Post-Election Cooperation: The Opportunity of a Fresh Start | Capital Commentary

Post-Election Cooperation: The Opportunity of a Fresh Start | Capital Commentary by Michael J. Gerson. MGB: I suspect that many of the Tea Party firebrands in the House will be chastened by the fact that without gerrymandering, they would not have been back.  This may strenghten the position of the Speaker in forging a grand bargain with the President.  I do not fear the Fiscal Cliff, as many employers who are sitting on large cash reserves may simply raise wages in order to keep employees once tax rates return to Clintonian levels.  Should there be no extension of the Bush cuts, the need for a sequester ends and it can be dispensed with.  The fact that for most people, the fiscal clilff may really be harmless will force the Republicans to deal on taxes, which should not be hard as the Romney position and the Simpson-Bowles position are not far from each other.  I am sure the revenue committees, which are traditionally more non-partisan, will hammer something out to be passed either during the lame duck or soon after the start of the new fiscal year.