Mush from Christina Romer Regarding "What Obama Sh

[traelin0]

Baby Steps or Simply Mush from Christina Romer Regarding "What Obama Should Say About the Deficit"

Christina Romer is the out-going Chair of the Council of Economic Advisers in the Obama administration. She is now member of the President's Economic Recovery Advisory Board.

She has an Op-Ed economic view in the New York Times, What Obama Should Say About the Deficit.

This year, instead of being on the floor of Congress with the rest of the cabinet, I will be watching on television with the rest of the country. Instead of knowing what is coming, I can write about what I hope the president will say. My hope is that the centerpiece of the speech will be a comprehensive plan for dealing with the long-run budget deficit.

I am not talking about two paragraphs lamenting the problem and vowing to fix it. I am looking for pages and pages of concrete proposals that the administration is ready to fight for. The recommendations of the bipartisan National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform that the president created are a very good place to start.

The need for such a bold plan is urgent — both politically and economically. Voters made it clear last November that they were fed up with red ink. President Obama should embrace the reality that his re-election may depend on facing up to the budget problem.

The economic need is also pressing. The extreme deficits of the last few years are largely a consequence of the terrible state of the economy and the actions needed to stem the downturn. But even with a strong recovery, under current policy the deficit is projected to be more than 6 percent of gross domestic product in 2020. By 2035, if the twin tsunami of rising health care costs and the retirement of the baby boomers hits with full force, we will be looking at deficits of at least 15 percent of G.D.P.

Such deficits are not sustainable. At some point — likely well before 2035 — investors would revolt and the United States would be unable to borrow. We would become the Argentina of the 21st century.
So far so good. Romer is saying all the right things. That is the Romer we knew and loved. However, watch the article morph into compete mush in a matter of sentences.

She continues...

Read more here.

[pappyjohn99]

Just more of the same out of DC. Pretend and extend. Kick the can down the road and leave the mess for the next guy. Too bad the road ends at a cliff that is rapidly approaching.

[handyman2]

Truth is they just kick the can down the road and give fancy speeches covering for the fact they do not know what to do.

[rockon]

This is THE subject that keeps getting little attention from our politicians or bypassed for more pressing news but should be our lawmakers biggest concern since it is the largest threat to our country as we know it.
The citizens voted for this to change when they voted in Obama and friends. They voted for change in this area again in November so now we will have to see if any work the Tea Party has done will be effective. If not we have to hit them again in 2012. No matter how long it takes we have to demand that this change happens.

[BeenThere...DoneThat...]

...true that... Visogoths, Vandals, Gauls could get to Rome only after Rome was collapsing itself with self-inflicted wounds... so can we please wake up and smell the coffee/tea/whatever?

[traelin0]

Funny thing, the Romans who had fled to the countryside (suburbium, as they called it) to escape the madness in the city, were relieved when the barbarians sacked Rome. One historian aptly stated that the farmers were so sick of Roman tyranny that they begged the barbarians not to return them to Roman rule.

I am beginning to understand that sentiment.

[BeenThere...DoneThat...]

<<< I am beginning to understand that sentiment. >>>

...that's understandable...