For years, America’s budget has been the hostage of partisan politics. Our federal budget is constantly kicked down the road, careening from crisis to crisis, and the threat of government shutdowns. How ironic that Congress calls it a “budget resolution” when nothing is ever truly resolved.
Democrats thought that when Donald Trump
Donald TrumpTrump acknowledges end of presidency after Congress certifies Biden win Congress affirms Biden win after rioters terrorize Capitol Third House lawmaker tests positive for COVID-19 this week MORE came to power they could use the budget as a hammer to hold over Republican heads, and particularly the president’s head, to get items extraneous to the budget included by threatening to shut down the government. They got away with it for a while until they overplayed their hand last month and forced a government shutdown in a ploy that completely backfired. They put the interests of Dreamers above the interests of Americans. Within days the government was back in business, and the Democrats had nothing to show for it.
With the House and Senate budget agreement this week, the can is still being kicked down the road, but now it is a two-year budget extension that deals with issues that not only need immediate attention but also takes off the table budget politics and shenanigans in advance of the crucial midterm elections.
The latest budget deal is another important victory for all Americans. It was brought about through bipartisan compromise to lift the strict caps on military and defense spending that required short term spending bills, provide long-term disaster relief in the aftermath of Hurricane damage to Texas and Puerto Rico, increase spending by approximately $300 billion over two years split between military and domestic, raise the debt ceiling beyond the 2018 midterm elections, and extend the Children’s Health Insurance Program another 10 years.
This deal funds the government through September 2018, and by setting spending limits through September 2019, the deal paves the way for no drama spending bills in the next fiscal year around the midterm elections. There is something for everybody in this budget deal, which is a testament to a president who believes in compromise to get deals done. It is a regrettable that Democrats have to be shamed to the negotiation table instead of willingly taking their seats.
The wind is at the president’s back with the passage of generational tax cuts and reforms, great economic numbers in growth and employment, and now a bipartisan two-year budget deal just to name a few accomplishments. Now the president must take his political capital and invest it in immigration reforms and infrastructure investment. If Democrats have learned anything, it is that this president is not going to be bullied or harassed into a deal. He does not make bad deals.
Both Democrats and Republicans agree on the problems we face as a nation. Does it not make sense to use every effort to solve them together? The main duty of government is to prevent harm and to fix that which is broken. Donald Trump is the most “transactional” president in modern times. He is not so wed to ideology that prevents compromise. Now is the time to seize the day, and for all interested parties, to get the best deals you can while you can. Compromise is a strength, not a weakness.
Bradley A. Blakeman is a political consultant who served as a member of President George W. Bush’s senior White House staff from 2001 to 2004. He is a frequent contributor to Fox News and Fox Business.
