On Tuesday, President Obama criticized Representative Paul Ryan’s (R–WI) budget proposal as making “draconian cuts” to federal spending programs. In particular, the President said, “If this budget becomes law and the cuts were applied evenly, starting in 2014, over 200,000 children would lose their chance to get an early education in the Head Start program.” The clear implication is that over 200,000 children will somehow be harmed by not attending Head Start—a “Great Society” preschool program intended to provide a boost to disadvantaged children before they enter elementary school. This … More
No Comments »
Why would the President, elected to the highest office in the land, stoop to attack a plan authored by the Chairman of the House Budget Committee, Paul Ryan (R–WI)? It’s a budget whose individual policies stand virtually no chance of ever becoming law, if for no other reason than the President’s own veto pen. Obama has chosen to directly criticize the plan. In doing so, he curiously elevates Ryan to the level of contender, worthy of direct presidential attention in a contentious election year. Why not just let this plan … More
No Comments »
If President Obama wants to challenge the House Republican budget passed last week, he certainly should. His views would be more enlightening, however, if they actually said something substantial, instead of the shrill hyperbole he repeated today. In a speech at an Associated Press luncheon, Mr. Obama branded the House budget “thinly veiled social Darwinism” and “antithetical to our entire history as a land of opportunity.” He said the plan, authored by Budget Committee Chairman Paul D. Ryan (R–WI), would “impose a radical vision on our country” and was a … More
No Comments »
House Democrats described the budget they released yesterday as a “clear contrast” to the one introduced by House Budget Committee chairman Paul Ryan (R–WI). It is a clear contrast—but that’s not a compliment. The proposal, offered by Representative Chris Van Hollen (D–MD), ranking member of the Budget Committee, merely calls for the same tax-and-spend vision for the country that President Obama proposed in February with his budget. Here is how this budget proposal measures up against key criteria: Entitlement Reform. Van Hollen rightly says that “health care and retirement programs … More
No Comments »
While Washington’s eyes are focused on the historic Obamacare hearings at the Supreme Court, work continues across the street in the House of Representatives where some Members of Congress — though not all — are doing their best to clean up Washington’s budgetary mess. It has now been 1,064 days since the U.S. Senate passed a budget, the national debt is nearing $16 trillion, and the deficit is at $3 trillion. In the face of this mess, the Republican Study Committee (RSC) yesterday unveiled its plan to balance the budget … More
No Comments »
By Michael F. Cannon
My latest podcast, “IPAB: ObamaCare’s Next Constitutional Hurdle.” Podcast: ObamaCare’s Most Unconstitutional Provision Isn’t the Mandate. It’s IPAB. is a post from Cato @ Liberty – Cato Institute Blog
Podcast: ObamaCare’s Most Unconstitutional Provision Isn’t the Mandate. It’s IPAB. is a post from Cato @ Liberty – Cato Institute Blog
No Comments »
There are six key elements to a successful federal government budget, including the plan released today by House Budget Committee chairman Paul Ryan (R—WI): Does it cut spending sharply and quickly? Does it begin decisive entitlement reform? Does it avoid any tax hikes? Does it ensure a strong national defense? Does it contain pro-growth tax reforms? Does it move swiftly and surely to a balanced budget? Spending has soared under President Obama, so cutting spending is indispensable to resolving the nation’s unsustainable budget practices. But establishing lower spending numbers alone … More
No Comments »
Paul Ryan (R-WI), Chairman of the House Budget Committee, will release his budget blueprint today in what will surely be one of the most important policy developments in Washington this year. If as expected Senate Democrats fail yet again to advance a budget for the government, then the Ryan Budget and the President’s Budget released a few weeks ago will present the leading alternatives for how the federal government would dig out of its present fiscal mess. And if the Ryan budget is anything like last year’s effort, the differences … More
No Comments »
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimate of the President’s budget reveals a reckless fiscal plan that shirks the spending cuts in the Budget Control Act and increases spending by more than $1 trillion over the next 10 years. It confirms that Obama is the first President to preside over four years of deficits in excess of a trillion dollars. Moreover, it deepens the debt by $3.5 trillion. A few details: Higher Total Spending. In the CBO’s analysis, the President’s spending is $1.15 trillion higher between 2013–2022. Roughly half of the … More
No Comments »
America’s fiscal condition is dauntingly dismal. The national debt is well on its way to $17 trillion, 13 million Americans are out of work, and the country is stuck in the slowest recovery in the post-war era. Despite Washington bleeding taxpayers dry with reckless overspending, the U.S. Senate has not passed a budget since nearly a year before Apple released the original iPad, leaving the country in a lurch, desperate for leadership in Congress that will bring bold changes and an end to the unconscionable pattern of spending and borrowing. … More
No Comments »