After the Election, a New Mandate – and New “Fiscal Cliff” Math

By Richard Eskow | November 8, 2012


President Obama was reportedly planning to reach out to House Majority Leader John Boehner today to begin negotiating a deal to avoid the so-called “fiscal cliff,” a series of spending cuts and tax hikes that will take effect unless Congress recinds the law that created it. That’s an appropriate and statesmanlike move. The public expects its leaders to work together on important issues.

The question is, what kind of deal? Boehner’s been acting as intransigent as ever, telling Reuters that Congressional Republicans will have “a mandate to not raise taxes.”