Outside the Beltway

Outside the Beltway

Does The GOP Have The Guts To Deal The Budget Deficit Seriously?

Doug Mataconis
10

Rand Paul isn’t sure they do:

In an exclusive interview with ABC News, Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., took aim at the newly released House GOP budget, saying it falls far short of what needs to be done to deal with the federal deficit.

“It’s really not going to touch the problem,” Paul said. “There’s a disconnect between Republicans who want a balanced budget but aren’t maybe yet brave enough to talk about the cuts to come.”

Video:

Sadly, I think Paul’s assessment of his fellow Republicans is largely correct, and that he’s going to find the Senate a very lonely place before long.

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10 responses to “Does The GOP Have The Guts To Deal The Budget Deficit Seriously?”

  1. Bleev K Avatar
    Bleev K

    They’ll take care of the budget as soon as they’re done taking away women’s right.

  2. Dave Schuler Avatar
    Dave Schuler

    No. Next question?

  3. Steven Plunk Avatar
    Steven Plunk

    Why aren’t we asking the same question of Democrats? I believe they control two of what Chuck Schumer refers to as the three branches of government. Do they get a pass on deficit reduction or is it assumed they will never be serious about it?

  4. reid Avatar
    reid

    If we had Paul’s budget, I suspect the economy would be devastated, so a GOP lack of guts is probably a good thing in this case.

  5. mantis Avatar
    mantis

    Why aren’t we asking the same question of Democrats? I believe they control two of what Chuck Schumer refers to as the three branches of government. Do they get a pass on deficit reduction or is it assumed they will never be serious about it?

    The Democrats wanted to let the tax cuts expire for the rich. That’s about $700 billion over ten years. They couldn’t get it past the GOP. What have Republicans proposed so far? $32 billion in unspecified cuts.

    So, you want to ask Democrats where they would start? You already have your answer.

  6. john personna Avatar
    john personna

    Ron Paul is the guy who says the solution to Food Stamp spending, is just to cut Food Stamp spending back to pre-recession levels.

    With logic like that, how could we not take him seriously?

  7. Steve Plunk Avatar
    Steve Plunk

    Mantis, It’s the spending, not the revenue that’s been the problem. The Dems real answer? Raise taxes and keep on spending.

  8. anjin-san Avatar
    anjin-san

    > The Dems real answer? Raise taxes and keep on spending.

    The GOPs real answer? Cut taxes, keep on spending, go broke.

  9. mantis Avatar
    mantis

    Mantis, It’s the spending, not the revenue that’s been the problem.

    You asked:

    Why aren’t we asking the same question of Democrats?

    Well, this is the question:

    Does The GOP Have The Guts To Deal The Budget Deficit Seriously?

    A budget deficit occurs when spending is greater than revenue. Neither is the problem. The problem is revenue is not equal to or more than spending. The Democrats are obviously more serious about the budget deficit than the Republicans, if you judge by their, you know, actual policy proposals.

  10. mantis Avatar
    mantis

    I guess the Republicans were tired of being called out for their lack of specifics, as they released some of the details of their cuts a day early. Not too many surprises.

    Some of the highlights on the GOP spending cut list:

    EPA , $1.6 billion;

    Screw the environment.

    Job Training Programs, $2 billion;

    Screw workers. What unemployment problem?

    Community Health Centers, $1.3 billion;

    We already knew Republicans want more working Americans to suffer, go broke, and die early due to lack of insurance coverage. I guess they also want to make sure poor people don’t have access to health care.

    High Speed Rail, $1 billion;

    Because trains are for commies.

    Family Planning, $327 million;

    GOP hates children, especially poor ones.

    National Institutes of Health, $1 billion;

    Let’s make sure we don’t advance medical science any; just let Big Pharma create new forms of erectile disfunction pills and everything will be fine.

    Department of Energy; $893 million cut from energy science, $899m cut from energy efficiency and renewable energy programs

    Killing jobs and making sure the US falls behind in energy science.

    Treasury forfeiture fund, $338 million

    This manages assets seized in criminal prosecutions. Can’t have that!

    Centers for Disease Control; $755 million

    What could go wrong?

    International food aid and WIC nutrition program to assist pregnant women and their infants

    Pro-life? Only when it comes to blastocysts. Actual children? Not so much. Let em starve.

    What we don’t see in the Republicans’ proposals are any reference to defense spending, our two current wars, Social Security, Medicare, or the multitude of corporate welfare programs. They’re all about cutting tiny amounts of the budget in order to harm the programs and people they hate: science, poor people, single mothers, unemployed workers, starving people in other countries, disease control and prevention, public transportation, the environment, public broadcasting, etc.

    So no, Doug, the GOP does not have the guts to take the budget deficit seriously. They are very serious about making sure more people stay out of work, starve to death, or contract fatal diseases, and making sure the US falls behind (or further behind) in science, energy, and transportation, and doing as much as possible to not protect the environment.

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