Much ado today about the deal offered by the GOP Senate leader on raising the debt ceiling. It seems like a canny political move designed to put the onus on the President. If, however, a failure to raise the debt ceiling does lead to dire economic consequences, I think the GOP will take as much or more heat than the President.

Bill Kristol thinks the McConnell plan is dead in the water and has some alternatives.

Martin Wolf believes that ideologues are responsible for two looming financial disasters. He equates those in Europe who put their faith in the European Project, which led to the single currency and the continent now on the financial brink, with the Tea Party anti-tax folks in the GOP who are willing to risk a global financial meltdown by refusing to raise the debt limit. If failure to raise the debt limit does lead to a financial crisis I predict it will not last for long and it can be quickly fixed, at least in the short run. Unfortunately for the Europeans, the Eurozone mess cannot be fixed easily or quickly.

Michael Goodwin has some scathing remarks about the President's handling of the situation.

Charles Krauthammer is equally contemptuous of the President's positioning and posturing on the issue.

On the other hand, liberal columnist Harold Meyerson believes the debt talks reveal the Republican Party is dominated by people who wish to make war against government. As usual, Meyerson believes this is due to the inherent racial animosity and fear of the majority of white Republicans. Why it can't just be about a different philosophy of government I simply cannot fathom. But Meyerson, like so many liberals, simply cannot believe that knowledgeable people of intelligence and good will can come to a different conclusion about the proper role of government in modern life. People who have a different view, like conservatives and libertarians, must therefore be motivated by greed, fear or racial hatred.

Why are small business owners not hiring? Unless the economy starts booming again, it simply costs more to hire people than they are worth in terms of generating profits.