But here's where more political theater comes in: After you receive your first paycheck of the year with increased taxes taken out, and folks start ranting & raving about that, the Great Obama will swoop in, blame Republicans for no deal, and offer a tax 'cut' for the middle class. Then if that's passed, Obama automatically gets his tax hike on 'the rich', along with all the glory of saving the middle class. Stop there, though.
If this comes to fruition, nothing has changed regarding your taxes. You're still paying the same rate as the Bush tax cuts made possible. However, keeping the status quo will now be referred to as the 'Obama tax cuts'. See how that works?
Of course, more ObamaCare hidden taxes will kick in next year, deductions are likely to evaporate, look for your FICA contributions to return to what they used to be, and since employers' taxes will go up (i.e., 'the rich'), unemployment will increase. Of course, they'll play with the numbers, like they're already doing, to hide these increases; but in the end, ALL of our taxes will still increase, while we're being told they've been 'cut'. And so many will buy it.
All of this, combined with a feckless, capitulating Republican leadership, provides the opportunity for Obama and Democrats to once again exude their ideology that says tax cuts don't work, and all of this misery was...drumroll, please...'Bush's fault'. They'll use that line eternally.
Look, you all know what we have in this country is not a tax problem. It is a spending problem, and a serious one at that. As long as the government is addicted to spending, it won't matter what the tax rate is, how high Washington raises it, or how much 'revenue' they bring in. Even if we raised rates to 90%, regardless of whether that's on the top earners or everyone, government would still spend more than they takes in. That's a fact, jack. So why are we blaming taxpayers for the national debt? Big Government is the addict in all of this, and it's desperately in need of rehab. But try telling that to low-information voters who have fallen for the class warfare rhetoric and helped reinstate this joke of an administration. I wish you all the success at it...even in an era when the meaning of that word is being attacked as well.
ADDENDUM: Appears that Pat Buchanan has some similar thoughts about how this fiscal cliff fiasco might all play out.
