Im ok with Clinton era tax rates as long as we go back to Clinton level spending.
Adjusted for inflation and rising costs, sure. What a lot of people dont realize is that when you look at the numbers most of the "increased size of government" as GDP comes from increases social safety net spending (food stamps, unemployment insurance, etc)... There really is no evidence to suggest that there was a massive expansion of the Federal government under Obama when you actually take a look at what the increased spending is (because safety net spending always goes up during every recession, it's not something specific to anything Obama did).
Government spending will never create full employement because government doesnt create or manufacture anything. It confiscates wealth from the private sector to pay for its programs.
You're referring to a "crowding out" scenario, which isn't and wont happen because we're in a demand-less liquidity trap type recession; In this scenario government spending is actually the only way out.
Imagine government creates 1000 temporary infrastructure jobs... After the job is done in that region the construction workers are out of a job again and that's it, right? Wrong. During the time those workers are getting paychecks, they're generating demand for goods. With more demand, there's reason to hire workers; let's say there's enough demand to support 200 more jobs. Now, you'd think that once the demand from the construction workers dwindles away as stimulus fades that the 200 new jobs would just go away too - and a few of them might - but business owners have a known tendency to retain employees that they've hired and combined with the 200 jobs worth of demand left behind by the stimulus, that's all thats needed to "prime the pump". Those 200 jobs will lead to 30 more, and then next month 230 jobs will lead to 20-30 more, and on and on and on... This is what the government should be doing on a grand scale RIGHT NOW.
Liberals always want to raise taxes on the rich but the poor pay nothing that should change. Why not make everyone pay a little in taxes You guys talk about fairness but where is it in liberal policies? They also say we should be progressive in our ideas but never say where that progression should go. Progression toward more government control is what it sound like to me. Now Obamas talking about shared sacrifice and tells the American people to eat our peas. Why doesnt the government take its own advise.
Progressive taxation is needed, for many reason which I've posted about before and dont really care to repost... But I will say that the reason you dont want to tax the poor people is because they spend 99% of their money; Because they spend almost everything they make, taxing them reduces demand - essentially crowding it out. The same thing doesn't happen to the rich, who only ever spend a portion of their income while they save/invest the rest. China actually has followed the U.S. and European example recently and took thousands of their poorest workers off of the income tax, boosting their economy. If you want more people to pay taxes, reduce inequality.
Ok so you say the government will still run a deficit at full employment. They would still be spending more than they take in. Is that supposed to continue forever? Why not have a balanced budget? Why would counties continue to lend us money if we never really pay it back? Why continue
No, I would never advocate deficits over the long term. There is a time and place for everything, they say, and right now is the time to repair the economy even as we begin to take steps to address our long term budget deficits. Right now the government can borrow at historically low rates (sub 3% on 10-yr bonds) and we have over a million construction workers out of work, not paying any taxes - meanwhile infrastructure is crumbling... Again, over the long term we have the ability to solve our fiscal issues but over the short term the best way to address those fiscal issues is to reach full employment.
The rising cost of entitlements is caused by a lot more than just rising medical cost. You say economists predict Obamacare will reduce cost but there are also economist who say it will increase cost. The reason it reduce cost on paper is the taxes kick in a couple of years before the program actually starts. But that doesnt even matter. The problem I have with Obamacare is its not the job of the government to take on the personal responsibility of the citizens. Where in the constitution does it say that? I guess well find out when the Supreme Court decides the case.
Actually, Obamacare is slated to save much more in the second decade and on than it will in the first decade - which you cite as only saving because of increased revenue, blah blah which is true. But it's important to realize Obamacare will bend the curve. My proof? Look at Canada, France, the UK, Germany, Japan, etc... ALL of these countries have universal systems and ALL pay less than half as much as we do.
Spending on infrastructure was supposed to be part of the stimulus, shovel ready jobs and all that jazz. Unemployment went up and its staying up.
Yeah, it's sad actually.. the vast majority (I wanna say over 90%) if the stimulus went to government aid and tax cuts - very little went towards infrastructure. I'm advocating for a 100% infrastructure bill.
Government run health insurance isnt going to promote competition it will destroy it. As they place more and more requirements on insurance companies the cost of private insurance will continue to rise causing more and more people to turn to the government. Remember when Obama said if you like your health insurance you can keep it? Well thats only if your able to afford it.
Yeah, I really dont wanna get too far into an Obamacare debate... lol.
Raise revenues is all the left ever says. What is wrong with cutting spending? Why should the American people be required to pay for a study on why pigs smell? Or why should we pay to teach Chinese prostitutes to drink more responsibly? Government waste large amounts of money on bullshit, why do we need to keep paying for http://blog.heritage.org/2009/10/08/50-examples-of-government-waste/
Well, Austerity in the face of high unemployment just worsens the slump but over the long term sure, cut spending. Combine it with revenue increases (closing loopholes, etc) and
you can even lower rates while raising revenue via the Bowles-Simpson plan.
