Friday, December 14, 2012

Budget negotiations--whose responsibility?

President Obama has been going around saying it is up to the Republicans to come up with a budget solution that avoids going off the so-called fiscal cliff.  But the Republicans control only the House, not the Presidency.  So what's wrong with this picture?

Here's what's wrong:  The responsibilities of the Members of the House and Senate rest with their districts and their States, respectively.  They are expected to vote the wishes of the voters that sent them there.  The President, on the other hand, is president of the whole People.  Therefore, it is incumbent upon the President and no-one else to forge an agreement concerning the budget.

If Barack Obama is incapable of fulfilling that responsibility, then we have the wrong man in the Oval Office.