Kicking the Can

 

“Mr. Gorbachev, tear down half this wall; then we can discuss tearing down the rest of it.” Of course, President Reagan never uttered those words. He wasn’t fond of the so called “kicking the can down the road” approach to solving problems. He faced them head on and didn’t compromise on principle. These days two months of harmony rather than a definitive answer to our pressing problems  is far more palatable  to our elected officials in Washington. Moreover, it is considered a great accomplishment.

Last night as the president took the podium to announce the breakthrough lifting the debt ceiling and ending the government shutdown, he appeared as presidential  as he has in quite some time, rather than the  recalcitrant child  who refused to negotiate   in the weeks prior. No doubt under his breath, while he spoke of bi-partisan efforts and cooperation, he was crowing about his latest triumph over a rudderless Republican  party who can’t seem to get out of the way of themselves. Harry “Three Tongue” Reid was also magnanimous in his praise for his Republican counterparts who finally caved after some apocryphal polls surfaced  last weekend, placing the blame on the shutdown squarely on the GOP. When the polls were made public there was a run on white surrender flags and manufacturers were  having difficulty keeping up with Republican demand.

Last night the president also said that the government will have to work hard to gain the trust of the American people. This might be a bit tougher for you, sir. The convoluted Affordable Health Care Act has yet to impact the nation and no one seems to know for sure what those ramifications will be. The only consensus  is that the overall costs will be much higher than promised.

Still,  Mr. Obama is ready to press on. It was interesting last night  how he snuck in a reference to  another hot button item he is ready to address: immigration reform. It’s sure to be just as polarizing as health care reform. So expect a repeat of the gridlock that is a hallmark of the Obama presidency.

So a word of advice to banner manufacturers and weavers of white cloth better now to increase your inventories, the Republicans will be needing you soon.