OC Register To Obama: Offer Solutions, Not Blame
The Orange County Register is out today with a scathing editorial slamming President Obama and Democrats from blaming others on the sequester, while failing to put forward any serious solutions.
The paper, whose circulation includes several military bases that would be affected by Obama’s sequester, calls him out for failing to offer any specifics except empty platitudes on “balance.”
“We share the president’s concern about indiscriminate spending cuts. But we also found it troubling that in his 12-minute statement, he proposed no plan to reduce the federal deficit (which increased more $4 trillion during his four years in the Oval Office).”
“He also offered no specifics on what sequester cuts he was willing to accept in lieu of cuts to air traffic control, military preparedness emergency response and other essential government spending.”
…
“Mr. Obama said Tuesday that blame will reside entirely with Republicans if the sequester takes effect nine days from now.
We agree that Republicans should ‘do the right thing.’ But so should Democrats. That means striking a grand bargain on deficit reduction that balances the federal budget within a decade, that eschews new taxes (above and beyond those agreed to in fiscal cliff negotiations) and that prioritizes spending cuts rather than imposing them indiscriminately.”
It’s clear that President Obama’s attempt to blame House Republicans is not working. The Democrats have delayed action on Obama’s sequester for months, while the House has passed two bills that would responsibly replace it. If the president’s sequester hits on March 1st, today’s OC Register leaves no doubt where the blame will reside.