All Fiscal Cliff, All the Time

The fiscal cliff draws near, still. Game theory suggests that the Republicans are in the worst position because doing nothing puts them in an inferior place politically. But President Nixon's Madman Theory might be encouraging the stalemate -- make your opponent think you're crazy enough to put everyone at risk and they'll back down. Or have we reached a dysfunctional political equilibrium that Matt Miller calls the Endless Cliff Hypothesis? President Obama and Republican House Speaker John Boehner blame each other for the stalemate, but have agreed to talk unplugged.