Yeah, Richie. The problem is NOT Obama. The problem is the Congress, with two parties on the hard fringes that won't talk to one another. Or maybe it's four parties, two on the hard fringes and two somewhere in middle, none of whom have enough votes to get anything done for the benefit of the country.

Tell me if I didn't hear the President try to strike the "grand bargain" with John Boehner that was comprised of...

• $3 trillion in spending cuts, including cuts to Medicare and Social Security

• And $1 trillion in "revenue increases" comprised of tax increases only on the wealthiest 1-2% of Americans, elimination of egregious corporate tax benefits, a rework of the tax code, and reduced corporate tax rates.

So what did the GOP hold out for? $915 billion in cuts and another $1.5 trillion to be determined by a "super committee" which has as much chance of reaching agreement as the whole Congress did last week. No taxes on the wealthy. No rework of the tax code. No reduced corporate taxes. A plan that will only reduce deficit spending by about 60% of what the POTUS proposed and will still nearly double the national debt in ten years.

Kick the can down the road? Don't touch any controversial spending cuts. You betcha on both counts.

You tell me which is the better deal for the country. Then tell me why President Obama should be criticized for putting it on the table. Go further and tell me why the Republicans shouldn't be criticized for turning down a clearly more responsible proposal.

You and I both know the reason...because the GOP didn't want to do anything that might suggest that they were cooperating with the President. Forget the fact that the Congress is in the process of trashing the economy with the Rube Goldberg plan they came up with. And you want to blame the President? If it wasn't so tragic, it really would be a laugher.