Calling All Statesmen

Fear is a great motivator. The daily routine can be challenging, enough. But when disaster strikes and one's very well-being is threatened, one will do what it takes to put the threat to rest. That is the position in which Americans now find themselves. 

The threats, in fact, abound. For starters, there is the growing cost of caring for millions of illegal border-crossers and the rising crime stats reported daily in communities across the country. Owing to DEI strictures, no-bail mandates, and prosecutors refusing to prosecute serious crime, recidivists rule the roost.

But it is still the economy, the nuts and bolts of making ends meet that matters most to American families. Taxes take their toll.  In fact, any family that is paying around 50% in combined federal/state/local income taxes, payroll, property, sales, social security, and capital gains taxes can feel only half-free. But there is nothing more worrisome than the constantly rising cost of living. 

The experts say that Inflation is down and now stands at just over 3%. That assurance offers little relief. For most American families inflation is as worrisome as ever. It's no wonder.

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Notice, the Federal Reserve's "preferred" inflation indicator, known as Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE), does not calculate the cost of food and energy, indispensable items for any family. The consumer price index (CPI) does account for rising food and energy costs but does not calculate rising insurance premiums or higher interest charges for auto loans, mortgages, credit cards and installment purchases when reporting on inflation. Tell me, what family can avoid dealing with these rapidly rising monthly expenses? 

All these existential threats stem from the concrete policy choices our elected leaders and their agency heads have been making. Government is just too big, too intrusive, and spends too much. The need to shrink the size of government has never been greater. It can happen, but only if more Americans become politically engaged. The majority can no longer afford to remain silent. 

Why has public spending gotten out of control? The chief problem with politics is that so much of it is run by politicians.  All protestations, notwithstanding, politicians are mainly out to serve themselves. Most thrive on being popular, loved, and feared by all, especially their donors. 

Needing to raise large sums to run for public office and knowing that the special interests they court are counting on their generous support, in return, no politician wants to deprive his benefactors of the benefit they presently enjoy. So when it comes to cutting spending Democrats and Republicans will propose across-the-board spending cuts. That way, no single interest group has to feel slighted. That doesn't really work and not every spending program is equally essential. Some are, and a great many are not.  At any rate, the politicians just hope the issue goes away.

America has had its fill of politicians. More than ever, Americans need to find statesmen to run for public office (or seek office, themselves). 

Statesmen are guided by a bedrock of principles. They don't need to be popular. Armed with a clear vision of what reforms are needed and guided by a firm moral compass, they go to work. But the citizens need to be politically engaged so they can recognize a statesman when they see one. What the nation's founders called Civic Virtue, a commitment to understanding the proper role of government and voting accordingly can be revitalized. It had better be. But what should these statesmen do? That is the $34 trillion question.

In time, commentators will take to the airwaves to recommend serious fiscal reforms. The sides will be drawn. Leading supply-side gurus will once again call for fundamental tax reform. They will correctly point out that deep tax cuts stimulate economic activity and result in more, not less, tax revenue. 

Results of the Kennedy, Reagan, and Trump tax cuts definitely support their claims. They will then debate the relative merits of a flat tax, a fair tax, a border adjustment tax, and a value-added tax. But BAT or VAT, FAIR or FLAT, tax reform won't fix a thing. There's no safe way to pay for a runaway welfare state. The additional revenue may forestall future annual deficits but will not appreciably reduce the debt. 

Now, there is the perennial plan to add a balanced-budget amendment to the Constitution. It will also be an exercise in futility. How many years will it take to gain approval? And what "escape" clause will the amendment contain in the event of some unanticipated future contingency? And what future administration will see no need to comply with it?

Every penny a government spends has to be financed. As public programs multiply and expand, more and more revenue is needed.  But rather than imposing a crushing tax burden on their constituents, politicians prefer to pass that burden onto future generations. So the country goes ever deeper into debt. The money borrowed and spent distorts the pace and direction of capital investment and is not available for promising new enterprises or the expansion of existing ones. The interest payments governments must make (now approaching $1 trillion annually) leave less money in the economy for business investment and job creation. 

The only way out is to actively CUT existing spending programs and CLOSE agencies, bureaus, and entire cabinet departments by the bushel. How are we to determine which programs and agencies to cancel? The real question is what must government do for us and what must we be allowed and expected to do for ourselves - and our neighbors in need? Please stay tuned.

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