The Budget Beast & Deficit Devil
Opinion by Ben Everidge for Thomas
Illustration by ALXR
detail, detail, detail…
Americans, in nearly all walks of life, realize that spending by the federal government is wildly out of control. The same standard for managing our household budget does not apply in Washington. Massive deficits are chronic, and government debt and the interest paid on that debt are at an all-time high—a record $37 trillion, or more than $101,000 for every man, woman, and child in America today.
This kind of crushing debt undermines national growth opportunities. It could quickly force the United States into an economic crisis of our own, especially if Donald Trump (not to pick on him alone) in a second-term administration starts a trade war with China, one of our nation’s largest trading partners.
The proper role of our federal government needs to be addressed by national, state, and local policymakers examining what areas of the budget should be left to the states to cover that were not a part of the federalism that the Democratic-Republican Party of old fought when jousting between the Federalists and anti-Federalists in Alexander Hamilton’s and Thomas Jefferson’s day.
Deficits and debts need to be measured and judged as a percentage of our Gross National Product (GNP), which is now approaching 150% and is projected to grow to 300% in the relatively near future. Another useful benchmark is federal outlays in 2024 totaling $6.5 trillion, estimated to be 23.1% of U.S. Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
America needs to cut spending, reform the tax code, and support more vigorous economic growth as measured by GNP and GDP, thus reducing interest costs on the debt and lowering costs for families.
Americans in polls tell us they favor an increase in social security benefits, education, infrastructure improvements, environmental protection, and scientific research and want a cut in foreign aid.
However, Democrats in Congress have not been interested in prioritizing balancing the budget or deficit reduction.
Republicans in Congress, for their part, want deep cuts in Social Security (a proposed 4% cut) and Medicare (a proposed 21% cut), Medicaid (a proposed 49% cut), non-defense reductions in farm subsidies, environmental protection, transportation, medical research, and homeland security (a proposed 60% cut), veterans’ health, law enforcement and research (another proposed 49% cut). Those Republican recommendations come directly from the Republican Study Conference in Congress.
