In the previous comment thread our friend Dave Miller raised an important topic.
“I don't know what we can do to right our financial ship and get us on a stronger financial path…I'd love to see any suggestions from folks who say they are serious about our budget and deficit.”
I don't have all the answers, not even close, only a bit of common sense.
To say the least, fiscal policy is complicated, but we can begin by looking at some history.
One party is noted for cutting taxes and increasing spending. The same party enjoys the false impression, or outright delusion, by the public that THEY are best at managing the economy. It is yet another useful big lie for the authoritarian and greedy Right.
This is the PROVEN recipe for making it worse. Trump’s promise for vastly increased tariffs has been near universally condemned by economists. But most of the deceived and benighted public is blind to this reality.
The last surplus for the federal government was in 2001. The hated Bill Clinton left that surplus, albeit by compromising and working with Republicans.
Now authoritarian Republicans have completely rejected compromise. Just look at the border funding bill killed by Trump and his servants in Congress.
More
history:
Under Trump in 2020 it was $3.13 Trillion.
Under Biden in 2023 it was $1.70 Trillion.
So,
the simple answer on where to start is suggested by Occom's razor.
Keep
the damn Republicans out of power.
Cutting taxes and regulations for corporations and the rich help only corporations and the rich. The people and the environment suffer from cuts in reduced services and regulations.
Republicans' often stated goal of privatizing Social Security will not work out for the public, but for Wall Street.
No wonder the Party of Trump and Mammon needs to lie, distort and scheme to dupe the public. They know if they scare enough white voters, they can hold power and keep cutting taxes for the rich and deregulating corporate malfeasance.
So, their lack of conscience allowed them to make
their Faustian bargain with the devil. White nationalism has become their de facto
ideology.
Posts
2 comments:
Thanks Dave! Here's part of my comment that got you thinking...
I don't know what we can do to right our financial ship and get us on a stronger financial path. The feds are spending about 6.25 trillion bucks every year. We take in about 4.25 trillion in taxes and fees. That leaves us 2 trillion short every year.
Here are the rough percentages of spending...
40% - Social Security, Unemployment, etc.
23% - Medicare
11% - Military
6% - Education to support state budgets
5% - Interest on the debt
15% - Everything else, including foreign aid, emergency aid, like FEMA, Veterens benefits, etc
So I'm gonna play the dad at the kitchen table looking over the family budget. Politicians love to bring that analogy to our "table" when talking budget. The Federal government ought to be able to pay the bills and balance the budget.
Most thinking Americans will agree with that sentiment. So what do we do?
In a family, sometimes you cut spending. Sometimes you increase income. Sometimes you do both.
The larger philosophical question is this... which one of those three options is best for the US right now?
Here's another stat for folks to add into their thinking...
In 1965, Federal Outlays per person cost us $4333.00.
In 2024, those outlays now cost us $19,594.00.
That looks bad, like a huge increase. Unless you factor in inflation. If we take the 1965 amount of $4333.00 and factor inflation into the equation, that new number in 2024 would be $43,302.00.
In effect, we have reduced per capita spending by over 55% in inflation adjusted dollars. Whether through efficiency, or by cutting waste, effectively our government is doing better at controlling spending.
Maybe it is time we increase revenue? If that family at the table feels they have cut their expenses to the bone and still can't make ends meet, what do they do?
Someone goes out and gets another job, to bring more $$$ into the budget.
Just some additional thoughts for the discussion.
Thanks, Dave.
Other factors to consider:
Republican tax cuts for the rich and corporations have always increased the debt and deficit, transferring the burden to the middle class.
Mandatory spending is largely covered, or should be covered, by payroll taxes. The rich get off too easily on this. How about making them pay a similar percentage as the rest of us?
If we look at discretionary spending determined by the House, the military accounts for 54%.
Post a Comment