E-mail updates
Follow on Twitter
Subscribe to RSS
If the U.S. government ends up careening off the "fiscal cliff," Republicans in Congress stand to shoulder most of the blame, according to a new poll released Tuesday.
A majority of Americans said in a new, post-election poll that they do not expect President Barack Obama and members of Congress to reach an agreement to avoid the effects of the fiscal cliff, the combination of automatic spending cuts and tax hikes set to take effect at the beginning of the year.
Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., explains whether a compromise will be reached between Democrats and Republicans.
Fifty-three percent of Americans said Republicans in Congress would be more to blame in that instance, according to a Pew Research Center poll conducted in the days following the election. Twenty-nine percent said that Obama would be more to blame, while 10 percent said both the president and Republicans would share blame.
Those kinds of numbers help set the political landscape heading into the impending fight to resolve the long-running fiscal standoff, which features an emboldened Obama fresh off a re-election victory and a Republican Party looking to regain its footing in Washington after losing seats in the House and Senate in addition to Mitt Romney's White House loss.
Recommended: Republicans hunt for election lessons as wounds heal
Lawmakers on Capitol Hill returned to work on Tuesday to begin sorting out these issues and beginning to work on some internal affairs, including choosing their own leadership teams for the next two years.
But just a few weeks separate the U.S. from the onset of the fiscal cliff, as the 2001 Bush tax cuts and the 2010 payroll tax cut are set to expire at the end of this calendar year. On top of that, the automatic spending cuts -- which fall heavily on the defense budget -- will also take place beginning in January unless Congress acts first.
Win Mcnamee / Getty Images
Speaker of the House John Boehner, R-Ohio, speaks at a press conference as Rep. Diane Black, R-Tenn., and Rep. Eric Cantor, R-Va., listen on Capitol Hill Sept. 20, 2012 in Washington, DC.
Sixty-eight percent of Americans said in the Pew poll that they would expect the impact of the fiscal cliff to be major, and 70 percent said they expect the fallout from the fiscal cliff to be mostly negative.
The president hosted labor leaders at the White House on Tuesday morning in anticipation of the upcoming negotiations, and Obama will host business leaders on Wednesday. Leaders in Congress from both parties head to the White House for talks on Friday.
Recommended - First Thoughts: Like sands through the hourglass...
Both Obama and Republicans in Congress have begun laying out parameters for those negotiations, and White House press secretary Jay Carney reiterated on Tuesday afternoon that the president would not sign any law extending tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans. Obama has instead called on Congress to extend all tax rates except for those in the top income bracket.
(Republicans have called for broader talks that link an overhaul in the tax code to entitlement program reforms.)
The Pew poll was conducted Nov. 8-11 and has a 3.7 percent margin of error.
Leave a Comment:
All I can say is: Nail Cantor's and Boehner's and MccConnell's arses to the wall! They wanted the showdown and the eedjits like Bill Huizenga from Michigan fell in line voting ideology rather than pragmatically.
I am going to laugh my butt off when all the rich that already have dual citizenship say we will live in Mexico and pay 0 taxes and then this country that was founded on 0 taxes collapses.
The bunch of you are so lame it is not funny, Both parties created this mess and I do not have faith that they can clean it up. History shows nation after nation putting itself in debt and then within 50 years it is gone.
We can go as far back as the Babylonian empire, the Medo persuasion empire, the Roman Empire, and so on and so forth.
This country is done plain and simple you can see the leaders of this world want a 1 world government and 80% of the people of this world want it to. Hitler was just 70 years to early. Had he been born in this time period he could have walked into the office with out 1 bullet ever being fired.
Hitler was a sadistic mass murderer.... responsible for horrors beyond explanation... you sick pile of twisted trash!!!
I will laugh my ass off when those rich people move to Mexico and Mexican Drug Lords abduct and ransom their family members.
Hey Salaforcrap, they like money too, or do you think they do it for free, money talks and you BS means nothing to anyone except you poor deprived fools.
And left handjerkoff, wait until the prez by law puts his 15 decision makers in place to determine your welfare brats medical care, hope you are nice and healthy, or maybe not, look it up on the WH web site.
Not surprising, since they put Obama back in. Then they would have to blame themselves when the Country takes a nosedive. Thank you Democrats for the mess.
You're welcome LOL
The truth is obam wants the the fiscal cliff. He really wants taxes to go up for all Americans. Isn't this the President that states that tax cuts do not increase economic activity. Let's prove his theory. Let's remove all the Bush tax cuts. He wants to help the middle class? why are my health benefits tax next year.....$4,700.00 tax increase for a person earning 50,000 a year with health benefits from work.
tea billy talking head moron
Now that was a THIRD GRADE COME BACK if I ever saw one!! Way to go there leftward. Do you have any facts to support your statement?
Since none of this information was brought to anyones attention until the last week or so since the Fiscal Cliff and the Petraeus scandal were held under the radar by the Presedential election 99.9% of any persons opinion on these matter is irrelevent
12 years of tax breaks,,2 wars.bank bail outs..it was the unions fault..first.you won on.now its our benefits huh tea nuts and you lost this time..debt is not cause from our benefits.its.tax breaks..and 2 wars.bank bail outs..meaning borrowed government money tax money.are y'all retarded ..yep
Bush and Cheney start paying it back
It's time that Obama picks minority or black Generals like Colin Powell for the Cabinet positions.
White Generals have no morals. Most White people in general have no morals since that 60% of them voted for Romney. What a disgrace!
Now we have revenge from White corporate America with the old white CEOs punishing America because their Corporate w h o r e Romney wasn't elected.
And they are using media outlets like CNBC to run their propaganda machine with the fictional "fiscal cliff". Why? This is there last ditch effort to avoid paying higher taxes. That's all it is. Nothing more, nothing less. It's about greed.
It's good that white people are becoming more and more irrelevant in society.
The term "RACIST" comes to mind and I'm a 52 year old white guy from the Deep South who voted for Obama.
STOP with the BS!!!
The U.S. has the highest corporate tax rates in the western world.
Here is the only fact you need to know. If voting was limited to people who actually pay income tax, Romney would have won the Electoral College 538-0.
your post proves that 1) you are a racist 2) you are not intelligent (usually leads to racism along with self hatred) 3) your not in touch with reality 4) you are an excellent example of the "entittled" who think because they are different or better somehow they dont need to earn what they have they just have to hold out the hand and whine long enough and someone will give them something. I suggest you seek professional help for your issues posting here will not cure you and just annoys people who have an IQ over 75.
It's very encouraging to see the public recognizes the cause of the problem. Business leaders are meeting with the president tomorrow and they also support a balanced solution to the problem. If the republicans believe they are going to benefit by obstructing they are in for a rude awakening!
Translation....Unions want their cake and eat it all too. Come tell that to California Sharkey where the State and County retirement funds are $114 Billion underfunded. Welcome to the new liberal world order. Watch California in the next few years. It is a blueprint for this nation under Obama.
And yet it is okay for Obama to shove more of his drunken spending down our throats.
snarky, Are you delusional? That's nothing but a dog and pony show. Businesses have been telling your Idol for 4 years why they're not hiring. In fact, many large businesses announced major layoffs after the election. He knew this was coming and he will continue to do as he's always done. Turn a deaf ear.
Pangoba: that's why we have the spending cuts come January 1st. Republican pick a position please.
Time for all tax cuts to expire and make Grover's tax pledge null in void as of January 1st.
Time to get from under these Bush Tax Cuts and start fresh.
Until our politicians get serious and let all Bush tax cuts expire we will just be putting band-aids on the gaping wound that is out national debt. I am willing to give up the tax breaks I received in 2001 and 2003 but the so-called job creators have to sacrifice too. Income disparity hasnt been this bad since the 1920's. Tax all income as income. Stop giving the rich all the breaks.
This is a poll now, right wingers and teabaggers don't believe in polls. They didn't believe them during the election and they don't believe them now. Thats their(teabaggers)problem, they tend to not believe reality, a serious character flaw.
They believed in their "internal Polls" and Rove like all good little TP members.
God bless our President and his lovely family. They are the best example of traditional American family values. And their dog rides inside the car
Their dog leads the family in job creation.
The dog will ride in a stew kettle if Barry gets his way.
Lame retorts. Lick your wounded souls losers!
But OF COURSE they are! Pass the kool aid please....
Of course the Republican's will get the blame..........When has obuma and his democratic "whiner's" ever accepted responsibility for anything?
Never have. Never will.
I like posting this....nothing like hitting someone back with thier own words.......whine all you want.....
Sen. Obama’s Floor Speech, March 20, 2006:
The fact that we are here today to debate raising America’s debt limit is a sign of leadership failure. It is a sign that the U.S. Government can’t pay its own bills. It is a sign that we now depend on ongoing financial assistance from foreign countries to finance our Government’s reckless fiscal policies. … Increasing America’s debt weakens us domestically and internationally. Leadership means that “the buck stops here.” Instead, Washington is shifting the burden of bad choices today onto the backs of our children and grandchildren. America has a debt problem and a failure of leadership. Americans deserve better.
The libs hate seeing this. It slaps their hypocrisy right down their throats.
Funny how people forget this!!
Congress doesn't give a hoot, either party for more than 30 years. They have their wealth safely stashed and they have their pensions and healthcare paid for by the remainder of us that still have jobs(or is that safely "off budget" for them.)
As long as they can't bleed the citizens dry, why should they care--its survival of the fittest baby, and has always been from the dawn of humankind. They consider us that pay the biggest slice of taxes to income inferior anyway and we should be milked for all we have.
This report is so much bullsh*t. The only people who they took this info from for this report were the 1/2 of the people who vote for Obama. Because over half 53%, last count, voted against Obama which means that there is no way that 53% are blaming the GOP.
More smoke and mirrors by the lying White House Spin Doctors to try and make it look like the OTHER half that didn't vote for Obama are really on his side after all.
No way are the GOP going to be responsible for this. This is all OBAMA and his liberal socialist Obamaism running this country into the ground just a few days after the election.
The poll just proves that 90% of US citizens are fools. Our deficit over the next 10 years will add up to between 10 and 14 TRILLION dollars. TRILLION. That number is so big it's scientifically proven to be incomprehensible. Our fearless leaders have come up with a solution that, in total, will leave 90% of that 10 to 14 TRILLION dollars untouched. We are arguing over a solution that is so weak both parties should be embarrassed to present it. We, as a nation, should be outraged and falling over ourselves to force these policy junkies back to the drawing board to come up with a real solution.
Fellow Republicans, we should not be in awe of this article. This is not something new from all of the entitled that are on this page:) It all runs down to the same thing, they can not take responsability for their actions, or lack there of. from the 30 year old meth head on welfare, clear up to obuma in the white house, it is ALWAYS someone elses fault. We have broad shoulders, we can handle it. At least we are living in reality, and not dream land. when we were in office, it was our fault when they are in office, it is still our fault. lol.
I really don't recall ANY republicans taking responsibility for making up stories about WMD do you?
You lost, stop whining!
Tea billy scum... still talking trash... you have learned nothing.
There will be no fiscal cliff.... drama, drama, drama.
The repukes know it will blow their chances in 2014 mid-terms.
Nice to see they have already started the GOP toxic spin for 2016.
Idiots... does not even cover what you toxic hacks are.
leftward, we ALL are poised to lose when the economy crashes.
Rethink you pompus attitude, reality awaits.
We need to apply the same ground game that was instrumental in wining the Presidential election to the 2014 mid term elections. If the Repubs don't start working towards the good of this country instead of only looking out for the 1%, then it's time to for the proverbial final nail on the coffin for that antiquated party!
President Obama won re-election, he calls the shots. (sorry Mitch and Boehner)
PERIOD!!!!
Actually, the House does via the Constitution. He must approve it. I wouldn't expect an Obama nut hugger to know what the Constitution is though.
Ya, and Biden calls the shots too!!!!!! Even if it looks like it's shots of booze.... Period!!!!!
toy - You mean like a socialist dictator?
Boehner WANTS Obama to call the shots. He said so.
PangoBa: Yeh...
I bet President Obama gets it "his way".
To bad people do not care about fixing this mess. They seem to only like to blame nowadays. They voted all these fools to office and then blame them for problems then vote them back for another term. It;s ok as long as we can blame!
There's a reason it's called the PEW research center.
12 years of tax breaks,,2 wars.bank bail outs..it was the unions fault..first.you won on.now its our benefits huh tea nuts and you lost this time..debt is not cause from our benefits.its.tax breaks..and 2 wars.bank bail outs..meaning borrowed government money tax money.are y'all retarded ..yep
Bush and Cheney start paying it back
Losing always make whiners whine.
Hey know nothing obama come to wisconsin and talk to ray anderson he will show you that you are a moron that knows nothing but talking bs and blaming the gop.Fix your mess you lowlife.
????????