Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) warned Thursday that House leaders lacked "credibility" on the looming negotiations over tax rates and budget cuts, arguing that his colleagues were refusing to acknowledge "the truth ... that we are broke."
"I do not think I have heard the answer," Paul told Bloomberg TV. "They talk about this fiscal cliff, but in my mind I work with the assumption we are already over the cliff, we're just wondering how we're going to land ... it is unsolvable because you have to cut spending."
Paul also attributed President Obama's reelection to a majority of Americans being on the "receiving end" of government benefits.
"If you look at the numbers and the way pure democracy works, pure democracy is dangerous," Paul said. "The majority dictates against the minority. Right now the majority are receiving a check. That is why people were sort of surprised with these conditions that the president could get reelected."
Paul added that he had quit Congress — he will retire at the end of this term — because he thought "people had enough of me."
"I do not have much confidence in the political system and never did," Paul said. "My goal has always been to change people's minds because as long as people demand more government, they will get it."
But the former Republican presidential candidate said that he did see the possibility for bipartisan compromise and dramatic changes to the tax code and federal budget.
"You bring coalitions together of progressives and libertarian conservatives and say, 'yes, we have to cut across the board,' " Paul said. "Right now they say compromise on preservation of certain programs, but you have to get together and bring people together of different viewpoints. ... There's no reason in the world you cannot get progressives and libertarians to agree on some of these cuts and spending we do not need."
