This is an excerpt from "An Election Message for the Lame Duck Congress: Fair Taxes, No Cuts," by AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka.

After a hard-fought and divisive election year, it's time to rebuild America's middle class—but to do it we need to make sure the lessons from this campaign stick.

Four years ago, the leadership of the Republican Party made a cynical political gamble—and this year they lost because they bet against America.

Instead of rethinking the failed policies that got us into this mess, the Republicans in Congress tried to drag down the American economy and stall the recovery and then pass the blame to President Obama.

Along the way, they also blamed teachers, firefighters, nurses and, quite frankly, just about anyone and everyone except the real culprit— irresponsible tax cuts for the wealthy and deregulation.

Read the rest on The Huffington Post.