Grover Norquist On Fiscal Cliff Deal: 'I'm Happy'

[Type Username Here]

Americans for Tax Reform president Grover Norquist joined HuffPost Live Friday to explain why, despite his famous pledge for members of Congress to never raise taxes, he approves of Tuesday's deal on the fiscal cliff that raised taxes on upper-income Americans. Norquist went so far to use the word "progress" to describe the deal, which he says permanently restores 85% of the Bush tax cuts, and despite public opinion, believes that the Republican anti-tax supporters actually won this political battle.

"Talk to Robert Reich, Orzsag and the other interesting, serious Democrats," Norquist said. "They're very unhappy about what just happened. I'm happy. It ought to give you a little bit of a clue about who won Round 1 of this fight."

Norquist's satisfaction contrasts sharply with the views of several other prominent conservatives, including MSNBC's Joe Scarborough, Donald Trump, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.).

Norquist, however, notes that Republicans had little leverage going into the fiscal cliff talks, and have come out of it with significant leverage in new battles over raising the debt ceiling and averting spending cuts known as "the sequester."

Grover Norquist On Fiscal Cliff Deal: 'I'm Happy'

 

[Broke Wave]

"Talk to Robert Reich, Orzsag and the other interesting, serious Democrats," Norquist said. "They're very unhappy about what just happened. I'm happy. It ought to give you a little bit of a clue about who won Round 1 of this fight."

The Obama apologists would say something like "well its a comprimise, the other side has got to be happy"

This dude is the most extreme ideological right winger with regards to taxes. He is happy.

Robert Reich is by all means a moderate democratic economist and he is VERY unhappy, according to Norquist.

How can any of the apologists come in here and defend this man ONCE AGAIN? His black skin? Will they afford me the same luxury when I mess up?

Shameful.

 

[Type Username Here]

 

[Broke Wave]

facts that go against the messiah.

You know one of the audacious things someone said to me in another thread, I believe it was hulk, when I said all the things that his administration had been supporting and doing. He said "America was doing that before Obama".

Yes they may have been, but the key here is... it was... illegal.

Nixon did watergate so now Obama can too

 

[Type Username Here]

facts that go against the messiah.

You know one of the audacious things someone said to me in another thread, I believe it was hulk, when I said all the things that his administration had been supporting and doing. He said "America was doing that before Obama".

Yes they may have been, but the key here is... it was... illegal.

Nixon did watergate so now Obama can too

It's cognitive dissonance in every sense of the term. They'll post Cenk and Krugman all day, but when Obama gets called out, then they begin to discredit them.

Norquist might just be the most right wing motherfukker there is in terms of economic issues, and he's happy.

 

[No1]

facts that go against the messiah.

You know one of the audacious things someone said to me in another thread, I believe it was hulk, when I said all the things that his administration had been supporting and doing. He said "America was doing that before Obama".

Yes they may have been, but the key here is... it was... illegal.

Nixon did watergate so now Obama can too

The two of you (and broke I'm surprised at you), need to calm down, you're abjuring common sense right now.

On one hand, you're sitting here misrepresenting people's opinions for the sake of making your argument. The first sign of someone who is angry or who just straight up lost. Second, your posting dust balls up as if that shows people are shook instead of that maybe they never the saw thread and that we're all watching the playoff game right now. Third, apparently TUH doesn't know what cognitive dissonance means because it actually describes most of his views and doesn't even correlate to the situation or the example he used it in. Posting up a Cenk video (and I've always called him a hack and over-dramatic dating back to his response to Gingrich's statements) when you agree with him does not demonstrate cognitive dissonance when you critique him when you disagree with him. For me, or anyone to be suffering from cognitive dissonance, Cenk himself would have to be our belief system or everything he says would have to be our belief system. That's never been the case.

Fourth, in your emotion you forgot what "spin" is. You just accepted something a talking head said at face value. Even when he gave you reasons to know that he was just talking out of his ass. He referenced Pete Orzsag. Now if you read anything that he says you would know that Orzsag gave three options of what he thought would happen, they're not worth mentioning here. What's important is that he began by dismissing the possibility of a compromise on the 250,000 number before going over the cliff because at the time Boehner said he would reject even an increase on those making 1 million or more. So there is no basis for stating that Orszag is unhappy with this deal because he did not even think this deal was a possibility and he has not commented since to my knowledge. As someone who was IN the Obama government he did not think the that 400,000 number was possible to get our of Republicans, now let that sink in.

Fifth, Reich's biggest problem is that nothing was done in regards to the debt ceiling. He felt , like Orzsag always felt, that the debt ceiling should have been dealt with as part of the negotiations over the cliff because he believes Republicans will demand cuts in Medicare and SS in order to raise it. He has other complaints, like estates not being taxed enough but the first point is his largest complaint. So Reich's largest complaint may very well be a moot point in a month.

Take a breath and wait.

 

[Type Username Here]

Orszag: Obama lost leverage for fiscal fights ahead - Washington Times

 

[The Real]

Good points. The Repubs gained leverage, too, because they have people under the impression that they lost.

 

[acri1]

I've always struggled to figure out what exactly Obama gains politically by capitulating to Republicans on basically everything.

I mean it certainly doesn't gain him any points within his own party, and it's not like Republicans will hate him any less - the Repubs and their base will rabidly hate anything he does regardless. Dude has already been reelected, and polls indicate that more Americans agree with him than the GOP on issues like taxation.

Before I figured he was just shook from the 2010 midterms (with all the Tea Party victories) and worried about being reelected and thought being "bipartisian" would help his chances, but at this point (having won the election) I honestly don't know why he's so intent on giving in to Republicans on everything.

 

[tru_m.a.c]

He felt , like Orzsag always felt, that the debt ceiling should have been dealt with as part of the negotiations over the cliff because he believes Republicans will demand cuts in Medicare and SS in order to raise it.

lol because they WILLLLLLLLLL

this isn't a belief...the writing is on the wall

 

[tru_m.a.c]

either way, like the homie James Kwak stated:

Of course the tax bill couldn’t have passed today, even if the two sides reached a compromise. Today it would have been a tax “increase.” Tomorrow it will be a tax “cut.” As my daughter would say, “Duh.”

Grover Norquist’s Taxpayer Protection Pledge will remain technically inviolate, which was not terribly hard to predict. And it will have done its most important work: making a small and obvious policy change—allowing moderately higher taxes for the rich—seem like an enormous, gut-wrenching concession by Republicans.

lol like seriously, its really not that hard to understand....nordy trolled y'all

 

[No1]

lol because they WILLLLLLLLLL

this isn't a belief...the writing is on the wall

Well we know that, his problem is that he thinks Democrats will cave. Which he has the right to believe, but there's no point in going nuts before something is the process of happening or shows signs of happening.

To be fair, in some capacity both of those programs will be changed, I don't see how they won't be just given the ethos I get from everyone in DC right now that I know. To what extent, we don't know. I don't know, I don't go nuts over stuff before I see it happening. I want to see if Obama has the balls to raise the debt ceiling with an executive order like some people proclaim he will. I don't think he has it in him, but more so because he tried for a grand bargain once and he'll try again. Look no further than Orzag's recommendatons and that was his budget guy.

You're right about the trolling though, I just wanted to give a nuanced answer.

 

[tru_m.a.c]

Well we know that, his problem is that he thinks Democrats will cave. Which he has the right to believe, but there's no point in going nuts before something is the process of happening or shows signs of happening.

To be fair, in some capacity both of those programs will be changed, I don't see how they won't be just given the ethos I get from everyone in DC right now that I know. To what extent, we don't know. I don't know, I don't go nuts over stuff before I see it happening. I want to see if Obama has the balls t-

re read this again good sir

 

[tru_m.a.c]

I'm still trying to figure out who is going to pay for this docfix bill

 

[No1]

re read this again good sir

I literally have no idea what you're saying. Sentences please. NVM, I actually read your quote now. I'm not sure I agree with all that, in a technical sense he's right but you're giving him too much credit. He certainly didn't troll anyone who was paying attention.