Originally Posted by pjohns

(1) I do not believe it is a calumny to refer to David Brooks as an ex-conservative, anymore than it would be to ferer to Garry Wills in the same way.

(2) The article, rather predictably, speaks in the antiseptic wording of "revenue increases"--not higher taxes.

(3) If an agreement is not reached by August 2, there will be no immediate "default" upon our debt. This will be a chance for government to prioritize, and payback our creditors first.
That comes from a fantastic analysis of the situation.
The worry (and it is a quite reasonable one, in my opinion) is that the Democrats will do all they can to cause as much pain as possible--perhaps by shutting down the meat industry, through the temporary elimination of meat inspections; or even by postponing of the delivery of Social Security checks--so as to be able to demonize Those Mean and Heartless Republicans...