There’s a New Sheriff in Town…and His Name is Obama

Trying hard to look like Gary Cooper

Remember that scene when Gary Cooper walked the streets of Hadleyville, New Mexico Territory trying to elicit help from it’s citizens to deal with the Miller Gang bent on terrorizing them? Well think of Obama as the Marshall who’s tried to be reasonable with everyone, the townspeople as Congress, and the McConnell Gang Consists of Mitch McConnell as Frank Miller with John Boehner, Eric Cantor, and somebody else rounding out the gang. Maybe Paul Ryan as the kid brother character or Louis Gohmert as the idiot sidekick or maybe Rick Perry as himself. I think President Obama just reached his High Noon moment.

The media has been going crazy today over this new President we saw in the Rose Garden yesterday and much of the Democratic base appears to be thrilled as well. And it may be more than just a coincidence. In an article on MSNBC, Tom Curry runs down the timeline for upcoming tax issues on the congressional agenda for the next year as the Republican Primary is progressing. Here are some highlights:

Tax Timeline Will Drive Obama and Congress (MSNBC.com)

Fiscal year 2012 begins in less than two weeks. Congress has to vote on a budget for the year then. Think we’ll see any obstruction? Rejection of any of the Obama administration’s suggestions? Maybe some hostage taking from Republicans?

November 23, 2011 is the deadline for suggestions from that ‘supercommittee’ that was concocted out of the previous debt ceiling fake crisis. Think there will be any consensus there?

Dec. 31, 2011: The payroll tax reduction which Congress enacted and which Obama signed into law late last year expires on New Year’s Eve, unless Congress and Obama take action to extend it. No chance of gridlock here either.

Spring 2012: Republican nominee likely to be nailed down.

Nov. 6, 2012, Election Day: voters choose 435 House members, 33 senators, and the President. Given the history of the past three years, it’s easy to envision that gridlock will continue until after this date. In fact, it’s probably a safe bet that nothing substantive will get done budget-wise until the last quarter of 2012 post-election. In the meantime, it appears the new sheriff plans to stick to his guns. Who can blame him after having the olive branch swatted from his hands so many times? It remains to be seen whether or not the townspeople will support him or not.

December 31, 2012: Unless congress elects to do otherwise, the Bush Tax Cuts expire for everyone and return to Clinton era levels. Obviously, Obama has staked out his position on making the wealthy and corporations pay a more equitable share of the tax burden and letting these cuts expire would go a long way to raising revenue. But it would also go up for the middle class as well. Absent some other agreement, it would be folly for President Obama to extend these tax cuts. Of course, he may have already won re-election by promising not to do so. But no matter whether Obama wins or loses, he will likely get the last word on the tax cuts.

Related articles

• Tax timeline will drive Obama and Congress (msnbc.msn.com)