Subscribe to Dollars & Sense magazine. Recent articles related to the financial crisis. Obama's ($1.7 Trn Deficit) First BudgetFrom The Financial Times:Obama forecasts $1,750bn deficit By Andrew Ward and Edward Luce in Washington Published: February 26 2009 11:24 | Last updated: February 27 2009 09:56 Financial Times President Barack Obama on Thursday unveiled the most expansive blueprint for federal government involvement in the US economy in more than a generation in a ten-year budget outline that showed this year’s deficit quadrupling to $1,750bn. The document, which lays out ambitious plans to create universal health insurance and adopt an economy-wide carbon permit trading system by 2012, was heavily panned by Republicans. The budget would see George W. Bush’s tax cuts for the wealthiest expire by 2011 and introduce new tax increases on families earning $250,000 or more to pay for healthcare expansion. In a sign of intense partisan battles to come, Mitch McConnell, the Republican leader in the Senate, where the US president needs supermajorities of at least 60 votes to push bills through, said: “Unfortunately, at this juncture, while the American people are tightening their belts, Washington seems to be taking its belt off." The budget also allowed for about $750bn for "financial stabilisation efforts", on top of the $700bn already granted to Wall Street. The potential aid was shown as a net cost of $250bn because the government would anticipate recouping some of the money. Peter Orszag, White House budget director, said there were "no plans" to seek more aid for banks but the measure indicated it was a strong possibility. The 134-page document outlines a legacy inherited from Mr Bush of what it calls "mismanagement and missed opportunities and of deep, structural problems ignored for too long". Read the rest of the article Labels: bailout, Barack Obama, budget, financia crisis, fiscal policy, fiscal stimulus, taxes Please consider donating to Dollars & Sense and/or subscribing to the magazine (both print and e-subscriptions now available!).
Comments:
Current economic conditions have put the federal government under great pressure and strain. On one hand you have failed corporations, who are too big to fall and the government has to rescue them. So the government is in a position of a hostage by big corporations. On the other hand, you have various programs that need financing, states that are in trouble and need financial help from the government, various infrastructure and other programs (new ones as well) and not enough money. Makes sense to start prioritizing and also start thinking how to control these costs and cut back on some of them, so we don’t wind up in a situation when the government simply needs to print more money, in order to meet its obligations.
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