Ezra Klein on "moving the goalposts"

Ezra Klein debunks the Republican accusation that "Obama is moving the goalposts" in demanding more revenue in a deal to break the sequester.

He points out that the sequester was a deal made in 2011 that punted the budget deadlock into the future, meaning the unthinkable spending cuts would automatically occur in 2013 if the budget didn't get fixed by then.

Because Dems and Repubs were at an impasse, something had to happen by 2013 that would -- take note -- "move the goalposts," i.e. make something happen to break the budget impasse.

Klein says there were two possibilities:   One was the bipartisan supercommittee charged with coming up with a solution.   They failed to come to any agreement even among themselves and gave up the task.

The other thing that would move the goalposts was the 2012 election.   If Romney won, that would decide it:   no new taxes.   If Obama won, then that meant that the American people had voted for the guy who would raise taxes.

Not only did Obama win, but the American people also voted for senators who would raise taxes.   And they actually gave a 1,000,000 vote national majority to Democrats in the House elections.   The problem is that gerrymandered districts meant that Democrats still didn't win a majority of seats in the House.

Nevertheless, the American people spoke.   As Klein says,

[I]t’s worth remembering that the goalposts in American politics aren’t set in backroom deals between politicians. They’re set in elections. And in the 2012 election, the American people were very clear on where they wanted the goalposts moved to.

So why are the Republicans crying foul?

Ralph