Alarm bells about the dangerous trajectory of our nationaldebt have been sounding for years. Both parties have been slow to awake fromtheir spending-induced slumber, but the midterm elections proved to be amuch-needed splash of cold water. Sadly, Democrats are still asleep, continuingto hit the snooze button as America’s deficit grows.
The latest evidence came in the response to the Republican’sbudget plan, which included $61 billion in modest cuts to federal spending. Inthe context of this year’s historic $1.65 trillion deficit, those $61 billionin cuts represent about 13 days worth of government deficit. The cuts don’teven begin to touch the interest we’ll be paying on our debt this year. TheWhite House’s recently released budget calculates that $207 billion in taxpayerdollars must be used to pay off interest on our debt in the coming year. A $61billion cut represents only about 29% of the interest we owe, much less theprinciple!
Never known as budget-cutters, Democrats are content to sitback and do what they do best – demagogue. Despite the relatively small headwayHouse Republicans are attempting to make on our overspending problem, Democratshave taken to calling it “extreme.” “This is a meat-ax approach on top of ameat-ax approach. It’s a double meat-ax approach,” saidDemocratic Congressman Norm Dicks of Washington.
Taxpayers disagree. A Galluppollreleased yesterday finds that a majority of people believe that Republicans’proposals to cut the budget do not go far enough. Sixty-two percent of thosepolled said that the cuts proposed by Republicans in Congress are either “aboutright” or “do not go far enough” while only 25 percent said they “go too far.”On the contrary, 48 percent of those polled believe Barack Obama and theDemocrats’ plans “do not go far enough,” compared to the meager 13 percent whosaid they “go too far.”
Senate Democrats, sensing they are on the wrong side ofpublic opinion, have begun to change their tune. The Hill reportedyesterday that Senate Democrats have begun to identify possible cuts in the2011 spending bill that they plan to propose to House Republicans. An aide toSenate Democrats said they are considering adding the $24.7 billion in “cuts”being proposed by President Obama as well as eliminating $8.5 billion inearmarks.
A compromise could be made more difficult by the fact thatSenate Democrats are claiming that they have already “cut” spending by $41billion, a lie that has already been debunked by Factcheck.org.When it comes to our deficit, there is increasingly little room for compromise.Under President Obama’s proposed budget we will add $13 trillion in new debt toour current $14 trillion hole. As our debt grows so too does the amount ininterest we must pay. Obama’s budget predicts that interest payments willquadruple over the next 10 years, with every man, woman, and child owing $2,500per year in interest to our creditors.
Senate Democrats must wake up tothe fact that we cannot continue down this profligate path. If anything $61billion must be our starting point for addressing the deficit. So while weapplaud Democrats softening their stance over Republicans’ reasonable cuts,they must go further to reduce Washington’s chronic overspending problem. Alarmbells are sounding, the rest of up and ready for action, will Democrats go backto dreaming that this will all blow over?