One of the root causes of the recent government shutdown is the failure of President Obama and Senate Democrats to make any suggestions to rein in out-of-control government spending. The president requested an increase in our debt ceiling to allow the Federal government to borrow more money. This is like you or I requesting an increase in our credit card limit because we have maxed out our credit card.
Actually, it is more like your broke grandfather asking for an increase on his credit card limit so he can pay for his rent and utilities with the expectation that you and the grandkids will pay it back later. I´m all for helping out grandpa so they don´t turn out the lights, but if I were to do this, it would make sense at the same time to get him on a budget to control his spending.
Why is it only the Republicans that are being responsible with the tax payer´s money by demanding that any increase in the debt ceiling be matched by a decrease in spending? Aren´t there any fiscally responsible Democrats in Washington?
Unfortunately, no.
This was not always the case. Looking into the past, once upon a time you could find Democrats who could do math and had a policy of making sure revenue was sufficient to cover spending.
Harry Truman - After the high levels of national debt incurred by World War II, President Truman supported a policy to lower the debt. When it came time to pay for the Korean War, he paid for it by taxation, not borrowing.
Bill Clinton - After misstepping during his first two years in office and seeing Democrats lose majorities in the House and Senate, President Clinton declared ¨the era of big government is over.¨ (If only he was right.) He worked with Republicans to reach the last balanced budget the Federal government has seen.
Erskine Bowles - Former Clinton chief of staff who co-chaired President Obama's National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform. In 2010 this commission issued suggestions to stabilize and reduce the national debt.
The biggest problem our nation faces is not health care, education, green energy, gun control, immigration, closing Guantanamo Bay, or gay marriage. The 800 pound gorilla in the room is government overspending and the President´s failure to work on this shows a total lack of leadership. President Bush had the same problem of not controlling government spending, but it has gotten worse with Obama.
In 2008, candidate Obama said, “The problem is, is that the way Bush has done it over the last eight years is to take out a credit card from the Bank of China in the name of our children, driving up our national debt from $5 trillion dollars for the first 42 presidents — number 43 added $4 trillion dollars by his lonesome, so that we now have over $9 trillion dollars of debt that we are going to have to pay back — $30,000 for every man, woman and child. That’s irresponsible. It’s unpatriotic.â€
Now our official national debt is reaching 17 trillion and President Obama has doubled downed on being irresponsible and unpatriotic.
Tea Party Republicans have stepped up and demanded that the Federal government get control of it´s spending. It´s past time for Democrats to do the same.
Do the math. Cut the growth in government spending to match the amount needed to increase the debt ceiling.
Your thoughts?
