- The front page of the Huffington Post boasts a headline over the return of Gabrielle Gifford, although you would need to squint your eyes to notice any Debt Ceiling story
Today’s House vote on the raising of the Debt Ceiling, was a legislative milestone for the Obama Administration. Compared to the victory lap taken 14 months ago with the passage of Obamacare, the White House today had little to smile about.
For certain Democrats, the only moment to cheer occurred during the closing moments of the House Debt Ceiling Vote when Congress saw the return of Congresswoman Gabrielle Gifford (AZ) on the floor. While her appearance is no doubt a testament to her courage, it’s also given the liberal press something else to report upon. All in all, a perfect distraction to the massive compromise Obama and the Democrats have just taken on the Debt Ceiling negotiation (see Huffington Post image – to the left naturally).
On Sunday Night when the President made his announcement that a deal had been made, it seemed to fly in the face of the weekend’s activities. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s Debt Ceiling bill was rejected, and even Reid staffer Adam Jentleson taunted the House Speaker via Twitter that “Boehner’s bill dies tonight. Forever“. In light of all the build up, Obama’s appearance announcing a deal appeared to be the last thing that would be going forward. In retrospect, this was really the moment that Obama was waving the surrender flag, and compromised.
Today, the reaction from law-makers pre-vote appeared almost schizophrenic, compared to their behavior only days prior. Congressional debates were filled with Representatives attacking the deal, then in the next sentence maintaining it’s validity and their support. Meanwhile on the social networks, the left wingers were aghast at the Democrats for caving into the Republicans demands, and attacking Obama for taking the deal. Sadly, these are the same critics that naturally fail to comprehend how Governments reach the Debt Ceiling to begin with.
Much like the Health Care bill, there are several Debt Ceiling bills to merge into one at the Senate stage, and you will need to wait till it passes before you can read what remained. However, after seeing the gnashing of teeth coming from the left (and most particularly Senator Bernie Sanders’ Howard Beale impersonation today on the Senate floor), it looks good on the surface for now.
Craig Edwards
