@rominaboccia.bsky.social
Fiscal Economist, Cato Institute. Jeffersonian Dinner Curator, Convers8.io Love to ski, hike, climb, read, cook
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A major reason for this bait-and-switch maneuver is Medicaid, with legislators reluctant to hit the brakes on the federal funding gravy train that pads their own state budgets.
02.03.2025 22:10 β π 1 π 0 π¬ 1 π 0Congress is acting like an alcoholic showing up at the bar with just enough cash to have βone drink,β downing ten, putting them all on a credit card, and telling themselves that was the plan all along. π₯΄
02.03.2025 22:10 β π 1 π 1 π¬ 1 π 0Now the Senate is attempting to rewrite the budget resolution using an accounting gimmick to pretend extending the 2017 tax cuts wonβt increase the deficit. Their tactic: switching to a βcurrent policy baseline.β
02.03.2025 22:10 β π 1 π 0 π¬ 1 π 0The House recently passed a budget resolution calling for $4.5 trillion in tax cuts plus $300 billion in new spendingβall balanced out with $2 trillion in offsetting spending cuts and about $2.6 trillion in βpixie dustβ from assuming economic growth will take off like one of SpaceXβs rockets.
02.03.2025 22:10 β π 1 π 0 π¬ 1 π 0
While Americans fixate on Elon Muskβs Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to rein in wasteful spending, Congress is quietly plotting to make the nationβs fiscal situation worse.
02.03.2025 22:10 β π 2 π 0 π¬ 1 π 0
Our national debt is now around 100% of GDP. Without bold reforms, we risk slower growth, fewer opportunities, and national decline.
@rominaboccia.bsky.social offers a series of reforms that Congress could implement to commit to a credible fiscal stabilization path:
Congress must commit to a credible fiscal plan. This means:
β’ Setting clear fiscal targets
β’ Cutting spending
β’ Reforming Social Security & major health care programs
β’ Extending tax cuts responsibly
U.S. public debt as a share of GDP from 1900 to 2054. Debt reached 106 percent after World War II and is now about 100 percent of GDP, rising to a new record high of 166 percent of GDP by the end of the projection period.
Americaβs fiscal picture isnβt pretty:
β’ $1.8 trillion deficit in FY24
β’ Rising costs for Social Security & Medicare
β’ Debt near 100% of GDP and growing fast
Failure to act risks slower growth, higher interest rates, and a fiscal crisis.
π¨New paper out now. 2025 is a pivotal year. Congress faces the return of the debt limit and the expiration of spending caps, health subsidies, and tax breaks. Congress should take decisive action and correct Americaβs unsustainable fiscal trajectory π§΅
t.co/d13OO6ZBlT
The @LosAngelesDaily quotes me on the Social Security (Un)Fairness Act. They nailed their headline.
www.dailynews.com/2024/12/24/u...
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