Like everything in Washington, spending and the deficit is political. No sane person denies the Obama deficit is a staggering problem and must be dealt with, the difference is some people want to deal with it now, others want to ignore it until later. Who understands the seriousness of the problem? This was said on the Senate floor:
In fact, when it comes to deficits, this President owns all the records. The three largest deficits in our Nation’s history have all occurred under this administration’s watch. The deterioration of the Federal Government’s finances is the direct result of the misguided priorities of this administration …
These deficits have resulted in an unprecedented and dangerous borrowing spree. The total debt during this spree has grown by trillions of dollars. President Abraham Lincoln said: As an individual who undertakes to live by borrowing soon finds his original means devoured by interest and next no one left to borrow from, so must it be with government.
Given the explosion of debt in recent years, it is long past time for Washington to change the course and adopt a new fiscal policy. After all, the future of our economy and our Nation is at stake.
That was Senator Harry Reid. Yep, that Harry Reid.
Of course, he was referring to President Bush, not Obama. No doubt President Bush’s biggest flaw was spending, but the increasing Federal Deficit under Obama has been breathtaking — tripling the deficit Mr. Reid said leads to a “dangerous borrowing spree”.
Why the silence over Obama tripling the deficit, Senator? Why, the fact Obama is a Democrat has nothing to do with it, we’re sure.
That’s the reality in Washington — pure partisan politics. When it’s someone of the same party an action is fine, when it’s the other party those same actions result in Armageddon. Nothing but partisanship and a lack of integrity.
Can the Obama Deficit be Solved?
As reckless spending skyrockets, it’s obvious to any sane person we can’t tax our way out of it. It requires serious effort to trim spending — in the order of yearly $500 Billion in reductions to start. Can it be done? Or does anyone in Washington have the integrity to do it?
Obama’s deficit (in nice round numbers) is $1.5 Trillion, or $1,500 Billion. We need to cut 1,500 Billion dollars per year before we can even begin to pay back the accumulated debt. Can it be done?
- Immediate budget reduction of $400 Billion, with additional $100 Billion in years 2, 3 and 4. Total yearly Savings: $700 Billion — not quite half of Obama’s deficit. Note that current talks are considerably smaller amounts, indicating none of the clowns in Washington are really serious.
- End Corporate Welfare. That means oil, gas, ethanol, “green” subsidies, farm, PBS, National Endowment for the Arts, NPR, Planned Parenthood, GM, Chrysler, union paybacks, preferential treatment to political cronies, and more. ALL of them should go. No bailouts, no rescues, no welfare, no backroom paybacks.
- Tax Increases. The problem becomes when Democrats talk of “soak the rich” it really means people with incomes above $200,000 — the middle class. What Democrats don’t tell you is we can’t tax our way out. You could take ALL income above $100,000 and cover the deficit, but how much damage would that do to the economy? However, increasing to say 40% on income over $1 Million and 45% on income over $2 Million would make a small dent in Obama’s deficit.
- Eliminate Tax Welfare. This means items like EIC and other “refundable” tax credits, which are really welfare disguised as tax policy. Obama calls this “spending in the tax code”, and it’s welfare, pure and simple. If you want welfare, man up and have the guts to call it what it is; don’t be an economic girlie man and hide your socialist ideas in the tax code.
- Elimination of Federal bureaucracies like the Department of Education. Have they really accomplished anything except the lowering of standards and test scores? Let’s be honest, that department has been a dismal failure; only Washington rewards such stunning incompetence, it’s time to scrap failed ideas, not reward them with more money.
- Balanced Budget Amendment. Washington has shown they’re not capable of controlling themselves.
After that, we might get back to deficits of the Bush era. It will take economic growth to solve the rest. Only after we get a balanced budget can we begin to pay back the $14 Trillion we owe.
Nero fiddled while Rome burned; the President plays golf while the country rushes toward collapse — the Cloward-Piven strategy run right before our eyes — the only logical reason Washington and the President refuse to solve the debt problem is because they don’t want to. Think that sounds crazy? Do some research on the Cloward-Piven strategy and see for at least some in Washington, economic collapse is the desired outcome.
“Washington is shifting the burden of bad choices today onto the backs of our children and grandchildren. America has a debt problem and a failure of leadership” — Barack Obama