Remember back in January when the President said he was forming a bipartisan debt panel by executive order to try and rein in the country's financial situation? The first fruits of that were revealed today with a plan that would supposedly reduce the debt by $4 trillion over the next ten years, reduce the deficit to 2.2% of GDP in five years, retain Social Security's solvency and comes with a host of spending cuts and tax changes. Highlights include:
- Increase the retirement age to 68 by 2050 and to 69 by 2075
- Reductions in some Social Security benefits and some taxation for high income seniors
- Raise payroll taxes to prop up Social Security
- Lower the federal tax rates, both corporate and personal income but...
- ...eliminate mortgage interest credits for mortgages over $500,000
- ...eliminate the Child Tax Credit
- ...cap tax deductible employer health care expenses
- ...change other parts of the tax code and close various loopholes
- ...raise gasoline taxes by fifteen cents per gallon
- Eliminate approximately $100 billion in defense spending including...
- ...freeze noncombat military pay for three years
- ...freeze Defense Department salaries for three years
- ...eliminate 33% of overseas bases
- ...enroll children on bases in public schools rather than on-base schooling
- Eliminate $100 billion in other domestic spending including...
- ...eliminate Congressional earmarks
- ...cut White House budget by 15%
- ...cut 250,000 contractors
- ...cut federal work force by 10%
- ...eliminate funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting
- ...eliminate commercial space flight budget
- Cap annual cost increases for Medicare/Medicaid
- Enact malpractice suit tort reform
- Lower Medicare payments to physicians
You can guess how well this is going over in Washington. Several people on both sides of the aisle have already said "Hell, no" to the suggestions. The seven Republicans on the panel said they would not support any plan that raises taxes. Democrats have said they will not support any plan that cuts benefits to Medicare/Medicaid or Social Security. Numerous articles about the suggestions use the phrase "third rail" when describing the cuts to not only social services but also defense.
Now the equivocation is "Well, this is just a starting point and has some interesting suggestions". Does anyone think there's actually going to be useful compromise here or anyone willing to take a serious blow to their herds of sacred cattle? I've long said that hearing either party talk about fiscal balance was a joke until someone was willing to plainly say how they'd handle defense and the major entitlements. I can't imagine that that'll change now.
Late edit: "Reign in"? Sheesh.
Edited, Nov 11th 2010 8:08am by Jophiel