In December, Congress passed a Tax Bill that is expected to add roughly $1 trillion dollars to the debt. In February, a budget was passed that looks like it will add $7 trillion to the deficit over the next 10 years. Given that our debt reached $15 trillion this month, we could be looking at a $23 trillion dollar debt within 10 years. This kind of debt is unsustainable. As we have said before, it is easy to agree to spend someone else’s money. The problem is that this money is ours, yours and mine. At some point we will have to make the hard decisions and sacrifices to pay it back. While some economists that are much smarter than I am say that it is fine to have some debt, some even encourage it, none support a debt that cannot be serviced without additional debt. That is where we are headed. And we have not even passed the major transportation and infrastructure bill that we are expecting before the end of the year that looks like it may cost an additional $1.5 trillion. Again, it is easy to agree on spending someone else’s money.
A number of members of Congress have already begun talking about working on debt reduction, which at its surface is good news for all Americans. However, they are using this as code for entitlement reform. In case you don’t know, the three biggest entitlement programs are Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. So, the very same Congress that has funded a myriad of wasteful programs in the last few months and increased our debt to historic levels, is now saying they need to look at ways to be fiscally responsible and cut money from the budget. The one constant thread we are hearing is that they are going to focus on the very programs that directly support senior citizens. This cannot stand, certainly not in the face of such wasteful spending.
Speaker of the House Paul Ryan (R-WI) has been the most outspoken proponent of entitlement reform. On February 8, 2018, he said “Discretionary spending is not the debt driver. It is entitlements…its the entitlements that need to be reformed if we’re going to deal with the debt. And the military is not the massive fiscal culprit around here that’s the driver of our debt. It is the fact that Baby Boomers are retiring. We’re not prepared for their retirement.” The House Budget Committee is planning to propose a budget resolution this year to begin the conversation on limiting spending on entitlement programs, according to Representative Steve Womack (R-AR).
We must let our elected officials know that they cannot eradicate the debt on the backs of senior citizens!
