SOMEONE SHOULD remind President Obama that he was re-elected president of the United States, not president of the Democratic Party.
Mr. Obama’s unwillingness to negotiate in good faith with House Republicans over a deal to avert the fiscal cliff is the kind of partisanship unbecoming of a nation’s chief executive.
Effective CEOs find a way to get things done, even if it alienates a portion of their political bases. They understand that state of the nation comes before the state of any political party.
Mr. Obama should be more like President Reagan. The Gipper bargained with House Speaker Tip O’Neill to strike a “grand bargain” over Social Security back in 1983.
Or, if a Democratic president is more to his liking, Mr. Obama could borrow a page out of President Clinton’s playbook. Mr. Clinton struck a deal in 1996 with House Speaker Newt Gingrich to reform welfare.
Mr. Reagan and Mr. Clinton were rabidly partisan when it came to winning elections. But when it came to governing, both worked with members of the opposition to get things done. Mr. Obama seems to lack the ability and desire to do that.
In fact, the more the president digs in his heels, as he did Monday in quickly dismissing a proposal by the House GOP’s leadership, the more difficult the deal-making becomes. It’s as if he relishes the cliff jumping — and the likely recession it will trigger.
Republican House Speaker John Boehner put forward a counter-offer to the president’s that calls for $900 billion in spending cuts and $800 in new revenues achieved through tax reform. There are no tax hikes.
But the president insists on raising taxes. He refuses to sign off on any deal that doesn’t hike taxes for households earning $250,000 or more per year.
Mr. Obama must recognize that Mr. Boehner is stepping out onto a limb. He’s under fierce attack by members of his own party, including Sen. Jim DeMint of South Carolina. They don’t want any revenue enhancements gained by closing loopholes and ending some deductions in the current tax code.
“Speaker Boehner’s $800 billion tax hike will destroy American jobs and allow politicians in Washington to spend even more, while not reducing our $16 trillion debt by a single penny,” Mr. DeMint said Tuesday. But he’s not helping. The senator is the mirror image of Mr. Obama, refusing to give an inch and taking the nation closer to the cliff, which means automatic tax hikes and steep spending cuts, especially in defense.
U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan is where Republicans should be. Mitt Romney’s vice presidential running mate signed on to Mr. Boehner’s compromise. It’s a fair mix of spending cuts and revenue increases and worthy of the president’s consideration.
Yet Mr. Ryan told a radio station in his home state of Wisconsin that Mr. Obama “took 40 minutes to reject the deal,” concluding that “he doesn’t want to come to the middle.” That’s the root of this impasse.
So is party politics. A recent poll by the Pew Research Center and the Washington Post showed that a slight majority of Americans — 53 percent — said Republicans in Congress would be more to blame for a failure to reach a consensus. That number is slightly higher than Mr. Obama’s winning percentage in the Nov. 6 election.
Thus the president may feel he can push the GOP to the limit — and beyond — to inflict damage that will pay off for Democrats in future elections. But that’s not governing for the good of the country. That’s playing politics for the good of his political party.
“We’ve responded to every presidential proposal,” House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., said. “We’ve been first on the mix. The actions don’t hold up to where the polls are, but we want to make sure we solve this problem and that we don’t go over the fiscal cliff.”
The bad news is that reports out of Washington suggest that no substantive conversations are taking place right now, at any level, between the White House and the speaker. That must end. The surest way not to resolve this mess is to refuse to talk.
Mr. Obama told business leaders Wednesday that elected officials can solve the fiscal cliff in a week. “It’s not that tough,” he said.
He’s right. But he must do what Mr. Reagan and Mr. Clinton did while they occupied the Oval Office. It’s time to lead, Mr. President.