CLIFFS AND COWCATCHERS.

CLIFFS AND COWCATCHERS. Our discussions of the fiscal cliff in terms of a chicken game left out some political advantages of the cliff for federal lawmakers. I posted about “cowcatcher” bills here. In discussing the Senate bill to deal with the cliff, David Malpass in the Wall Street Journal (January 2) points out that “the Senate bill extends 52 tax credits, mostly for one year, ensuring huge annual lobbying fees and political contributions….” I mentioned here the notion of a popular bill as a “Christmas tree” on which other less popular measures can be hung. A bill which deals with what is considered to be a crisis can also be a Christmas tree. As an example, Malpass notes that: “Section 312 provides faster tax deductions for ‘motorsports entertainment complexes.'”