Obama's budget
President Obama delivered his 2013 budget to Congress Monday for approval. He missed the statutory deadline for delivering it by one week. That isn't the only thing he missed. He also missed an opportunity to begin to right America's financial ship, to tackle America's crippling long term financial problems (most of which are of his own making) and restore financial sanity to the life of the country and the lives of ordinary Americans.
Instead, he gave America and Americans more of the same, more of what he has given them since he took office...more debt, more borrowing, more spending, more federal government intervention in the economy at the expense of capitalism and the free market system which has served them so well over the years, more stimulus programs which are bound to fail just like their predecessors, more smoke and mirrors and creative accounting which has no basis in reality, more unemployment, more misery, more taxes, more of everything except jobs, money in people's pockets, financial and personal independence and hope for the future. He also gave them fewer opportunities and a lower quality of life and severely compromised the ability of the country to defend itself in this increasing hostile and dangerous world by forcing severe budget cuts on the military. Far from making things better for America and Americans the budget will make things infinitely worse and will turn the country into a financial basket case like Greece, if it isn't already. The results for America and Americans will be catastrophic.
A few selected lowlights.
America's total debt is 15.3 trillion, yes trillion, dollars. It is already ruining the country and what's left of the economy and is rising exponentially as we speak. The budget does nothing to reduce it and will add to it significantly, in the short and long term.
That's the overall debt. Using the aforementioned smoke and mirrors and creative accounting the budget projects deficits that will rise to 704 billion dollars annually or 2.8 percent of the economy by the end of 2022.
All of these numbers are based on the most optimistic scenarios imaginable. The reality will be much different and much worse.
Social Security and Medicare are in grave danger. The Social Security and Medicare systems are both in critical need of reform and could easily be lost if it doesn't happen. The budget does nothing to solve the crisis and could very well lead to their demise. Obama is the first President in American history to cut Medicare benefits for seniors and we can fully expect a further whittling away of the social safety net under the budget, if not its effective elimination.
The cost of driving their cars and heating and lighting their homes (energy costs in general) will rise significantly for Americans because oil, gas and coal companies will have to pay much higher taxes than they do now and will pass on the costs accordingly. Actually, it's not just energy costs that will increase. The cost of everything will go up, food, clothing, transportation, goods and services, everything.
Those are just some of the many lowlights.
There aren't any highlights, not unless massive, growing and ongoing debt and economic suicide for America and Americans are highlights. Not unless American's accept a steady decline in their standard of living and a budget that is really socialism on steroids which will do nothing to solve their economic and social problems and will only exacerbate them, indeed might even destroy the country.
Obama's budget is much more than financial malfeasance and illiteracy. Over and above human considerations, it is an extremely serious threat to the viability of the country itself and cannot be allowed to pass.