For four year the GOP has obstructed, what if they gain control?

[IndependentinWis]

Will they be angry at the Dems if they then obstruct GOP plans like the GOP has obstructed the Dem plans? Will they have a leg to stand on when they have done the dame thing for four years? I remember when the GOP held up Fed Judge appointments made by Clinton, over 100. Then when Bush came into office and the Dems did the same thing to the GOP, the GOP said, oh but that was different. They never explained how it was different. But getting back to now, how upset will the GOP get if the they gain control again and the Dems don't go along with their plans to cut taxes once again for the wealthy, reduce "regulations" and say forget about the environment, only business counts?

 

[bdtex]

They intend to do everything they can using budget reconciliation in the Senate in the first 2 years of a Romney/Ryan administration then batten down the hatches for a 2014 wave election.

 

[Arkady]

The problem the Democrats have is they keep trying to unilaterally disarm in the face of Republican extremism. When the Republicans whine about Democratic obstructionism, half the Democrats act abashed and attempt to meet the Republicans halfway, forgetting completely that there was lock-step Republican support for similar obstructionism the last time the parties were reversed. That leaves us with a situation where controversial Democratic initiatives can't come to pass without a super-majority in the Senate, while half the time equally controversial Republican initiatives soar through (e.g., Bush's upper-class tax cuts, the conquest of Iraq, extremist Supreme Court justice Samuel Alito, etc.) I'm all for that "meet them halfway" attitude, but not as a unilateral policy. Simple game theory say that you have to punish the other side for not doing their part. Given their extreme obstructionism under Obama, if they were to take the presidency the Democrats would need to act equally obstructionist. Only when the Republicans improve their behavior should the Democrats do the same. The Democrats should never behave worse than the Republicans, but they should be very consistent in reciprocating both good and bad behavior. Only when the Republicans know there will be a price to pay for bad conduct will they start to police themselves.