First, let be clear language wise. There are no cuts to anything as a result of the deal. No one is getting less money than they were before, they’ll just be getting less than expected. And that’s assuming that it’s not all accounting gimmickry, which Congress has now pretty much surpassed Enron in it audacity to perpetrate. Remember, if there were actual cuts, we wouldn’t have had to raise the ceiling.
Second, did anyone notice that the first thing mentioned as “threatened” was Social Security payouts? Except, I thought Social Security was fine and working? So why should we have to raise the debt ceiling in order to meet Social Security payouts if its a perfect example of a successful government program? Inquiring minds would like to know.
Third, overall I’d say assigning the “success” or “failure” tag to the deal really depends on what comes next. If we can actually hammer spending back in line with revenue from here then I’d say it was a success. Otherwise, it’s a failure and it’s only a matter of time before the too-clever-by-half accounting in Congress comes back to (unexpectedly!) bite us in the ass.
Finally, we need more Tea Party people in Congress to force this issue. Ideally, they’d be of the persuasion that touching SS and Medicare is fair game; unfortunately, everything I’ve read about Tea Partiers doesn’t indicate that trait. Meaning the job may not get done.