Boner

John Boehner, Republican, 8th District of Ohio. Minority Leader of the House of Reps (photo NYT)

Remarkably, for the first time since in US history, Uncle Sam may default on his sovereign obligations as Congress battles itself to raise the debt ceiling from $14.5 T to whatever. Americans mostly agree that the national debt not sustainable and we need to get it down. Democrats willing to do so with cuts to military and some cherished entitlements (Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid) and via taxes, mostly eliminating loop holes to corporates and the rich (NB In the USA, the top 10% pay 90% of all taxes; 50% of Americans pay no taxes at all).

Republicans want to go by cuts alone , protecting the military and, mostly, entitlements which keep the Elephants in office. Everybody else, go fish. Recall how Republicans argued debt okey-dokey during Bush's two unfunded wars and his ruinous tax cuts.

Believe you me I agree that we must reduce entitlements whose escalating costs will destroy the country inside a generation. Nor can we dream the problem away with more taxes so in this regard I side with the Republicans. Yet the debt ceiling no place to leverage policy. Unfortunately 250 Repubs have signed Grover Norquist's no-new-tax pledge and this, Dear Reader, threatens America''s future.

"Traitor: A person who is guilty of treason or treachery, in betraying friends, country, a cause or trust, etc."

--Webster Dictionary