Horowitz: The shocking degree of political betrayal from Kevin McCarthy

This OpEd ignores the very real political math which involves Dems holding both the Senate and the WH.

Washington is SUPPOSED to be about compromise. Holding the line and refusing to negotiate is the wrong answer, no matter the issue. This was not betrayal.

Now, that being said, I think the overall level of spending IS betrayal. But negotiating to avoid financial crisis, however self-imposed it may have been, is not.

If I were king of the world, I would state that now that we are no longer near the cliff, we have 2 years to work it out. We will not approve another debt limit increase.... EVER. Nor will we approve any new appropriations - or continuing ones - that exceed current income projections. Finally, and income shortfalls (which thus cause debt) will be subtracted from the following single year budget - not spread out over years where it can disappear into the ether and be erased through accounting tricks. (Thus removing incentive to overestimate income to push through desired spending).

Each year we either pass an honest to goodness top-to-bottom budget, or we pass appropriations bills one at a time in order of importance. If we are out of money when it comes time to fund TANF, Medicaid subsidies to States, and the DoD has to mothball 3 carriers, 1,000 tanks, 50 fighter jets, send half of active duty into the reserves, and scrap the Marine Corps' crayon budget? So be it. Plan better next year... If you survive re-election.

Which is why I would need to be king of the world. 'Cuz no way I would survive re-election myself. NOBODY in this generation would be happy with me. But future generations would dub me Casey the Great.