Quote:
Originally Posted by jcyuhn
The Congressional Budget Office Long Term Outlook report released on Sept. 17, 2013. Here is a link: CBO. This is the government's own prediction where tax revenues, spending, and debt levels are headed. It is not lengthy. Please read it, in particular the later section on alternative budget scenarios. Maybe you'll find some data with which to bonk fellow Mercedes enthusiasts over the head with in OD. Thanks. |
Thanks for the link jcyuhn,
If we could only enact long term solutions rather than a different set of radical ideas every four years, we would stand a much better chance at reducing our debt without tanking our economy.
On the one hand, waiting to cut federal spending or raise taxes would lead to a greater accumulation of debt and would increase the size of the policy adjustments needed to put the budget on a sustainable course.
On the other hand, implementing spending cuts or tax increases quickly would weaken the economy’s current expansion and would give people little time to plan for and adjust to the policy changes. The negative short-term effects that deficit reduction has on output and employment would be especially large now, because output is so far below its potential level that the Federal Reserve is keeping short-term interest rates near zero and could not lower those rates further to offset the impact of changes in spending and tax policies.