The negotiations between the President and Republicans in Congress over what has come to be called “the fiscal cliff” appear to be more about political posturing, political ideology, and the effort to hold political power than about preventing a deeper recession in the country.

The president wants more spending, more debt, more stimulus, higher taxes, and permanent removal of the debt ceiling limit. The republicans are willing to concede most of these things if the tax increase can be disguised as “closing deduction loopholes.”