-By Chuck Busch
The “fiscal cliff” negotiations, although they are hugely consequential, are an over-dramatization of a self-imposed crisis narrowly focused on federal revenue policies. The country wouldn’t have to endure these theatrics in the middle of the holiday season during a lame duck session of congress, if our national leaders had made the hard decisions months ago to curb government spending which is the real crisis. The resumption of the Clinton era tax rate increases was known in well in advance and now, as the protections are about to expire, at least one party is doing what it can to preserve the Bush tax rate cuts.
To heighten the political theater, the whole episode is being portrayed as a cataclysmic event as though an immediate precipitous national financial collapse will occur on New Years Day if there is no resolution of the spending and tax issues. Certainly the country will continue its path of decline, but this occurrence will simply be one more step, not off a “cliff”, but down a very slippery slope to the rocky shore of a runaway inflation, massive unemployment, massive federal debt, and national insecurity where the economy will be continually pounded by fierce waves of unfunded spending, a devalued currency, a popular entitlement mentality, and an expansion of government control.
Though it is true that income tax rates will go up for every worker paying into the system and America’s economy will suffer for it, nothing will speed our descent down that slope faster than unrestrained federal borrowing. So far, no substantive budget cut proposals have been offered by the Obama camp. Forget the “fiscal cliff”. What about the “debt bomb” that annual trillion dollar deficits will explode in our financial house? Obama and his media cronies would like for us to believe that all we have to do is raise taxes on the rich and all these momentary worries are over. Never mind about the “unbalanced” budget and no budget at all from the Senate in nearly four years.
Something has to give and it can’t be conservative principles. The foundational ideals of limited government and fiscal restraint are what have suffered the most. The dilemma we face today is the outcome of increasing excessive spending through the last several administrations. Now is the time to take a stand. We can’t keep putting off the inevitable with worthless stopgap measures with futile hope for an improbable future change. The nation needs spending cuts and they need to happen now!
The Republican leadership should demand a specific plan from the Obama administration to balance the budget within a reasonable time period. They must also be prepared to let the Bush tax cuts go if they do not get immediate upfront drastic spending cuts. The people’s personal household finances will suffer, but the misery will be felt universally and it will be impossible to ignore the negative impact of tax increases and who is promoting them. Elections have consequences. It could be that a national reality check is the event that starts a genuine comprehensive correction of this country’s economic and moral drift into ruin.
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Chuck Busch may be contacted via email him atBuscCharles@aol.com