President Obama struck a chord with his disillusioned liberal base by taking a hard line with Republicans over stalled deficit negotiations, but if in demanding compromise the president also offers additional concessions to the GOP, he risks alienating his most progressive supporters. Judging from recent political history — the extension of the so-called Bush tax cuts, the deal struck to avoid a government shutdown and the middle-ground approach to troop withdrawal from Afghanistan — the president has demonstrated a propensity to move to the center, much to the dismay of many in his own party.
In essence, the president has repeatedly made the calculation that whatever he gives up to strike a deal would be overshadowed by the final result, and he may revert to that strategy as the Aug. 2. deadline for raising the $14.3 trillion debt ceiling creeps closer.
Even as he ramped up his feisty rhetoric over the debt negotiations, Obama has already made concessions to Republicans on raising the debt ceiling, most notably dropping his push to repeal the Bush-era tax cuts and is now calling only for closing tax loopholes that benefit the wealthy and corporate America.
“So the question is, if everybody else is willing to take on their sacred cows and do tough things in order to achieve the goal of real deficit reduction, then I think it would be hard for the Republicans to stand there and say that the tax break for corporate jets is sufficiently important that we’re not willing to come to the table and get a deal done,” he said.
Among Obama’s proposals: Limiting itemized deductions for families and business owners making more than $500,000, increasing taxes on hedge fund managers and eliminating tax breaks for oil and gas companies as well as corporate jet owners.
Republicans, however, remain insistent they will not sign off on a legislative package that includes any of the tax provisions.
But progressives said it would be unforgivable for Obama to cave on those proposals, insisting that taxing the wealthy at a time when Republicans are looking to cut programs that benefit the middle and working classes hold symbolic importance that extends well beyond the relatively small fiscal effect.
“The president’s display of exasperation was very revealing,” said Will Marshall, president of the Progressive Policy Institute. “He feels like he’s already made concessions and he was met with utter intransigence. I don’t think he’s personally inclined — or has the political space — to make more.”
Charles Walcott, a political science professor at Virginia Tech, said Obama could choose this crucially important impasse to draw his line in the sand.
“I think he has to stick to it,” Walcott said. “It seems Republicans have confidence that if they don’t move, he’ll eventually cave. If you do that enough, you look weak and become persona non grata to your base.”
Democrats, falling in line with the president, have not dropped their demands for increased tax revenue.
“Our problem has been intransigence on the Republican side … and to say that there should be no revenues makes no sense,” said Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y.
Continuing the deficit push, Obama and Vice President Biden will meet with Senate Democrats on Wednesday before sending the administration’s economic team to brief lawmakers the following day.
