The American Spectator

Yesterday, The Left came out in full force on the Sunday talk shows to cast blame on the Tea Party for last Friday’s credit rating downgrade by Standard & Poor’s.

Former Obama Senior Advisor David Axelrod told Bob Schieffer on Face the Nation that S&P’s decision was “a Tea Party downgrade” because of political “brinkmanship.” Yet at the same time, the Obama Administration is trying to have it both ways insisting that S&P based its decision on “a $2 trillion mistake.”

Sorry but the Obama Administration can’t have its cake and eat it. Either S&P’s decision to downgrade our credit rating was based on valid information or it isn’t. The Obama Administration cannot make the claim the S&P’s decision was based on a mathematical error and then turn around and blame the Tea Party. But let’s suppose S&P did make a $2 trillion error. How is the Tea Party responsible? The Obama Administration cannot have it both ways.

Speaking of having it both ways, Senator John Kerry, during an appearance on NBC’s Meet the Press, also characterized last Friday’s developments as “a Tea Party downgrade” stating “a minority of people in the House of Representatives countered even the will of many Republicans in the United States Senate who were prepared to do a bigger deal.” And would that minority include the 95 House Democrats who voted no, Senator Kerry?

Somehow I doubt that S&P cares a whit about the “brinkmanship” that went into the passage of the Budget Control Act much less how Michele Bachmann or Dennis Kucinich voted. All S&P was concerned about was the final product before them and they didn’t like what they saw.

Finally, former Vermont Governor and DNC Chair Howard Dean made his voice heard as well. Dean, who like Axelrod appeared on Face the Nation, said the downgrade was “a Tea Party problem.” He added, “I think they’ve been smoking that tea and not just drinking it.” I hear that smoking tea can be good for you. It calms the nerves and inhibits one from screaming.

As I have written previously, unlike Canada, given our separation of powers and given that Republicans control one branch of the legislature, no effort will be spared to minimize President Obama’s role in the credit downgrade and that effort has now hit the ground running.