A REAL budget from Congress?

Well, after years without a budget, Congress has mustered up a plan the Republicans are calling a “balanced budget”.  Republican leaders say this demonstrates that they have earned the right and have the ability “to govern”.

So why would I be critical of a BALANCED BUDGET?  Perhaps for the same reason Republican Senator Bob Corker refused to sign on to it, before finally caving in and saying, in essence, “it’s full of gimmicks, but at least it’s a start”.

So what’s the problem?  The biggest one seems to be that while these brave Republican leaders are presenting the illusion that they are  “making the hard choices”, what they are really doing is passing the buck; passing the problem to the states with proposals for block grants on entitlement programs.  Let us not forget that programs like Medicare and Food Stamps, as well as other entitlements programs were created by Congress in the beginning.  Their solution to the spending problems related to those programs is to say “here… you fix it”.

The argument could be made that this Reagan-era ‘solution’ of block grants which would trim a Trillion or so from entitlement programs is that state and local governments know best how to implement these programs efficiently and economically.  It is, indeed, a convenient argument that gets Congressional Republicans off the hook and allows them to boast that they have ‘balanced the budget without raising taxes’.  That’s just wonderful… for them.  Do nothing to solve the problem and get credit for saving the day!

Back at the state and local level, officials will be faced with the hard choices… cut entitlement programs, raise taxes or perhaps choose a blend of tax increases and cuts to programs.

Whether you agree or disagree that entitlements should be cut as part of restoring fiscal sanity, you should question the ‘bravery’ of these “NEW Republicans” who are saving the country by shifting the responsibility to the states.  Given the history of the last decade of Republican rule in my home state, South Dakota, we should all brace ourselves for more tax increases.  They will have creative names for these tax increases, like ‘revenue enhancements’ and ‘user fees’, but make no mistake, they will be tax increases.

In the meantime, the Republican leadership in Congress can go on break having “balanced the budget without raising taxes”.

Welcome to the Republican Budget Magic Show!

***Gordon Howie is an author and CEO of Life and Liberty Media***

     “It’s not about right or left, it’s about Right or Wrong.”

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