Posted on 04/05/2011 1:02:11 PM PDT by T Christopher
Representative Paul Ryan (R-WI) and his fellow House Budget Committee colleagues released their much-anticipated budget proposal, "The Path to Prosperity: Restoring America's Promise" Tuesday. The plan cuts $6.2 trillion over the next ten years and endeavors to "Put the budget on the path to balance and the economy on the path to prosperity."
See it in full here...
See the video presentation here...
So, I'm pretty sure you can guess how the next step of this will play out. Rep. Ryan will be painted as "an extremist" and as a "radical." The proposal will be "torn to shreds" by every Lefty media outlet and criticized openly as "overly expansive" and "controversial" by the main stream media. He and It are about to face the greatest barrage of negative PR that this nation has seen in decades. If you think the Right-Wing reaction to Obamacare was swift and "hostile", you "ain't seen nothing yet."
That whole "civility" thing, just left town and it took common sense, duty to one's country, bipartisanship, and every conceivable flowery adjective with it.
As is the case with any piece of proposed legislation, this plan (path) is going to serve as a bookend for the real debate that is coming. I think even Ryan would probably tell you that it would be a long-shot at best to hope for half of this to find its way into final legislation; but that should not in any way diminish the importance of, or the courage it must take, to present such a plan.
What Ryan and his colleagues have done here is nothing short of courageous. Sure, it is paper and ink at this point; promises and speculation rooted in mathematical calculations and theoretical propositions; but this is the first time in this or several lifetimes that ANY substantial piece of legislation was presented to legitimately take on the task of reforming government spending comprehensively. Sure, others have attempted to broach the subject in piecemeal; but nothing has come anywhere even remotely close to this.
The next few days should be rather exciting times on Capitol Hill. I am eagerly awaiting responses from Ryan's peers in the House and leadership in the Senate. Some will take their time formulating an opinion on the proposal, but others will be compelled by an uncontrollable force to weigh in. I do believe first impressions will be the most telling.
That said, I would be more than disingenuous if I did not express the concerns I do have with this proposal. First of all, the comprehensiveness that makes it courageous also probably serves as its greatest shortcoming. I have never been a fan of "comprehensive" legislation. They sound great as theoretical constructs when drafted by the right people with the right intentions, but the day-to-day deal-making of Washington typically leaves the end result looking completely foreign to the original blueprint. By my calculation, "comprehensive" is typically a code word for "A bunch of crap neither side wants; that has to be in there; so that both sides can agree that the thing is utterly useless to both sides."
Second. While I would never question Rep. Ryan's grasp or knowledge of budgetary matters, I would question his ability to turn his facts and figures into actual legislation. His efforts over the last two years have generated eloquent sound bites, but very little in terms of actual results. My skepticism here is rooted in the fact that Ryan will not be the one "cutting the deals" behind closed doors or negotiating with Dem leadership. He has simply laid out a path; that other men must follow and not lose sight of. Add that to the fact that even I (a fellow Right-Winger and a supporter) cannot stand to listen to him talk for more than 30 seconds at a time without being reminded of the tool I wanted to punch in the back of the head in class; and he's got a mighty big hill to climb.
Third. While I appreciate the depth of the cuts, reforms, and proposals; I am still rather curious where the $6.2 trillion comes from, exactly. From my preliminary perusal of the document, it seems to be measured against the President's ten-year outlook. While Ryan's would certainly be preferred, I fail to see how an unreliable measuring stick is a reliable one.
Lastly, I see that this plan's great destination is set years into the future - 26 for the point where Ryan says numbers could not be calculated any longer; or 39 if you use the outer range of these projections. While I am not one to need instant gratification from such endeavors, I am one to require some safeguard that a future Congress cannot simply undue what would be done; or find another way to add to debt and deficit on a "side road." Anything short of adding a Constitutional Amendment to this proposal would leave it vulnerable to the changing of the political tides. After all, this proposal would undo much of what the last Congress created with Obamacare. How long could a Republican piece of legislation this expansive expect to stand up under the weight of a Dem-controlled House and Senate? About a month? Maybe two?
In sum, I do not intend to come off as a "critic" of the proposal. I think it is a much needed step in the right direction. I offer my thoughts and reservations only for the cause of adding some perspective to the matter. As my fellow RepubliConservatives drool over this thing in the next few days and prepare to crown Rep. Ryan as the next Ronald Reagan, I would only wish to caution them not to lose sight of the realities that still very much plague the process. I commend Congressman Ryan for his efforts and I look forward to seeing how this proposal moves forward, but I do so with cautious optimism.
I like this plan.
This is absolutely WONDERFUL! While the Dems will fight this, all the GOP has to do is say: "Why should the entrepreneurs who create the jobs pay more than those who take those jobs? Further, everyone knows that any tax on business has to come from the revenues paid to the firm by consumers. It's time to quit taking from one pocket and pretending to put it in the other one."
When did they start pretending?
Certainly agree. Its a positive step in the right direction.
I don't think that this Congress can make cuts ten years from now. How does it do that?
That is true, but I really think we are past “America-saving” plans at this point. That would take convincing the whole of the left, and a significant portion of the American citizenry, to back something that means they have to live well within their means in perpetuity while canceling the myriad over-reaching and burdensome policies and agencies of the federal government.
I think we are not at the point where it is possible and should, instead, be working on something to mitigate what has already been done as best we can while preparing ourselves for the worst.
Should we give up trying? No.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.