You're going to be hearing a lot of whining and moaning in the coming days about the budget deficit going up. Well, guess what: the same people who will be whining and moaning about deficits and "government spending" pushed through massive tax cuts last year, which caused the deficit to go up. Now they're going to demand even more austerity. Are we going to fall for it yet again?
Here is the game, played out since the Reagan years:
1) Pass huge tax cuts for the rich and their corporations (corporate profits largely go to the top few.)
2) The budget deficit goes up as a result and so does inequality.
3) Scare people that the rising budget deficit means we're "going broke" and all kinds of bad things will happen to them and their children as a result (which never actually happen).
4) Force cuts in the things government does to make We the People's lives better.
5) Rinse and repeat.
The Washington Post's PowerPost explains that this increase in the budget deficit is a direct result of the huge tax cuts, in Budget deficit set to rise thanks to year-end tax deal,
The official congressional scorekeeper said the increase is largely attributed to the year-end legislation, which extended a series of tax breaks for both businesses and individuals at a cost of $650 billion over 10 years.
December's post, "So Much For Conservative Deficit Scare Talk," was about this huge corporate tax cut:
Republicans in Congress and the corporate-funded conservative echo chamber (redundant) are temporarily pausing from scaring people with “deficit” propaganda and are instead working on an end-of-the-year backroom deal to give out several hundred billion dollars in tax breaks that increase the deficit.
This is happening at a time when education, housing, infrastructure, and research, and other things government does to make our lives better are being cut to a smaller share of the economy than any time since the government began tracking this data in 1962. Because deficits.
What You Should Know About Debt?
We keep hearing that "government spending" and "government debt" are bad things. But is that really true?
Take a look at this from the Guardian, "David Graeber: debt and what the government doesn't want you to know – video":
[fve]https://youtu.be/LxJW7hl8oqM[/fve]
See also:
● Deficits Were On Purpose To Cause This “Crisis”
● Did The Rich Cause The Deficit?
● Corporations: “Deficits Mean Austerity For Thee And Lower Taxes For Me”
● Deficits: Get the Money From Where the Money Went
● Roots Of Conservative Failure: Bush Called Deficits “Incredibly Positive News”
● Deficit Trouble – Right Here In River City
● This Deficit Story Can't Be Repeated Often Enough
● Conservative Tax Tricks – Did Tax Cuts Grow The Economy
● Tax Cuts Caused The Deficits, Therefore…
And, of course, "Jobs Fix Deficits"
