With apologies to James Agee, let us now praise not-so-famous federal employees. On this day of rejoicing for the justice that U.S. military forces imposed on Osama bin Laden, the Washington Post highlighted some of the 34 federal workers who have been nominated for the 2011 Samuel J. Heyman Service to America Medal awards (the …
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To reduce looming budget deficits, congressional Republicans may have to choose between two of their party‟s traditionally biggest priorities – keeping taxes low or protecting defense spending. They would be wise to compromise on taxes, for two reasons. First, tax increases on those in the middle and at the top would reduce deficits far more …
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I was simultaneously pleased and distressed by President Obama’s fiscal speech yesterday due to the way he portrayed the link between Americans and their government. First, to his great credit, Obama leveled with Americans about what the federal government actually does. For too long, elected officials have nourished the conventional wisdom that we can address …
“Where’s Obama?” It’s the unavoidable question that is leaving Obama’s constituency largely dumbfounded – a question that has two answers and dramatic implications for our future. “Where’s Obama?” Answer #1: When it comes to fighting for fiscal priorities, he’s nowhere. On Tuesday, House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan proposed to dramatically shrink the welfare state, …
An Army psychiatrist at Fort Hood, Texas, allegedly kills 13 of his service mates. A Pakistani immigrant tries to set off a car bomb in Times Square. An American convert to Islam murders a military recruiter in Arkansas. Each reportedly subscribed to a radical strain of Islam that, they believed, directed them to defend their …
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Senate Republicans proposed a balanced budget amendment to the U.S. Constitution today which, if ratified, would make recessions worse, violate basic principles of democratic rule, and set up a dramatic clash between the goal of capping annual spending and public support for major domestic programs. Taking effect five years after ratification, the amendment would require …
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Pity the progressive deficit hawks. They should be the most tortured souls in Washington. The progressive case for deficit reduction is clear. The higher the deficits, the likelier that we’ll face an economic crisis that will force precipitous budget cutting, putting in jeopardy all federal programs on which tens of millions of middle- and low-income …
Continue reading “New Headaches for Progressive Deficit Hawks”