“1. Pay as you go, balanced budget—whatever you wish to call a return to fiscal sanity.”
No - we limit the amount of money the feds have to spend to 10% of our cumulative gross adjusted incomes. Because they would “balance the budget” by taxing us more.
“2. Freeze federal spending at the present rate, and let increased revenues balance the budget.”
Again, “No.” Federal spending this year is about $12,000 for every man, woman, and child. That is way, way, too much. It should be about 1/3 (maybe). It needs to be cut back to a reasonable amount over the next 10-20 years.
http://pushbackuntil.com describes better approaches.
If elected president, I promise to VETO any budget that does not cut the federal budge by 10% in real terms every year of my first term.
That may result in no budget being passed, or a veto override, but this is the kind of stand a president has to take to actually accomplish fiscal restraint.
Hmmm...how to make sure the military is funded when the congress can’t pass a budget?