Quote of the Day: Fiscal Cliff Edition

"He talks, for example, about $800 billion worth of revenues, but he says he’s going to do that by lowering rates. And when you look at the math, it doesn’t work....If we're going to raise revenues that are sufficient to balance with the very tough cuts that we've already made, and the further reforms in entitlements that I'm prepared to make, we’re going to have to see the rates on the top two percent go up. And we’re not going to be able to get a deal without it."

President Barack Obama, on House Speaker John Boehner's fiscal cliff proposal.

The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities notes that Boehner that not say where he would cut $600 billion from Medicare and Medicaid. The CBPP notes that this level of cuts would be "draconian."

When the well-being of millions of Americans is at stake — as it is with major changes in Medicare and Medicaid — that shouldn’t be acceptable. If policymakers want to propose $600 billion in health care entitlement savings, as they have every right to do, they should show us the specific changes they would make to get there. Until they do, such proposals shouldn’t receive much credibility.

Mitt Romney ran on economic policy vagueness and drastic cuts to entitlements. The result was a general election loss. Democrats now know the recipe to beat Republicans on entitlements. Boehner and other Congressional Republicans are committing political suicide by going after Medicare. Establishment Republicans fail to understand that many in their base are elderly people on Medicare.

Side note: Boehner is so unserious that yesterday he offered a Bowles plan that does not exist has a counter-proposal.