The president is right ”” if America is to be competitive in this new knowledge-based global economy, we must invest in education, infrastructure and high-value-added research in a fiscally responsible manner.
But House Republicans are also right ”” spending is out of control, and there is no way possible to address our burgeoning debt without real spending cuts. That means finding ways to make government perform more efficiently, while scaling back or even eliminating certain government functions altogether.
Yet by focusing primarily on domestic discretionary spending, neither plan goes at all far enough to deal with our medium- or long-term fiscal challenges.
With the Fiscal Commission, we spent 10 months closely studying the cold, hard facts. Together, we came to the unavoidable conclusions that the problem is real, the solution will be painful, there is no easy way out and everything must be on the table.
Read it all (emphasis mine).
Yep, everyone is right, but of course, only the poor are required to sacrifice. Republican governor of PA, one of many, wants austerity for everyone save his staff and businesses. The rest of us will pay through the nose. Great country, huh?
Well, some leadership is not that. South Dakota’s governor is calling for a 10% cut across the board, starting with his and his staff’s own salary.
I think it is also important to add “the American people” to the list of those who must face into the responsibility. Across the political spectrum, for decades, people want things–but don’t want to pay for it themselves. And we keep electing people who say we can.