U.S lawmaking remains at a standstill as the Majority House Speaker John Boehner and the President Obama have stopped communicating ever since the debt limit crisis. The former considers Obama to be an ineffective negotiator, and does not wish to collaborate with the President as this would result in the alienation of his Tea Party- friendly freshmen members.
Bill Galston, a domestic policy adviser to former President Bill Clinton, described this stalemate between the President and the Majority House Speaker in saying, “The president regarded Boehner as someone with whom he could do business and vice versa until the breakdown — for whatever reason — of the debt limit talks. I don’t think the relationship has ever recovered.”
Considering the events that have taken place last year, the President is preparing the State of the Union address, keeping in mind the deadlock that might not end until the Republicans are done with the nomination for the next Presidential elections or even until the elections in November 2012 are over.
Even though both sides have made it clear that there is no ill will and that they are still in touch with each other, Speaker Boehner has declined four dinner invitations to the White House over the past few months. So it’s obvious that both officials are adamant on their position when it comes to policy related to jobs plans.
However, there remains one last action item that must be crossed off, and that is an extension of the full year payroll tax cut.