It’s funny, we only see these types of articles when the GOP controls one or both houses of Congress
Rising US debt stokes calls in Congress for special fiscal commission
The U.S. Congress is facing growing calls to find a way to stem rising budget deficits and debt following this month’s warning by Moody’s that political dysfunction could lead it to lower the federal government’s credit rating.
There is no rocket science to the three basic choices for grappling with a national debt that has doubled in just the last decade and stands at $33.7 trillion, around 124% of GDP: raise taxes, cut spending or do a combination of the two.
That has led some lawmakers to call for a commission to do the heavy lifting of coming up with realistic approaches to addressing the ballooning debt, a growing concern now that interest rates have risen, producing a jaw-dropping $659 billion in payments just on the national debt in fiscal year 2023, according to the Treasury Department.
“A fiscal commission is direly needed,” Republican Senator Mike Braun, a Budget Committee member, said in an interview.
It really is simple: cut the fat. Trim it away, just like you would do if you were spending way more than you were making. Do you really need to buy this, that, and the other? Switch your mobile plan from that expensive one to something a lot less expensive. Don’t hit the expensive coffee shop on the way to work, make your own. Bring your lunch instead of going out. I bet the Congress could easily find ways to cut $659 billion, cutting out unnecessary spending, making agencies be responsible for what they spend. I heard one time a long time ago that every federal agency could have their budgets cut easily by a third to a half and be able to operate just fine.
Obviously, Democrats are going to want to raise taxes.
Meanwhile, in your own life
Shoppers still punished by soaring prices as Joe Biden cheers latest inflation numbers
No, you’re not imagining it — the price of just about everything in your life is getting more expensive.
President Joe Biden this week spun the latest inflation numbers as good news for Bidenomics — cheering that October’s Consumer Price Index climbed a slightly less-than-expected 3.2% from last year.
But it’s cold comfort to consumers who are still getting socked by stratospheric prices for everything — from their groceries to the rent to the car they drive and the gas in its tank.
Indeed, compared to October 2020, when the US was under a COVID-induced lockdown, prices are up a blistering 18.2%. (snip)
“I wouldn’t count on prices broadly declining,” Moody’s chief economist Mark Zandi told The Post when asked about the future of grocery prices.
No, they won’t. You can see it with your own eyes. Progresso Soup is up from about $1.59 to $2.29 at my store. The ice cream I like is up at least $1. Tomatoes at least 50 cents. Fresh donuts fifty cents. Ground beef, chicken, and fish all up quite a bit.
Rent is up 20%, and mortgages have skyrocketed. Gas is up 36% from October 2020. Vehicles are way up.
Though a slowdown in the pace of inflation hasn’t translated directly to lower costs in groceries, for example, Zandi predicted that “we’ll see significant moderations in [price] increases over the next six to 12 months.”
Welcome to Bidenomics.
Mr Teach:
Our annual deficit is the difference between spending and revenues (taxes). Our debt is the cumulative annual deficits. The Reagan Revolution amounted to cutting taxes on the wealthy without cutting spending. Our debt increased nearly 3 fold under Reagan and Bush I. The more conservative Clinton and an agreeable Congress actually trimmed the debt, but slightly. Bush II had Afghanistan/Iraq spending + the Great Recession he handed off to President Obama. Trump had pandemic spending to avoid catastrophe. Biden has had infrastructure spending, Israel and Ukraine.
Our major expenses are Social Security, Defense, Healthcare and Interest. If we refuse to raise taxes on the millionaires and billionaires we need to cut spending. But what do you cut?
Mostly bullshit political mythology ….but imagine if Newt had been Speaker in 1984 instead of 1994.
Dear Chicken Little:
“The Reagan Revolution amounted to cutting taxes on the wealthy without cutting spending.”
The deal was that the House, controlled by he DemoRats, would reduce spending. They didn’t.
“The CBO Historical Tables indicate that federal spending during Reagan’s two terms (FY 1981–88) averaged 22.4% GDP, well above the 20.6% GDP average from 1971 to 2009.”
“Unemployment fell from 7.5% in 1981 to 5.4% in 1989 after peaking at 10.8% in 1982.[7]
Inflation fell from 11.8% when Reagan entered office to 4.7% when he left.[8]
The US Average Real Income grew by 16.8% from 1980 to 1989.[9]” ….and…
“An accounting indicated nominal tax receipts increased from $599 billion in 1981 to $1.032 trillion in 1990, an increase of 72% in current dollars. ”
“According to a 1996 study[101] by the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank, on 8 of the 10 key economic variables examined, the American economy performed better during the Reagan years than during the pre- and post-Reagan years. The study asserted that real median family income grew by $4,000 during the eight Reagan years and experienced a loss of almost $1,500 in the post-Reagan years.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reagan_tax_cuts#:~:text=Revenues%20grew%20from%201982%20to,lost%20because%20of%20the%20cuts.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reaganomics#:~:text=The%20federal%20deficit%20under%20Reagan,to%202.5%25%20under%20Ronald%20Reagan.
Cap’n Shit for Brains,
While we understand why you want to distract from the fact that during the Reagan and Bush I terms the national debt nearly tripled, you didn’t refute the facts.
Dear Chicken Little:
The deficit increased:
““The CBO Historical Tables indicate that federal spending during Reagan’s two terms (FY 1981–88) averaged 22.4% GDP, well above the 20.6% GDP average from 1971 to 2009.”
The House didn’t decrease spending. So the deficit went up, even though:
“An accounting indicated nominal tax receipts increased from $599 billion in 1981 to $1.032 trillion in 1990, an increase of 72% in current dollars. ”
Watch my lips:
THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES CONTROLS SPENDING.
Cap’n Shit for Brains,
Yikes, you are wrong. The House initiates spending bills.
Back in your day, if you had reached the 8th grade you would have learned that the President, even one with dementia like Reagan, can veto a bill.
Dear Chicken Little:
And then the Democrats can either let the government shut down or override.
Like said. They control spending.
The problem is that the House of Representatives controls spending and the House is beholden to the government unions that fund their biennial elections. Bureaucracy got us into this mess. Bureaucracy can get us out.
I propose a fourth branch of government, the Lean Branch, whose job it is to review federal agencies and programs. When it finds a program that has outlived its usefulness or failed in their task, Lean will defund the program and return a portion of the budget to the Treasury. This is important because Lean will have no budget. It’s only income comes from shutting down other federal agencies and programs. Here is where the most bureaucratic of bureaucrats can shine.
Not a bad idea but I can just imagine the civil war..
Typically the average American spend only 11% of his budget on food
Wages and salaries went up 4,6% inflation dropped to 3.2%
Gas will hit $3.25 Thanksgiving the same as when Trump was getting ready to be evicted
Gotta cut back on all those avocado toasts ! Teach Americans are continuing to get fatter every year.
H
Why do you lie?
“Gas will hit $3.25 Thanksgiving the same as when Trump was getting ready to be evicted”It
Gas was $2.19 on 11/9/20, just after Biden stole the election,$2.44 on 1/18/21 just after the Feds “Crystal Night” and It’s $3.41 today.
“Wages and salaries went up 4,6% inflation dropped to 3.2%”
My grocery bill has almost doubled. You lie.
https://ycharts.com/indicators/us_gas_price
Leftist lie about everything. You can never believe their numbers. HR is one of the biggest promoters of fake economic news on the Internet. I think he just pulls numbers out of his ***.
I know he doesn’t go shopping anywhere because I defy him the name to me anything that has gone down in price. My electric bill has gone up about 25% since last year. When I go food shopping I see higher prices and smaller packages. I think they call that shrinkflation. I just bought bacon today for $7.29 a pound. I also noticed that some of the meat companies are packaging 12 or 14 oz “pounds” of bacon.
Do you people actually believe that if you keep telling us the prices are down we’re gonna believe it just because you say so? If anything we’ll believe less because you say it you have proved yourselves over the last 10 years to be the most prolific liars in the history of the Republic.
A pound is 16 oz, not 12 or 14. Be sure and read the package info. Bacon here is under $5/pound.
Today a dozen large eggs are $1.34 at WalMart, $1.19 at Target, $0.95 at Dierbergs.
Bread at $1.32 per loaf. Sliced cheese, $2.48/lb. Pork n beans, $1.87/28 oz. Ground beef, $3.97/lb.
5# potatoes for $2.83. Gas is under $3 here.
Our small energy efficient home is still cheap to keep comfortably warm and cool.
Cap’n Shit for Brains,
You lie. Gas is under $3.00/gallon here today.
When Ronald Reagan finished his first year of office, inflation was at 8.9 percent. Unemployment skyrocketed to around 11% and interest rates soared to 19%. Reaganomics was the “best economy evuh” just like tRumponomics was the “greatest economy evuh”. The media went along with Reagan and tRump.
Anyone still claiming that President Biden stole the election has shit for brains.
Are you really that stupid? First of all I was talking about food in the markets not gas but beside that gas is up overall it’s down compared to where it used to be last year idiot. Guess where I live it’s $3.40 so you lie!
What has Ronald Reagan got to do with the mess we’re in now? Aside from the fact that Ronald Reagan was digging us out of 14-17% inflation under Carter?
Are you actually trying to tell us that the media went along with the republican? You lie. Not only do you lie but you’re in a state of denial. Comedian never agrees with Republicans. No matter what they do and they never go against Democrats regardless of how much damage they do to America and to human beings. Look at you right now covering up what genocide joe is doing doing to our country. Stealing elections committing genocide all over the world getting us in the wars destroying the social fabric the culture of our country but you’ll defend him to the death because that’s the kind of person you are you immoral twit.
You guys planning on stealing the next election too? You better gear up because you’re gonna need a lot more than 81 million votes. Looks like trump is beating genocide joe almost two to one in current polls. You’ll come up with something another war another pandemic anything to make sure that trump can’t win. But you always have your ace in the hole you’ll cheat and steal the election again. That’s always your go to move. That’s how you commies operate.
Dear Chicken Little:
““Unemployment fell from 7.5% in 1981 to 5.4% in 1989 after peaking at 10.8% in 1982.[7]
Inflation fell from 11.8% when Reagan entered office to 4.7% when he left.[8]
The US Average Real Income grew by 16.8% from 1980 to 1989.[9]”
Sounds good to me.
And gas in New York is $3.60.
https://gasprices.aaa.com/state-gas-price-averages/