The sun rises on the U.S. Capitol.It was strangely hailed as a "victory" when Congress recently passed a bill that, among other things, extends payroll tax relief, protects doctors from a huge cut in Medicare compensation and extends unemployment benefits.
But the ludicrousness of declaring that bill a victory is highlighted by the fact that it didn't really fix anything. The payroll tax relief and other provisions are extended for only two months!
As The New York Times appropriately summed up the current situation: "Every issue in dispute remains unresolved, waiting to be addressed when Congress returns [in January] for an election-year session in which agreements could be even more elusive."
So Congress and President Barack Obama -- who enthusiastically signed the short-term "fix" into law -- have only kicked the can down the road to a time when they are even less likely to be able to agree on long-term tax relief and on resolution of other serious issues.
Only in Washington could such a state of affairs be declared a "victory."
But such is our broken political process, and there is painfully little reason to think that process will see any improvement in the near future.