Political Quotes

“Continued progress on reducing the deficit is sound economic policy, but a constitutional amendment requiring annual balance of the federal budget is not. The fallacy in the logic behind the balanced budget amendment begins with the premise that the size of the federal deficit is the result of conscious policy decisions. This is only partly the case. The pace of economic activity also plays an important role in determining the deficit. An economic slowdown automatically depresses tax revenues and increases government spending on such programs as unemployment compensation, food stamps and welfare. Such temporary increases in the deficit act as 'automatic stabilizers,' offsetting some of the reduction in the purchasing power of the private sector and cushioning the economy's slide. Moreover, they do so quickly and automatically, without the need for lengthy debates about the state of the economy and the appropriate policy response.”