Now you too can balance the U.S. federal budget...

[melon]

Here's the link where you get to make your choices as to what to cut or keep in the national budget:

Budget Puzzle: You Fix the Budget - Interactive Feature - NYTimes.com

And here's what I came up with:

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2010/11/13/weekinreview/deficits-graphic.html?choices=hx6k4bqk

Lots of bloat cut, closed loopholes and recent tax cut rollbacks with no raising of retirement ages or whole-scale raids on Social Security or Medicare. And definitely no national sales tax; it's just a really bad idea (can't stand the one here in Canada).

As far as I see it, the huge national debt requires serious adjustments with the savings being used to pay off the debt, but it doesn't need to punish working people like a lot of "tax reform" plans typically advocate between-the-lines.

Thoughts?

 

[Canadiens1131]

As a newly-elected GOP representative in Congress I cannot use this tool as it is too specific as to what we will have to cut. If we cut funding old people will be mad at us.

TAX BREAKS FOR $1 Million earners!!!!!!!

 

[yolland]

Here's mine (although, I wasn't able to view melon's answers--not sure whether the problem's at my end or what). In this calculator's framing, I used a mixture of 40% spending cuts and 60% tax increases. I did raise the retirement age, and chose troop reductions in Iraq and Afghanistan; those were my two biggest spending cuts. Bowles-Simpson and expiration of Bush tax cuts for the top 2% were my biggest tax reforms.

"Cap Medicare growth starting in 2013"--lmao, that's a good one. I don't think this thing really takes the Baby Boomers' growing healthcare needs into account.

Here's another calculator I like: Center for Economic & Policy Research - CEPR Deficit Calculator. Most people seem to find their preferred options vary significantly depending on whose calculator they're using--which is perhaps the most revealing part of the exercise.

 

[KhanadaRhodes]

here's mine: Budget Puzzle: You Fix the Budget - Interactive Feature - NYTimes.com

i reduced a lot of tax cuts back to clinton-era levels, got rid of earmarks and farm subsidies, shrunk the military and weapons programmes, and added a couple taxes like banks and carbon.

 

[solemole]

wtf? ... I missed some options.

Now I got 50-50 on tax increases and savings.

Budget Puzzle: You Fix the Budget - Interactive Feature - NYTimes.com

 

[solemole]

oh... i think if you do too much, some of your choices are (randomly?) void.

whatever...