Chris Edwards
Chris Edwards
Republicans criticized President Biden for his huge spending and deficits, which spurred inflation and jacked up debt to dangerously high levels. The GOP are now in the driver’s seat and must reform the budget to ward off a fiscal crisis. Inflation is ticking up, borrowing costs are rising, and annual interest spending is now so huge it surpasses defense spending.
Last week, the House Budget Committee released a plan to extend the Trump tax cuts, boost spending on defense and security, and trim other spending. But the plan would make the government’s debt crisis worse! Debt held by the public would rise from $30 trillion in 2025 to $54 trillion by 2034. That huge 2034 debt load would be even larger than the $50 trillion in baseline debt projected by the Congressional Budget Office.
Many Republicans are not grasping the seriousness of the coming fiscal crunch. Relative to the size of the economy, reckless spending since 2001 has pushed federal debt to almost the peak reached during World War Two. The debt fell after the war, but today it is spiraling upwards even with steady economic growth and without a war.
With control of the House and Senate, now is the time for Republicans to cut. They should eliminate dozens of agencies that spend on activities that should be handled by the states or the private sector. President Trump appears open to major reforms, including abolishing the Department of Education. Congress should jump on the opportunity and deliver major downsizing legislation to the president’s desk.
How much should Republicans cut? The chart shows possible 2034 debt targets measured as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP). A good target would be to cut spending enough to stabilize debt at the current 100 percent of GDP, which would avert a debt crisis. » Read More
https://www.cato.org/blog/gop-spending-cuts-too-small