It isn't "grownup" to insist that tax increases are forbidden from even being considered.
THAT is the fundamental problem with the deficit. Instead of looking at what spending we really need and makes sense, and figuring out how to pay for it, about half(Republicans) instead want to first slash tax rates, because it's politically popular, then reshape, not cut, spending to meet their social agenda.
Barring some unfathomable event that unites us as one, what you're asking for just ain't gonna happen. Cats are cats and dogs are dogs and you aren't going to make one into the other.
I have to side with the Republicans on this and only because they're the only game in town right now. Both major political parties are worthless IMO, but because they're all we have for now, I must pick the one that allies most closely with my leanings.
I can foresee tax increases - for sure. Our Governor here in Michigan wants to tax pensions. Pensions have been untaxed for decades here. It's going to effect me. I'm not complaining in the slightest because along with tax increases, he's making cuts. I also feel that it's important that I be an active contributor to the financial health of our state. Yes, I'm paying property taxes, sales taxes, fees and the like, but I don't think it's too much to ask to have me paying income tax along with many others. If he gets his way, I'll accept it, if not, I can roll with that too.
Back to the matter at hand, on a national level, I see tax increases as feeding the beast. A beast so out of control that the Cherry Blossom parade and cowboy poetry are items that cannot be eliminated. So I say not just no, but a hearty fuck no. Just as I have to live within my budget, so does DC. They have proven over and over and through the course of decades that they can't manage their money. Time to go see the credit counselor and that's me, Joe taxpayer.
Whether you look at the House as the cats or the dogs, right now the name of the game is to cut spending, so cut it now and cut deep. When the other critters get in power they can raise taxes. Someday, maybe the interests of the cats and the dogs will be in alignment and some form of national interest will take over instead of screwing the other guy over in a misguided quest for long lasting supreme power. Our system of checks and balances is way out of wack. But everyone can not always win.
Now I'll get political. If the left wants tax hikes, they've had ample opportunity to do so. They chicken out nearly every time. Why do you expect the party known for tax decreases to take on the burden history shows us belongs to the Dem's? If the left can't get it done, why expect the right to? It's totally unrealistic. You hold one party to a standard that you give the other a pass on. Really?