Democrats Choose Members Most Likely to Vote Against Budget Cuts For Super Committee

If you thought the debt Super Committee would be a serious attempt to reduce the budget, think again:

Meanwhile, at the Hall of Just Us... -- A lot of people are worried about the deficit these days, but not to worry. The Supercommittee is here to save the day! For themselves. TheDC's Amanda Carey reports: "Some Democratic members of the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, tasked with identifying $1.5 trillion in spending cuts, have become the subject of criticism, but their appointments were only finalized Thursday. Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, and Reps. James Clyburn of South Carolina and Xavier Becerra of California are already being targeted for circumstances that could compromise their abilities to negotiate. Becerra, for example, wasted no time before using his appointment as a fundraising tool for his own campaign. About two hours after House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi released Becerra's name as one of her appointees, an invitation went out inviting Wall Street lobbyists to a $1,500 per-ticket event. The invitation highlighted Becerra’s membership on the exclusive committee." Some are criticizing Clyburn's fondness for earmarks, an odd trait for someone on a budget-cutting committee. And Murray is the head of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, which raises questions about her ability to negotiate with Republicans. So, pretty much Washington as usual, then. 

It's a joke, as we all knew it would be. Probably the best thing that could happen is a complete stalemate that triggers the automatic cuts in the bill. But that probably won't happen because a squishy Republican will side with the Democrats on tax increases.