Dueling Budgets

The role, growth and cost of government and who pays combined is the biggest issue of our times. These issues play themselves out in the daily headlines regarding tax increases on the wealthy, budget cuts, corporate tax cuts, Medicare and Social Security reform, the new health care law, the debt ceiling, etc.

Because the dollars involved are huge and the impacts are profound, the major political parties in an election year are intent on lobbing bombs back and forth rather finding common ground. Consequently, sorting out the dueling “facts” can be difficult for we mere civilians.

Here’s a three-part post that reviews the impacts of President Obama’s budget and that of House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan. The economist – Keith Hennessey – does a good job of letting the numbers speak for themselves without wading into the partisan political swamp.