Peering Over the Cliff

摘要

The republicans were doing what they've always promised to do. They were reducing taxes and cutting back "the welfare state." The Democrats were reacting the way Democrats traditionally react. They were protecting social programs and accusing Republicans of shafting the poor. The rhetoric all sounded familiar, yet somehow the feeling last week in Washington was totally different. Lawmakers were simultaneously giddy and terrified that, for once, their words were being taken seriously. For the last two decades, both parties have engaged in a kind of ritual Kabuki dance. The Republicans would sternly vow to slash big government, and the Democrats would righteously protest against throwing old people into the snow. But neither side wanted to touch mushrooming "entitlement" programs; the political consequences were too dire. So the government wallowed ever deeper into debt.