The mainstream media gloating over the Democrats’ beat-down of the GOP concerning the recent government shutdown may be premature.
Without question, Obama and Harry Reid remained united and came out on top for the time being, forcing Tea Partiers and conventional Republicans alike to take a backseat and tend to their wounds. But if you survey the big picture, the outlook for Republicans and Tea Party advocates seems to fare much better than might first meet the eye.
True enough, Obamacare is here for now, but future policy struggles will revolve around spiraling deficits and the skyrocketing national debt (which has topped $17 trillion for the first time). This is home field turf for the Tea Party warriors and the Republicans in the main.
Moreover, since 2010, Republicans for the most part reserved the Bush tax cuts with the exception of the highest earners, while trimming government spending via the sequester (which Obama went on to politicize). These victories should not go uncounted.
Widespread counter-punching between Democrats and the moderate establishment GOP and the conservative grassroots over the debt ceiling are likely here to stay. The fight started, and the next round is on February 7th. This gives the Republicans and Tea Partiers another two months to land some blows and hammer their arguments about our economic fragility and the pending disaster of American spending more capital than it has.
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