This won’t make partisan Republicans happy, but I think the economy is headed in the right direction. It probably won’t recover quickly enough to save the Democrats in November, but for Obama there’s a lot to be optimistic about. First of all the President was able to pass his key item: health care. It doesn’t matter if it’s unpopular; there’s no chance it will be repealed while he’s in the White House. Plus, thanks to the way the bill was written most of the truly heinous problems won’t starting destroying the heath care system for a decade. Sometimes it’s good to be King.
Save us Obi Wan Constitution. You're our only hope.
The economy is always the main issue in elections and I’ve thought for months Americans aren’t really angry with the White House; they’re angry about the economy. The Republicans should quit banking on the economy staying in the tank forever and come up with a plan to save the Republic. Obama and the Democrats are a short-term business cycle rebound from bankrupting the nation forever. At this stage it’s time for a Reaganesque “starve the beast” strategy. If Americans want to be sold a populist bill of goods then so be it.
I wrote last month about the Balanced Budget Amendment. This is a very populist bill that despite its economic theory problems is a best solution available to solve the nightmare fiscal situation we’re facing. Let’s be frank. Despite the fact the President has insisted that his health care bill is deficit neutral, it’s not. He’s living in fantasy land. The claim is laughable and reflects what Obama thinks about the intelligence of the American people. Even The Economist, which endorsed Obama’s bill, thinks that it’s going to add to the debt. The GOP should move fast and make the Balanced Budget Amendment the keystone issue in the 2010 election.
Faced with a Constitutional amendment mandate, Congress will be forced to either raise taxes or cut entitlements. The nation needs to make this choice sooner, rather than later. If we had honest leadership we would be addressing these problems now instead of passing it off on some other generation. The only question is can enough people push for this amendment before it’s too late?
If the RNC is any indication there’s not a lot of hope for the GOP. The RNC supposedly doesn’t like big government but they don’t mind it as long as they’re in power. There needs to be a revolution inside the GOP if there’s any hope of tackling America’s fiscal problems.
I have been against the balanced budget amendment since I learned about it in economics. The reason to oppose it is simple. It hamstrings what the government can do during a recession. In 2001, when the economy was slowing Bush cut taxes (the wrong way) to help jumpstart the economy. Under the balanced budget amendment Congress would have to remove some kind of program to be able do that. But now I’m beginning to change my mind about the balanced budget amendment. Not because the arguments I just listed are incorrect, but because it appears Washington is unable to restrain spending even in the face of a fiscal catastrophe.
My only fear about passing the amendment now is that it might be too late already. Even if the government was in balance this year there would still be long-term problems with debt the U.S. has accrued over the past three decades. However, a balance budget amendment would force Congress to either raise taxes or reduce the size of government. Supporting a balanced budget amendment isn’t the best choice, but the only one that will force Congress to confront the problem. It is also an attainable goal. Congress was only a few votes short of passing the bill during the Clinton administration.
The GOP would be wise to make this part of their platform for the upcoming elections. The balanced budget amendment enjoys a lot of populist support and Americans are clamoring for fiscal restraint in Washington. The amendment would change the tone in D.C. for the next 20 years. It’s time politicians start figuring out how we pay for all these entitlements we’ve dreamed up over the past 60 years and stop worrying about adding more
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