There’s something for everyone – almost – in President Obama’s tax deal. UW political scientist Barry Burden says the deal the president cut with Republicans to extend the Bush tax cuts sends a pretty clear signal that he’s willing to work with the new Republican majority in the House. “This is really him working quite directly with the Republican leadership and in some ways stepping on his own party,” said Burden. “It’s hard to know whether this strategy in the end benefits the Democratic Party, or maybe just him in 2012.”
The plan extends tax cuts for all income brackets for two years, reduces the Social Security tax by two percent for a year, and extends jobless benefits. Burden says there’s something for everyone – except deficit hawks. “No one is dealing with the deficit, and I think Republicans are a little unhappy about that,” said Burden. “It’s sort of ironic that the deficit commission’s report was just made public and the vote was taken in the last few days, and yet this is taking up in the opposite direction.”
Burden notes the compromise deal avoids the kind of drawn-out partisan battle which accompanied health care reform. “The public was really dissatisfied with the process. It was ugly, it was partisan,” he said. “This was an alternative, to do something quick and clean.”