What a debacle this debt ceiling discussion is. And what a relief the Gang of 6 is. A bi-partisan group, made up of 3 Republicans and 3 Democrats, including a “true blue” like Dick Durbin, has come up with a workable solution. We like their plan to lower the personal and corporate income tax rate from 35% to 23% to stimulate growth, cap the growth of our debt (currently at 14 trillion – 3 trillion of which was added by Obama) and cut programs that we can’t afford. In August, the US Government will spend 100 billion more dollars than it takes in. ‘Nuf said.
If you would like to read more, check out this article on how Americans are getting fed up with the entire thing that ran in US Today today. http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2011-07-26-Americans-debt-limit-debate_n.htm
Yes, the mathmatics are actually pretty straightforward. Lower taxes increases spending. The breakdown occurs when the gov’t has to choose what exactly gets cut once all that tax revenue is missing. “Cut programs we can’t afford” is the issue – who has the final say? I think this arguing wastes a lot of time. Hopefully, they will adopt what we called a “peanut butter spread” in my financial analysis career. Spread it out. Take a little (or a lot in this case)from EVERY budget line, instead of hitting a few areas the hardest. Just do it.