Politico's Allen: Tax-Hiking 'Grand Bargain' Would Be Laudable 'Historic Achievement'

July 24th, 2011 8:13 AM

One more data point demonstrating the leftward tilt of the purportedly non-partisan Politico:

In his Playbook of today, Politico's chief White House correspondent Mike Allen depicts a "grand bargain" on the credit ceiling, which inevitably would include huge tax increases, as an "historic achievement" for which President Obama and House speaker John Boehner would "rightly get credit."

In contrast, Allen suggests that Republican leaders Eric Cantor and Kevin McCarthy are refusing a grand bargain out of petty political ambition.

Read more after the jump.


From the Playbook [emphasis added]:
 

PLAYBOOK FACTS OF LIFE - Why we're stuck: President Obama and Speaker Boehner - one facing reelection, the other on the back nine of his legislative career -- want to do a big deal, and would rightly get credit for a historic accomplishment. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (the #2 House GOP leader) and House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy (the #3) - on the front nine of their Capitol Hill careers -- do not want a grand bargain, and are convinced their rank and file does not support even modest tax hikes.
 

So, in Politico-World, raising taxes = statesmanship.  Focusing on cutting spending? Petty personal politics and ambition.  Politico, non-partisan?  Yeah, right.