Filed by KOSU News in Politics.
December 11, 2012

As we’ve said now several times, “the White House and congressional leaders continue to talk about taxes, spending cuts and how to avoid the so-called fiscal cliff that arrives at midnight Dec. 31 — when Bush-era tax cuts are set to expire and automatic spending cuts are set to go into effect.”

As NPR and others cover the story, we’re pointing to interesting reports and analyses. Here are some of the latest.

– “Silence On ‘Fiscal Cliff’ Could Be A Good Sign.” (CBS News)

“The White House and Speaker Boehner’s office haven’t revealed a single detail about the meeting on Sunday, and the members CBS News have spoken to are taking that as a good sign that the talks are getting serious and substantive, just in time.”

– “Boehner’s Test: Keep GOP Ranks Behind Him.” (The Wall Street Journal)

House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, “has been slowly bringing Republican freshmen to his side by introducing them to the realities of legislating and congressional leadership. Mr. Boehner’s strategy, and his future as speaker, will get tested between now and year-end as Washington wrestles with negotiations designed to avert tax increases and spending cuts due to begin in early January.”

– “What Happens If We Fall Off The ‘Fiscal Cliff’?” (Morning Edition)

“Let’s imagine it’s January and the nation has gone off the ‘fiscal cliff.’ You don’t really feel any different and things don’t look different either. That’s because, according to Stan Collender, the cliff isn’t really a cliff. ‘It was a great communications tool but it was a misnomer from the beginning,’ he says. ‘The idea of jumping off the cliff and just having the economy go into the tanks immediately is just absolutely, positively, incontrovertibly incorrect.’ Collender, a former congressional budget staffer, now works at Qorvis Communications.”

And a bonus track for well-read folks:

– “The ‘Fiscal Cliff’ For English Majors.” What do Shakespeare, the Greeks and other classics tell us about what’s likely to happen? (Morning Edition) [Copyright 2012 National Public Radio]