GOP/Paul Ryan FTW!

[Lonestar]

The whole point is that we're doing too much of this retarded redistribution engine. Mark Warner keenly pointed out that fixing the deficit will involve making fewer transfer payments to rich old people. (OH NO!)

Raise Taxes. The federal taxes for the top 1% income Bracket during the Eisenhower administration was around 90%, and as we all know the Eisenhower era was a economic nightmare deathride.

[Imran Siddiqui]

Neither I, nor most other Americans, are willing to pay higher taxes to support that. Therefore, the solution is simple - lower the spending.

Most Americans aren't willing to cut specific entitlements either (they are called the "third rail" for a reason). Therefore, we're screwed and Slovenia looks somewhat nice economically in comparison.

[Imran Siddiqui]

Let's start very reasonably, with a means based test on Social Security, as well as raising the retirement age to where it was vis-a-vis the life expectancy in 1933. Do you how much money those two measures would save? A TON!

Not that this is a bad idea, but SS was taking in far, far, far more money than it was outlaying for the last 30 years - the government just decided to take that surplus and use it elsewhere rather than keeping it in the program so that right now it'd be no big deal to handle the baby boomers.

[KrazyHorse]

Raise Taxes. The federal taxes for the top 1% income Bracket during the Eisenhower administration was around 90%, and as we all know the Eisenhower era was a economic nightmare deathride.

90% marginal rates are well above even the short-term laffer curve peak for any reasonable estimate of elasticities. There is good reason to believe that, with the current progressivity of US taxes, there is relatively little additional revenue that can be raised. Top marginal rates could possibly close half the current deficit. Projected future Medicare/Medicaid deficits are well beyond this.

[Al B. Sure!]

Thought this might be relevant:

The Air Force secretary says the service has been spending about $4 million a day to keep 50 fighter jets and nearly 40 support aircraft in the Libya conflict, including the cost of munitions.
Secretary Michael Donley tells reporters that the Air Force has spent $75 million as of Tuesday morning on the war. He says the U.S. decision to end its combat strike role in the conflict will cut costs, but he could not say by how much.
He says the Air Force has spent close to $50 million on the relief effort for the Japan earthquake, including $40 million to evacuate between 5,000-6,000 U.S. personnel.
The total U.S. costs for the Libya air campaign as of March 28 were $550 million, not counting normal deployment spending.

[Imran Siddiqui]

Top marginal rates could possibly close half the current deficit. Projected future Medicare/Medicaid deficits are well beyond this.

Which is why both need to be on the table. You can't really solve the long term issue just going after one, really. And lets not forget the defense budget.

[KrazyHorse]

You could easily solve the deficit with spending cuts. Unlike top marginal tax rates, spending only has a zero lower bound.

Remember that I only referred to short term elasticities. Long term elasticity will probably prove larger, meaning that less can be raised over the long haul by "taxing the rich".

In the end, federal state and local spending amounts to >40% of US gdp (and rising). This is unsustainable when we appear to be unwilling to tax the majority of Americans.

[Hauldren Collider]

You can't just solve the current deficit, you have to fix future deficits too--curbing the growth of entitlement spending is what the Ryan budget actually accomplishes. It doesn't even solve the deficit until many years from now--and almost all of the "cuts" it enacts are Washington cuts. That is to say, only in Washington is the lack of a spending increase a "spending cut" and only in Washington is the lack of a tax increase a "tax cut".

The reason that cutting the defense budget is not as big a deal as cutting the entitlement budget, even though they are both HUGE parts of the federal budget, is that the defense budget does not have the same fixed level of absolutely absurd cost increases associated with Medicaid, Medicare, Social Security and ObamaCare. Military spending is not formulaic.

[DaShi]

Do you not understand that "Mandatory Spending" aka, ENTITLEMENT PROGRAMS + interest payments, comprise over 100% of federal tax revenue. Don't ****ing tell me entitlement programs aren't the problem.

I know you need to spend money to make money, but not one bit of this makes any sense.

[Egbert]

You could easily solve the deficit with spending cuts.

In your world Congress never argues about cuts. Nobody complains about cuts that hit them. All is lovely and wonderful.

In our world Congress argues about cuts. People complain about cuts that hit them. Things are a bit messy.

fantasy land

[-Jrabbit]

I agree that entitlement programs are a huge problem. But they're far from being the only problem.

After decades of benign neglect and avoidance on both sides, I can't believe immediate, one-sided, and draconian cuts to social programs is a smart approach to affecting change.

But of course, anything else would require calm, rational discussion and intelligent compromise. Good luck with that.

[Al B. Sure!]

You know, there was a time when governments strapped for cash would sell territory. It's how we got the Louisiana territory and Alaska, for example.

How about we sell Montana or something to Canada? The state has farmland, coal, and lumber. State annual GDP is ~$26B. What would be the fair market value for a territory with those resources and that annual product? I imagine it would help our debt problem

[Al B. Sure!]

Actually, scratch that... see what Mexico can give us for selling Texas back to them

Elect me to public office! I got ideas, son!

[Al B. Sure!]

Look what I found:



That's it! Holy ****. Sell that **** to private investors! 76.1% of Nevada is public land?! Who the hell thought of that one? Sell that desert!

Look at all that prime land in Cali and Oregon that is public.

[Egbert]

Considering the trouble those Texans caused last time, the Mexicans might want to be paid to take it back. Rebellious lot those Texans.