FROM CNN's Jack Cafferty:
The United States could be bankrupt in 7 to 10 years, yet our government refuses to do anything about it.
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The Senate voted yesterday against a bipartisan commission that would make recommendations on to how to reduce the nation's skyrocketing deficits... estimated to top $1.35 trillion this year.
Many Republicans were against the commission idea - because they don't want to support anything that could mean tax increases. Many Democrats were opposed, too - because they don't like the idea of big spending cuts in entitlement programs like Medicare and Medicaid.
But the truth is: There are only two options for reducing our more than $12 trillion national debt: Either raise taxes or cut spending - or both. Washington is choosing to do neither.
Republican Lindsey Graham, who voted in favor of the commission, tells Politico he's disgusted with the Senate's lack of progress on much of anything:
"I'm willing to try anything because I'm desperate. Immigration: Hard, tried, it went nowhere. Social Security: Hard, tried, it went nowhere. Health care: Hard, tried, went nowhere. We're running out of opportunities to try hard and go nowhere. Time is not on our side."
Meanwhile President Obama is expected to set up a similar deficit reduction commission by executive order in his State of the Union address tonight. Noble - but in reality, it's just another empty political gesture that means nothing.
Unlike the proposed commission killed by the Senate, the president's commission won't be able to force Congress to do anything. In other words - it won't have any teeth.
Here’s my question to you: The U.S. may go bankrupt in the next 7 to 10 years. Why won't our government do anything about it?
Interested to know which ones made it on air?
Kevin from Ohio writes:
How do you defeat the most powerful military in the world? How do you weaken the will of the people who live in land of the free and the home of the brave? Not with missiles and bombs or tanks and bullets. This financial collapse is more than it seems, it could possibly be the beginning of the end for the U.S. I'm not big on conspiracy theories, but the lack of competence in our government is getting ridiculous.
B. from Mississippi writes:
You are as wrong today as you were yesterday. There is another way to reduce the deficits - the best way to reduce deficits is to increase GDP. When GDP goes up, revenue goes up (without raising taxes) and that revenue can be used to pay down debt. The best way to have GDP go up is to invest money in the short term - in those things that will increase GDP in the long term. For instance, clean energy technology.
Ron (an American in Copenhagen) writes:
Not much new here, is there? Same as always: rich get richer, poor get poorer and the entire normal population of the U.S. just suffers… Again, and again, and again. No politician is willing to risk his or her privileged position for something so frivolous as saving the U.S. economy.
Jarrett from Minot, North Dakota writes:
People are so disgusted that even long-term politicians are retiring, among them my state's (North Dakota) Senator, Byron Dorgan. He voted *for* the bill as did our other, Senator Kent Conrad... Both Democrats. Fiscal responsibility is gone.
Darrick from Cincinnati writes:
It's too hard for them to understand the idea of the deficit. I think the best bet would be to tie politicians’ salaries to the budget deficit. The higher the surplus, the higher their salaries. Watch how fast they would fix the problem.