Allow me to join the chorus of voices in support of another budget out this week, one I fear may be overlooked, by the Congressional Progressive Caucus.
Here’s the exec sum, and note what comes first: job creation! OMG! That’s followed by many ideas we tout here at OTE, including a financial transaction tax, ending tax preferences for investment income, a tax on carbon, spending cuts to defense, some Medicare savings (no benefit cuts), all of which creates jobs in the near term and starts the debt ratio on a downward path by 2015. Again, for all the mishegos about balancing budgets, the economically sensible first order goal is–once the economy is reliably growing–stabilizing and then reducing the debt/GDP ratio.
But wait! This is too liberal, too Keynesian, too revenuey! OK, but the Ryan budget’s too austere, too draconian on the poor, too regressive, too reverse Robin-Hoody. And that’s been front page news. All’s we’re saying is that if legislative plausibility is the litmus test, Ryan’s House budget shouldn’t get one drop of ink (or byte, I guess would be more accurate).
But if it’s smart, timely economics and fiscal policy that form the litmus test…well, then Ryan still doesn’t get a hearing but the CPC budget does.
Source: CPC
