As Republicans and Democrats continue to squabble over budget cuts and tax policy, the two sides claim to have at least come close to reaching a compromise over one issue. Democrats plan to agree to extend the Bush tax cuts for all Americans in exchange for the Republicans agreeing to an extension of unemployment benefits. But while it is good that the two sides are making an effort to compromise, the agreement is both unbalanced and fails to adequately address the nation’s problems.
While the Democrats agree that the Bush tax cuts should be extended for the vast majority of Americans, their original plan to let the cuts expire for the wealthiest two percent of citizens would play a huge part in helping to reduce both the deficit and the income gap between the richest and poorest Americans. Meanwhile, Republicans have denounced letting the cuts expire for the top 2 percent, insisting on their extension for all and continuing to look out for the interests of those who don’t need to have their interests protected. Though Republicans claim to be intensely committed to reducing the federal deficit, their constant support of tax cuts for the rich shows that this concern is secondary.
In exchange for this, the Republicans made the concession of extending unemployment benefits, something they have consistently fought against. But at a time like this, continuing jobless benefits is not only helpful, but necessary. The unemployment rate is at 9.8 percent, well over the natural rate. In an economic environment such as this, high unemployment is not an indication of the laziness or failures of individuals. For many, no matter how hard they try, it is simply not possible to find a job at this time, as most companies are not hiring. The fact that Republicans consider assisting these people to be a huge concession shows just how out of touch they are with the needs of those in need.
While the Democrats are trying to help the middle class and those who are truly in need of assistance, the Republicans continue to hold out to advance the causes of the wealthy. In tough economic times like these, our representatives should be focusing on what provides the greatest good for the greatest number, and supporting the middle class, rather than those who are already considerably better off without any outside assistance. If this is the best compromise that the Republicans and Democrats could come up with, then it looks as though this will be a long two years.
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