I want to propose a four-part test for measuring any particular bill on health care cost control.
short run
long run
Federal deficit
Today the Administration released more detail for the President’s budget. The President tried to emphasize his fiscal responsibility by highlighting some of the programs he proposes to terminate or reduce. Budget Director Orszag released the Terminations, Reductions, and Savings volume.
I had missed this from the President’s remarks to Congress on February 24th:
This budget builds on these reforms. It includes a historic commitment to comprehensive health care reform — a…
Suppose I bought an iPhone yesterday for $500.
Suppose I argue that I will save $2000 this week, because I intend to refraining from buying an additional iPhone today, nor will I buy one this Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday.
There has been a lot of debate about whether the President’s budget improves or worsens the future deficit picture. This is a debate mostly about baselines — what do you assume would happen otherwise? Rather than engaging in that debate here, I am…
Yesterday I wrote about the history of tax increases since World War II, and about the battle over the total level of taxation. Now I want to turn to spending.
Now that we have reviewed how big a bite the government has taken out of the economy over time, let’s examine the competing tax proposals for the near future.
Revenues are only one element of a budget proposal. For a complete picture of the effect of a budget…
Critical policy fights sometimes happen long before a bill comes up for a vote. Legislative process and strategy intersect early to determine the balance of power for a future vote on…
Budget Director Peter Orszag wrote on his blog yesterday that he thinks “Debt held by the public net of financial assets is the most meaningful measure of current federal debt.”
The President emphasized the importance of health care reform in Tuesday evening’s press conference. One of his arguments was that reforming health care would help address federal and state government fiscal problems:
What we have to do is bend the curve on…
