Can We Become Disciplined Enough To Save The National Debt
By Jill Williams on December 4, 2010, 12:17 pm
“We know this plan is going to be cannon fodder for the far left and far right, and that virtually everyone will find individual recommendations to quibble with,” Cowan said. “However, the Chairmen’s recommendations provide a real, clear blueprint for addressing the long-term deficit. Passing this plan would prove to a skeptical public that Washington can face our major challenges. Failing to pass it will confirm the worst fears of the public and the world that the United States may no longer have what it takes.”
Avert Disaster
“This plan will not just avert a disaster, but help drive the kind of economic recovery we need to create jobs and spur growth,” the senators said. “The plan’s provisions to lower tax rates while creating fairness in the tax code are similar to pro-growth policies supported by President Reagan. The plan also reduces discretionary spending and takes meaningful steps to preserve Social Security.”
Commission Members
Of those who have signed on, only Conrad will remain in elective office come January, as Senator Gregg is retiring. Conrad is up for reelection in two years, but has yet to announce if he will run. Aside from Conrad and Gregg, 10 other commission members are also members of Congress, five from each party, and have the most to lose personally by signing on to the controversial plan, if they hope to remain in office.
Big Changes
But doing so would require some big changes, including caps on discretionary spending and a near freeze on the Pentagon budget, cuts in Medicare payments and raising the Social Security retirement age to 68 by 2050, simplifying tax rates, but also raising other taxes and limiting the scope of tax breaks, such as the mortgage interest deduction and employer-provided health insurance.
Bipartisanship
You know the country’s in trouble when prominent Democrats and Republicans resort to bipartisanship. In the past three weeks, there were two bipartisan calls for action to reduce the soaring national debt. And we do mean action — the leaders of the two debt reduction panels didn’t mess around with recommendations to appoint more commissions to do more handwringing about the nation’s profligacy. They laid out detailed plans to slash spending, reform taxes and shrink the size of the federal government in relation to the total U.S. economic output.
Related posts:
- Debt Panel Rejects Their Own Recommendations, But Has Majority
- Does Congress Really Care About The National Debt
- Can The Government Solve The National Debt Before It Is Too Late
- National Debt Is Pitting The Republicans Against The Democrats
- Obama Orders US Congress Use Pay-Go Spending Policy
When will you add the Obama years?
Nice trick, playing with the numbers without context. You might mention that congress sets the budget… duh! … the fact that the budget deficit was decreased in the late years of the Clinton Administration had more to do with the fact that congress was run by conservatives than who was president.