Many had high hopes that the first budget conference in four years would make a substantial down payment [1] toward fixing the U.S. spending and debt crisis. The new “Bipartisan Budget Act [2]” thoroughly disappoints. While we dig through the details for a more complete assessment, here are three key facts on the sour deal:
1. It busts through supposed spending “caps.”
2. It taxes and spends.
3. It spends now and delays savings till later.
The budget conferees failed to make substantive reforms to the real drivers of spending and debt: the entitlement programs. Representative Paul Ryan (R-WI) and Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) forged a deal that would increase spending immediately, while delaying deficit reduction till later and trading spending cuts for more revenue. Far from simply being another missed opportunity, this deal keeps the nation on its fiscal collision course.
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