Obama is One Hell of a Negotiator.
The nub of my argument in the above-linked diary is as follows:
The key to understanding the behavior of most, if not all of the Republican behavior during this whole debt ceiling debate, is to understand that they did not view the vote to raise the debt ceiling as a wonderful opportunity to work their will. They viewed it as a horrible crisis to be dealt with.
Everything that has transpired from at least July 12th on, has been a complete charade designed to make it possible for John Boehner to raise the debt ceiling.
The diary sparked a nice little discussion, but the reason I say "From the Department of Bad Timing," is that I wish I would have published this diary at around noon today, just before the President gave his speech outlining his plans for job creation, because I would have loved to see the impact that had on the conversation.
Here's the jobs portion of the Presidents remarks:
And in the coming months, I'll continue also to fight for what the American people care most about: new jobs, higher wages and faster economic growth. While Washington has been absorbed in this debate about deficits, people across the country are asking what we can do to help the father looking for work. What are we going to do for the single mom who's seen her hours cut back at the hospital? What are we going to do to make it easier for businesses to put up that "now hiring" sign?
That's part of the reason that people are so frustrated with what's been going on in this town. In the last few months, the economy has already had to absorb an earthquake in Japan, the economic headwinds coming from Europe, the Arab Spring and the [rise] in oil prices -- all of which have been very challenging for the recovery. But these are things we couldn't control. Our economy didn't need Washington to come along with a manufactured crisis to make things worse. That was in our hands. It's pretty likely that the uncertainty surrounding the raising of the debt ceiling -- for both businesses and consumers -- has been unsettling, and just one more impediment to the full recovery that we need. And it was something that we could have avoided entirely.
So, voters may have chosen divided government, but they sure didn't vote for dysfunctional government. They want us to solve problems. They want us to get this economy growing and adding jobs. And while deficit reduction is part of that agenda, it is not the whole agenda. Growing the economy isn't just about cutting spending; it's not about rolling back regulations that protect our air and our water and keep our people safe. That's not how we're going to get past this recession. We're going to have to do more than that.
And that's why, when Congress gets back from recess, I will urge them to immediately take some steps -- bipartisan, common-sense steps -- that will make a difference; that will create a climate where businesses can hire, where folks have more money in their pockets to spend, where people who are out of work can find good jobs.
We need to begin by extending tax cuts for middle-class families so that you have more money in your paychecks next year. If you've got more money in your paycheck, you're more likely to spend it. And that means small businesses and medium-sized businesses and large businesses will all have more customers. That means they'll be in a better position to hire.
And while we're at it, we need to make sure that millions of workers who are still pounding the pavement looking for jobs to support their families are not denied needed unemployment benefits.
Through patent reform, we can cut the red tape that stops too many inventors and entrepreneurs from quickly turning new ideas into thriving businesses -- which holds our whole economy back. And I want Congress to pass a set of trade deals -- deals we've already negotiated -- that would help displaced workers looking for new jobs and would allow our businesses to sell more products in countries in Asia and South America, products that are stamped with the words "Made in America."
We also need to give more opportunities to all those construction workers out there who lost their jobs when the housing boom went bust. We could put them to work right now, by giving loans to private companies that want to repair our roads and our bridges and our airports, rebuilding our infrastructure. We have workers who need jobs and a country that needs rebuilding; an infrastructure bank would help us put them together.
And while we're on the topic of infrastructure, there's another stalemate in Congress right now involving our aviation industry which has stalled airport construction projects all around the country and put the jobs of tens of thousands of construction workers and others at risk -- because of politics. It's another Washington-inflicted wound on America, and Congress needs to break that impasse now -- hopefully before the Senate adjourns -- so these folks can get back to work.
Emphasis mine.
So, you see, the President is not bowed or broken, he's on to the next fight. Now, if you want to you can grumble and say "yeah right" or "too little too late."
But I have a more productive idea. Why don't we channel some of the energy we used to try to thwart the Presidents debt ceiling plan into supporting his jobs plan - something we can all agree on (I know, I know, except for the trade agreement and payroll tax parts, but support what you can).
So, call your congress critter today and tell him or her it's time to get cracking on the President's job plan.