Overview for spending

Ryan's Biggest Gamble

The conventional wisdom in D.C. is that Ryan's budget is political suicide for any who endorse it. But is that really the case? The conventional wisdom in Washington, D.C. Tuesday was clear: House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan's FY 2012 budget plan is political suicide for anyone who …

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Written by Steve Bell on Wednesday April 6, 2011

A Budget That Can't Budge

The Ryan Plan won't become law. So what's it for? What is the much-discussed Paul Ryan plan ? You probably know the plan’s main elements: A huge cut in Medicaid, a big cut in the value of future Medicare coverage for those under age 55, substantial cuts in discretionary domestic spending, …

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Written by David Frum on Wednesday April 6, 2011

Will Congress Buy Ryan's No Nonsense Budget?

Paul Ryan has taken the great leap forward by proposing a budget which tackles the real drivers of our debt crisis. But is Washington ready to act? Paul Ryan, House Budget Committee Chairman and realist, has taken the great leap.  He has publicly proposed a budget resolution for Fiscal Year …

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Written by Steve Bell on Tuesday April 5, 2011

Is GOP Overplaying Shutdown Card?

By risking a shutdown over the 15% of the budget devoted to non-mandatory spending is the GOP losing political capital for the entitlement spending fight? Threatening to shut down the government over spending is certainly an effective, if drastic, measure. In principle, its good--even admirable--t…

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Written by Eli Lehrer on Tuesday April 5, 2011

Ryan: 'It's Not A Budget, It's A Cause'

Tuesday morning, Rep. Paul Ryan unveiled his 2012 fiscal year budget proposal, calling for close to $6 trillion in cuts over the next 10 years. 12:57pm: The last question to Ryan: do you regret your vote on TARP? Ryan: No. I hate TARP, but …

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Written by Noah Kristula-Green on Tuesday April 5, 2011

Ryan's 2012 Budget: Radical or Realistic?

Tuesday, Paul Ryan will formally present the Republican budget for Fiscal Year 2012. Here's a primer on the new budget proposals biggest question marks. Tuesday, Paul Ryan will formally present the Republican budget for Fiscal Year 2012 at noon. Frum Forum will liveblog the presentation of the …

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Written by Noah Kristula-Green on Tuesday April 5, 2011

Why Obama Will Win the Shutdown

Is there's another government shutdown, there's one thing you can count on: the White House will win the public relations battle. Howard Dean is liberal, and perhaps even a tad crazy.  Stupid, though, he is not.  Former Gov. Dean joined several other prominent Democrats Tuesday at the “National …

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Written by Jeb Golinkin on Wednesday March 30, 2011

Rich State Vs. Poor State

Does our current political divide give advantages to the preferences of poorer, less innovative states over wealthier ones? In a recent blogpost at The Atlantic Online , Richard Florida notes the increasing political conservatism of people in America's poorer states.  He writes : The current …

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Written by Andrew Gelman on Wednesday March 30, 2011

Japan's Economic Aftershocks

The quake that struck Japan could have serious consequences well into the summer as a damaged energy sector slows the nation's economy. This is Part 1 of a Two-Part Series on what the long-term consequences of the Japanese earthquake will be on America and Japan's economies. The aftershocks …

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Written by Noah Kristula-Green on Saturday March 26, 2011

Boehner's Budget Battle Is Just Beginning

The Fiscal Year 2011 budget fight is about to morph into a fiscal battle over the 2012 budget and the present $14.3 trillion federal debt ceiling. As predicted, the Fiscal Year 2011 budget fight seems very likely to morph into a general fiscal battle that includes the 2012 budget and a fight …

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Written by Steve Bell on Friday March 25, 2011

GOP Govt Transparency Bill Flunks Reality Test

GOP Rep. Blake Farenthold's bill to force federal agencies to post their expenditures every two weeks on the web is a neat idea, and completely unworkable. Before he sat on the Supreme Court, Louis Brandeis penned a collection of essays that was published as a book called Other People’s Money . …

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Written by Zac Morgan on Friday March 25, 2011

GOP's 2012 Budget: Dead on Arrival?

Anti-deficit stalwart, Rep. Paul Ryan, has pledged to start the markup of the FY2012 budget in early April. The plan should pass the House, but will Senate Dems back it? Apparently old-fashioned snail mail has made a comeback in the United States Senate.  Two sets of letters roiled the fiscal …

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Written by Steve Bell on Monday March 21, 2011

Easy Budget Cuts the GOP Forgot

Eventually, Congress will need to spend serious political capital to make tough budget cuts. But for now, there are plenty of easy cuts the House has overlooked. As Congress cuts the federal budget, attention has focused on truly easy cuts—programs that are clearly outdated or needless but …

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Written by Eli Lehrer on Friday March 18, 2011

Will GOP Back Benefit Cuts on Military Retirees?

State governors are reacting to deficits by cutting public employee benefits. Now similar cutbacks are being proposed at the federal level for military retirees. The teachers must be wishing they wore uniforms. Governors across the country are reacting to deficits by cutting - or trying to cut …

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Written by David Frum on Tuesday March 15, 2011

Senate Dems Rebel on Spending Cuts

The real surprise in Wednesday's Senate spending bill votes was the total failure of Harry Reid to keep his own caucus in line. The failure of both Democratic and Republican spending cut proposals in the Senate wasn't much of a surprise. The Republican proposal--a huge exercise in chutzpa that …

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Written by Eli Lehrer on Thursday March 10, 2011

Levin Wants a Shutdown: Real Americans Don't

Tuesday, Mark Levin upbraided the GOP leadership as cowardly for not shutting down government. But a new poll reveals why that could be a disaster. Tuesday, during the opening monologue on his radio show , Mark Levin upbraided the GOP leadership as cowardly for not shutting down government.  …

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Written by Jeb Golinkin on Wednesday March 9, 2011

The Bold Budget Cuts Congress Won't Touch

Tied up in Washington's budget cut fight, neither party is focusing on the real problem: the large percentage of the budget devoted to mandatory spending. As both parties engage in Kabuki theater over cuts to the 12 or so percent of the budget that consists of domestic, discretionary, …

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Written by Eli Lehrer on Wednesday March 9, 2011

Fenty Endorses Walker

Adrian Fenty, the Democratic former mayor of D.C. says he agrees with what Scott Walker is doing in Wisconsin. Do other Dem leaders feel the same? This seems to me a hugely important fact: Adrian Fenty, the Democratic former mayor of the District of Columbia says he agrees with what Scott Walker …

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Written by David Frum on Tuesday March 8, 2011

Spending Standoff Shifts to the Senate

Tuesday’s Senate votes on two spending cut packages are basically a sideshow. Neither party's bill is serious about getting the nation's fiscal house in order. Tuesday’s Senate test votes on two spending cut packages—one of which (designed by House Republicans) cuts $61 billion from current …

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Written by Eli Lehrer on Monday March 7, 2011

Hold Off on the Budget Back-Slapping

While Washington congratulates itself over the two-week budget deal, one fact's been forgotten: this budget showdown should never have happened. Legislation appropriating funds to keep the federal government open for business for the next two weeks has passed the House and Senate and been signed …

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Written by Les Francis on Thursday March 3, 2011