United against Obama

The Republicans aren’t unified and appear to be open to discussion – but only if they’re allowed to set the agenda. However, they have yet to propose any concrete suggestions for cutbacks.

The victorious Republicans are talking big, but they must first determine their direction. At a press conference held by the election winners on Wednesday, future Speaker of the House John Boehner offered President Obama his cooperation. But the catch is that it’s not the Republicans who should have to cooperate with the President; it’s the Democrats who will be expected to go along with the Republican agenda. Boehner said it was time to “roll up our sleeves and go to work.”

Mitch McConnell, Senate Minority Leader for the past two years, said they were determined to stop what he describes as “the liberal onslaught.” He added that Obama’s health care reforms had to be abandoned, the Bush era tax cuts set to expire in December had to be extended and that cuts in spending had to be made to reduce the federal deficit.

When pressed by journalists to suggest concrete examples of where cuts should be made, Boehner, McConnell and future House Minority Whip Eric Cantor could suggest nothing more than just a single example.

That alone is a hint that the Republicans aren’t unified because there are already such examples. Cantor, along with representatives Paul Ryan and Kevin McCarthy, published the book “Young Guns – A New Generation of Conservative Leaders” in September. In it, they criticize the Republican establishment and call for the party to return to conservative values and strict adherence to anti-spending policies.

Ryan, who has been in the House since 1999, developed a radical austerity plan calling for drastic cuts in social programs and the abolition of corporate taxation in favor of a value added tax. Ryan is scheduled to take over the powerful House Budget Committee.

In the future, Republicans will be in position to significantly influence Obama’s spending plans – or to boycott them altogether.

Clues as to the future direction of U.S. politics will become apparent during the “lame duck session” of Congress. The current majorities will still be in place, but important decisions concerning taxation will have to be made.

In the event Congress doesn’t act, the Bush era tax cuts will expire at the end of this year. Obama’s Democrats are demanding that the cuts be allowed to expire for people earning more than $250,000 annually. Republicans, meanwhile, have indicated their intention to make the tax cuts permanent across the board. Cooperation and compromise will be necessary; the first test for the new Republican majority is approaching.