Given all the screaming going on that Obama is increasing the national debt, it is enlightening to see that the independent Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget released a study today that estimates that the economic plans proposed by Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum, and Mitt Romney would increase the debt by between $250 billion and $7 trillion over the next nine years.
Newt Gingrich’s plan would increase the debt by a staggering $7 trillion, taking it to 114% of GDP (it is 70% today and historically averages 40%). And that’s after cutting funding for Medicaid by half. But Gingrich claims that his plan would balance the budget in his first term, because cutting taxes would create jobs. Yeah, we’ve heard that one before.
Rick Santorum’s plan would increase the debt by $4.5 trillion, to 104% of GDP.
The least awful plan is Mitt Romney’s, which only adds $250 billion to they debt, mainly by lowering corporate taxes. But not included in the current analysis is Romney’s new plan, released yesterday, which cuts marginal tax rates for individuals by 20%. This new plan is estimated to raise the debt by $2.6 trillion.
The only Republican proposal that would reduce the debt is the one from Ron Paul. But he does this by eliminating five federal departments, including education, commerce, and energy.
7 Comments
Does the estimate for Gingrich include making the Moon the 51st state?
The rightest of the far right people I know would not hesitate to eliminate the depts. of education, commerce and energy. Then they would bundle up the EPA and any department whose job it is to offer any regulation whatsoever on anything whatsoever and scrap those as well.
And to be clear, when I say “rightest” of of right, I do NOT mean “correct”. I mean the tilt of their politics.
“…by eliminating five federal departments, including education, commerce, and energy.”
How many jobs would be eliminated & why does no one ever ask that of these yayhoos?
@ Laurie each of those departments employs a couple thousand people (I think education is around 15-20k, energy a little higher). I’ve questioned the job loss before with some Reps, and they say the same thing. The total jobs lost would not affect the overall unemployment very much, and every job lost is saving the taxpayers money.
The budget plans for Republicans, starting with Reagan, have always been big on the deficit spending. They don’t like to balance things out unless a Dem is in the White House. Bush, for example, never paid for the wars, his major tax cuts, his medicare overhaul, or his disaster relief aid. He simply put it on America’s tab, and then left Obama holding the check.
Hahaha nice subtle dig at Perry!!
“…by eliminating five federal departments, including education”
What I want Mr. Paul and his Tea Party supporters to answer is this: How many schools across this country does that idea shut down, or does it shut down all of them, and is this your way of creating an ignorant and illiterate workforce within a generation?