Two months ago, the debt ceiling was raised. At that time, the law that was passed also required that both the House and the Senate pass a budget by April 15th. Failure by either house of Congress to pass a budget by that date is supposed to result in the suspension of salary payments to the members of that house. Since the bill was passed, there have been claims that the remedy is unconstitutional, but these claims seem invalid to me. Nevertheless, the point of the law was to push the senate to pass a budget for the first time in four years, and it seems like the plan is working. This coming week, the Senate Budget Committee is going to unveil its plan for the 2013 budget. Expect to hear screams of agony as that measure progresses.
First of all, the Democrats in the Senate will now have to make clear whether or not they favor closing the budget deficit and ending the sharp rise in the national debt. While this may sound like a no brainer to you and to most Americans, it is a difficult choice for many of the Senate's Democrats.
Second, assuming that the Democrats decide that they have to try to close the budget deficit for the sake of appearances at least, they then have to explain how they will do it. Can you imagine the Democrats coming forward with detailed cuts in any entitlement or other domestic program? Could you believe that they would have the nerve to cut defense spending further after the major cuts this year? Will the Democrats propose raising taxes by trillions of dollars to put a dent in the deficit. Each of these alternatives is unpopular with significant segments of the Democrat party. Nevertheless, the Democrats will still have to agree how they plan to proceed if a budget is ever to pass the Senate.
Third, there is no way to spin the budget choices that the Democrats make. When everything is left vague (as has been the case for the last four years), politicians can spin the facts however they want. On the other hand, when there is a budget written in black and white and there are votes to approve that budget, there is no spin zone to run to. The old adage is the "honesty is the best policy', but it is not one to which Senate Democrats subscribe.
Fourth, this budget process once again makes clear that president Obama does not know how to run the government. By law, Obama was required to present a budget no later than February 1. He ignored that law and said the budget would come in about a month late. That later slid to two months and now three months late. In other words, by the time that Obama produces his budget, the should already be an agreed budget in both the House and Senate. Simply put, Obama is just ignoring his legal obligations.
Look, everyone understands that the budget is not exactly a hot topic of conversation in offices or kitchen tables around the country. America is not really paying attention to the details. Nevertheless, many more Americans will understand that Obama decided to ignore his duty to present a budget despite what the law says. Others will understand that Democrats want to raise taxes by trillions or to cut programs by large amounts as well. It won't be 50% or even 25% of the folks who notice, but it will still be millions. Get ready for the screaming.
First of all, the Democrats in the Senate will now have to make clear whether or not they favor closing the budget deficit and ending the sharp rise in the national debt. While this may sound like a no brainer to you and to most Americans, it is a difficult choice for many of the Senate's Democrats.
Second, assuming that the Democrats decide that they have to try to close the budget deficit for the sake of appearances at least, they then have to explain how they will do it. Can you imagine the Democrats coming forward with detailed cuts in any entitlement or other domestic program? Could you believe that they would have the nerve to cut defense spending further after the major cuts this year? Will the Democrats propose raising taxes by trillions of dollars to put a dent in the deficit. Each of these alternatives is unpopular with significant segments of the Democrat party. Nevertheless, the Democrats will still have to agree how they plan to proceed if a budget is ever to pass the Senate.
Third, there is no way to spin the budget choices that the Democrats make. When everything is left vague (as has been the case for the last four years), politicians can spin the facts however they want. On the other hand, when there is a budget written in black and white and there are votes to approve that budget, there is no spin zone to run to. The old adage is the "honesty is the best policy', but it is not one to which Senate Democrats subscribe.
Fourth, this budget process once again makes clear that president Obama does not know how to run the government. By law, Obama was required to present a budget no later than February 1. He ignored that law and said the budget would come in about a month late. That later slid to two months and now three months late. In other words, by the time that Obama produces his budget, the should already be an agreed budget in both the House and Senate. Simply put, Obama is just ignoring his legal obligations.
Look, everyone understands that the budget is not exactly a hot topic of conversation in offices or kitchen tables around the country. America is not really paying attention to the details. Nevertheless, many more Americans will understand that Obama decided to ignore his duty to present a budget despite what the law says. Others will understand that Democrats want to raise taxes by trillions or to cut programs by large amounts as well. It won't be 50% or even 25% of the folks who notice, but it will still be millions. Get ready for the screaming.
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