Gang of Six Deficit Reduction Plan Gaining Momentum...

by: Les Carpenter
Rational Nation USA
Birthplace of Independent Conservatism
Liberty -vs - Tyranny

Well, nobody likes the idea of raising taxes, but revamping the tax code, which is rife with loopholes, and then lowering the marginal rates and reducing the number of tax brackets may not be such a bad idea.

The 'Gang of Six" plan to reduce the debt through spending cuts coupled with increasing revenues over the next decade just might have merit.

It's worth considering anyway.

From the Associated Press.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Leaders of a bipartisan "Gang of Six" senators said Tuesday that they've reached agreement on a major plan to cut the deficit by more than $4 trillion over the coming decade in what could be a bold entry into a debate on the deficit long bogged-down by bitter partisanship.

More than $1 trillion of the deficit cuts would come from tax increases reaped as Congress overhauls the loophole-choked U.S. tax code. It would also repeal a long-term health care program established under the last year's health overhaul and force up to $500 billion in cuts from federal health care programs over the upcoming decade, according to documents provided to senators at a Tuesday morning meeting but not publicly released.

"The reaction was extremely positive," said Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad, D-N.D.

With only two weeks for Congress and President Barack Obama to reach a deal to raise the government's debt ceiling, it was unclear how much support the Gang of Six's proposal could muster. Obama called it a "very significant step" and said it offered the potential for a bipartisan consensus. He urged congressional leaders to move on it swiftly.

The Gang of Six plan is separate from a politically freighted effort to lift the nation's borrowing cap and avoid a first-ever default on U.S. obligations. President Barack Obama and Capitol Hill Republicans, however, have failed to reach an accord on what kind of spending cuts to pair with any increase in the borrowing cap as the government teeters toward a possible default in two weeks.

The group's effort was sealed after Oklahoma Republican Tom Coburn rejoined the group after winning concessions on additional cuts to costly federal health care programs. Coburn left the group in May, which dealt it a big setback and delayed an agreement since the two other GOP members of the group — Mike Crapo of Idaho and Saxby Chambliss of Georgia — appeared reluctant to release the plan without Coburn's backing as well.

The group has been laboring for months in an up-and-down effort to reach an agreement that largely mirrors the work of President Barack Obama's fiscal panel, which proposed $4 trillion in cuts over a decade. The fiscal commission plan won positive reviews from many lawmakers but its plan failed to win a vote in Congress.

The Gang of Six plan calls for an immediate $500 billion "down payment" on cutting the deficit as the starting point toward cuts of more than $4 trillion over the coming decade that would be finalized in a second piece of legislation. Most of that savings would come from four years of caps imposed on the day-to-day budgets of cabinet agencies set by the annual appropriations bills. It would also curb the growth of Social Security benefits by moving to a lower inflation adjustment for annual cost-of-living updates. {Continue Reading}

This plan enacted into law, combined with raising the current debt ceiling so the nation can meet it's outstanding obligations, might just put us on the path to fiscal sanity once again. Isn't it about time we started to think outside the box?

Being saddled with unmanageable debt and unable to meet your obligations can be one the worst kinds of tyranny.

Maintaining a balanced budget and keeping obligations at a manageable level provides untold liberty.

Just sayin...

Via: Memeorandum