Stan Collender on How the Republicans Have Confused the Budget Debate
More Evidence The Federal Budget Debate Is Not Rational:
The ever-watchful CG&G alum Bruce Bartlett sent this new You Gov poll constructed by Dartmouth (home to another CG&G alum, Andrew Samwick) Associate Professor Benjamin Valentino…. [Q]uestion #7 ("Which of the following would you support as ways to reduce the nation's budget deficit?")… caught Bruce's and my eye.
More than half (55%) said they would support tax increases on higher-income Americans.
More than a third (35.4%) said they would support "major" cuts in military spending.
Less than a tenth (9.7% said they would support "major" cuts in Social Security.
Less than 12% said they would support "major" cuts in Medicare.
Almost 30% said none of the above are acceptable to them.
In other words: There is significant support in the country for doing something to reduce the deficit -- tax increases on the wealthy -- the GOP in Congress absolutely refuses to do. Only one-third of the country is in favor of the reductions in military spending that are part of the sequester that will occur on January 2. Close to 90% of the country opposes the type of changes in Medicare that are one of the cornerstone's of the Republican budget…. Almost a third of the country is against tax increases and reductions in Social Security, Medicare and military spending. That leaves only about $750 billion left to deal with a deficit that will exceed $1 trillion this year….
Americans don't want less government, they just want government that costs less. That makes for a debate in Washington that can't possibly be… and obviously isn't… considered rational.
