In theory, the new debt ceiling deal preserves the possibility of raising taxes to help close the deficit. Which is a mighty good thing, guest host Chris Hayes argued last night, except for the part about political reality:
Taxes are going to have to go up, period. Taxes right now as a percentage of GDP are at a 50-year low.One of the things that characterizes a country with poor governance is an inability to collect taxes to fund the state. We've seen this in action in Greece. And this agreement today calls into question whether or not we're on a slippery slope that leads down that same path.
Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky (D-Illinois) tells us her constituent calls were running 20-1 against the debt ceiling deal. Ms. Schakowky voted against it. The deciding factor for her? "[A]ll of the cuts come from people who have already sacrificed so much, middle class people, our senior citizens, poor people -- all the people that we should be protecting and not a hair from the head of a millionaire or billionaire."