Comment & Debate
Robert Samuelson. “A parody of leadership.” Real Clear Politics. December 21, 2009: “the health care proposals would impose massive costs. Remember: The country already faces huge increases in federal spending and taxes or deficits because an aging population will receive more Social Security and Medicare. Projections made by the Congressional Budget Office in 2007 suggested federal spending might rise almost 50 percent by 2030 as a share of the economy (gross domestic product). Since that estimate, the recession and massive deficits have further bloated the national debt. […] Obama’s plan might add almost another $1 trillion in spending over a decade — and more later. Even if this is fully covered, as Obama contends, by higher taxes and cuts in Medicare reimbursements, these revenues could have been used to cut the existing deficits.”
William McKenzie. “Senate health bill should either be defeated or rewritten.” Dallas News. January 21, 2009: “Congress has mastered the expansion of services, important services at that. But, as Peterson’s Walker says, it hasn’t figured out a way to provide financially sustainable coverage. If this bill passes now, it is hard to see how it won’t pose a risk to our long-term fiscal health.”