It was practically Mike Johnson’s top focus from the beginning.
In October, the newly elected House Speaker declared that it was long overdue to form a bipartisan panel to address the nation’s spiraling $34.6 trillion debt. He repeated the dire predictions of his predecessor and other House Republicans, saying, “The consequences if we don’t act now are unbearable.”
After more than six months, the plan seems to be virtually dead due to strong resistance from both the left and the right.
The breakdown highlights a stubborn dynamic in Washington, where politicians from both parties are unable to take into account the hard compromises that would be required to stop the country’s rising red ink tide, especially during an election year.
Congressmen have repeatedly done what they do best when faced with the prospect that any fiscal panel will almost likely recommend that citizens pay more or receive less from their government: pass the issue on to the next Congress. And they appear ready to repeat the action.
The commission is opposed by a large number of Democrats and left-leaning advocacy groups for concern that it will suggest reducing Social Security payouts.
Republicans and right-wing organizations oppose it as well, believing the panel will suggest raising taxes. The commission has been dubbed a “tax trap” by them.
“I’m disappointed that we haven’t got as much momentum as I thought we would,” Rep. Jodey Arrington, the Republican chairman of the House Budget Committee stated. “The speaker supported it, endorsed it from the outset. But I think there are some outside groups that have weighed in, that have said that this is a backdoor way to raise taxes, and it scared some of my Republican colleagues.”
Even more negative was Sen. Joe Manchin, D-WV, the senator who sponsored the debt commission bill in the Senate.
“No one seems to care,” Manchin stated. “It’s a shame, $34.6 trillion in debt. No one cares about it.”
The well-documented financial realities that any panel would encounter mostly revolve around the nation’s debt interest payments as well as Social Security and Medicare, which take up an increasing portion of the government budget.
The Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund reserves for Social Security will deplete in 2033. By then, the program will generate enough tax income to cover roughly 79% of the benefits that are scheduled.
Medicare’s trust fund, which pays for skilled nursing facility stays, hospice care, and inpatient hospital stays, has enough money in it to cover all benefits through 2036. At such time, expenditure reductions of 11% would be necessary to equal incoming revenue.
The last fiscal commission, which was led by Alan Simpson and Erskine Bowles, suggested $4 trillion in deficit reduction over ten years by combining tax hikes with harsh budget cutbacks.
However, Congress was not compelled to take a look at the package in 2010 despite the package’s 11-7 vote in favor of it.
Nevertheless, the White House and Democratic senators are dubious about creating a debt committee. During a recent session, Shalanda Young, the director of the White House Office of Management and Budget, informed the congressmen that the administration was worried that the commission’s only recommendation would be to reduce Social Security benefits rather than raise taxes on the wealthiest Americans.
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The likelihood of the plan advancing was significantly reduced when organizations connected with the Republican Party, such as the Club for Growth and Americans for Tax Reform, expressed opposition to it.
The GOP leadership’s ability to bind the commission to an annual budget bill or other must-pass legislation was undermined by their opposition.
Even while the bill’s future appears grim, Rep. Scott Peters, a Democrat from California, noted that passing legislation through Congress is frequently a long play.
According to him, getting a House committee to endorse the commission was a crucial first step. “This is the furthest we’ve gone in our journey.”
Advocates pledged to keep up the pressure to adopt a panel by the end of the current Congress. In a post-election lame-duck session, before the incoming Congress takes office, Manchin raised the prospect of adding it to a bill.
