An American Promise
● A Balanced-Budget Amendment to the Constitution, with appropriate exceptions for times of war and recession.
● A line-item veto, to give the President a fighting chance to eliminate pork and earmarks.
● A limitation on federal spending, to 20% of GDP.-
*** About We Elected You ***
Have Your Say!
- John Lumbard on Problems With a Balanced Budget Amendment?
- Chris Curley on Problems With a Balanced Budget Amendment?
- John Lumbard on How to Fix the Health Care Mess
- Did Government Agencies “Raid” Social Security “Coffers”? « Joejolly’s Weblog on “The Debt The Government Owes Itself For Raiding Social Security”
- John Lumbard on The Antidote
- Gen Y on The Keepers of the Flame
- Chuck Bailey on Amendment Filed. Call Your Congressman!
- Phoebe Addington on Party On!
- FaGaurlwal on Incentives Rule!
- James Schaefer on The ENTIRE Government Runs on Borrowed Money
Topics
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Fiscal Sanity Archive
Dominique Strauss-Kahn
By John Lumbard.
What does the allegedly-amoral head of the International Monetary fund have to do with budget deficits in the U.S.? Ever since the fall of 2008 Americans have been losing trust in their leadership and institutions. The arrest of "DSK" pulls one more pillar out from under the...
Read More Postponing the Pain
Economist Charles Wheelan writes occasionally for Yahoo Finance, and he's always terrific. In a recent article he suggests that the President extend the current graduated tax structure, with a plan to balance the budget in 3 or 4 years (when the economy is stronger) by cutting spending and adding consumption taxes...
Read More Join Americans for a Balanced Budget Amendment
By John Lumbard.
As the months have rolled by we've worked to simplify our message, because nobody wants to stop partying long enough to think about bipartisan fiscal responsibility. Most Americans are for it---probably by a massive majority---but most haven't even thought about practical ways to ensure that the Congress does...
Read More Taking the Long View
By James Schaefer.
In America nearly everyone has the opportunity to acquire substantial retirement savings; it's simply a matter of applying self discipline (and some common sense) consistently over a very long period of time. Starting at age 22, saving a million dollars -- or more -- in retirement accounts is fairly...
Read More How ’bout a Little Optimism? The American Promise.
By John Lumbard.
Investors are running scared right now, fearful that a slowdown in our economy means that we're headed back into a double-dip recession. Stop worrying and enjoy a double dip in the ocean (a balmy 66 degrees at the New Hampshire shore today) or two scoops of ice cream at Annabelle's here...
Read More Great Government and the Roots of Rebellion
By John Lumbard.
USA Today just published an opinion piece arguing that voters are concerned about the power wielded by large corporations; but unwilling to embrace the federal government as a benevolent regulator. That distrust is founded in a recognition that our government is larger than all of our 100 largest corporations put together---a fearsome size---and that it has...
Read More Sustainable Government
By Dan H.
As California goes, so goes the nation. That has long been the case with fad and fashion, but lately California has been playing the role of canary in the coal mine. The state budget is out of control, and there are no longer any easy answers.
Much...
Read More Consumer Debt-cutting
There is at least some good news on the personal finance front.
Increases in "consumer debt" -- defined as total revolving and non-revolving personal debt -- are being more than offset by decreases in mortgage and credit card debt. As a result, total personal debt is declining (see U.S. Debt Clock).
It...
Read More Who do we want to be?
By James Schaefer
Some years ago Claude Bristol wrote a book entitled, "The Magic of Believing". It covers, among other things, the importance of personal responsibility---in our decisions about school, our career paths, and our life goals. It applies to our moral standards, our management of personal finances, and our management of debt.
It...
Read More