WHAT THEY ARE NOT SAYING

Washington Democrats Hide Behind Predictable, Canned Scare Tactics and Refuse to Tell Americans the Truth About Our Country’s Debt Crisis  

As observers praise the House GOP budget as a serious path forward to address America’s fiscal mess, Washington Democrats are refusing to tell the American people the truth about our country’s debt crisis. Instead, Washington Democrats have chosen to give America’s workers and families predictable, canned demagoguery. It’s the kind of thinking made in Washington, DC:  

REP. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN (D-MD), RANKING MEMBER ON THE HOUSE BUDGET COMMITTEE: “To govern is to choose, and it is not courageous to protect tax breaks for millionaires, oil companies, and other big money special interests while slashing our investment in education, ending the current health care guarantees for seniors on Medicare, and denying health care coverage to tens of millions of Americans.” (Press Release, “Van Hollen: Republican Budget Is Same Old Ideological Agenda,” Office of Rep. Chris Van Hollen, 4/3/2011)

MORE VAN HOLLEN: GOP BUDGET “REPRESENTS RIGID IDEOLOGICAL AGENDA ON STEROIDS.”(Press Release, “Van Hollen Statementon the House Republican Budget: Represents Rigid Ideological Agenda on Steroids,” Office of Rep. Chris Van Hollen, 4/5/2011)

HOUSE DEMOCRAT LEADER NANCY PELOSI (D-CA): “#GOP Path to Poverty budget eliminates guaranteed benefits for seniors under Medicarehttp://is.gd/LEmuZp #GOPvalues” (Tweet from Nancy Pelosi, 4/5/2011)

MORE PELOSI: “The #GOP Ryan budget is a path to poverty for America’s seniors & children and a road to riches for big oil #GOPvalues” (Tweet from Nancy Pelosi, 4/5/2011)

DCCC RESORTS TO TIRED OLD PLAYBOOK IN ATTACKING RYAN BUDGET FOR SUBSIDIES TO “BIG OIL”: Democrats quickly took aim at Mr. Ryan’s proposals, saying he was trying to shrink the deficit at the expense of people who need government aid rather than the wealthy business interests allied with Republicans.

“‘Paul Ryan made clear that the Republican budget will protect big oil companies’ subsidies over seniors’ health care,’ said Jesse Ferguson, a spokesman for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. ‘It’s already becoming clear who will be the priority in the House Republican budget — special interests, not middle-class families.'” (Carl Hulse, “House Republicans Propose $4 Trillion in Cuts Over Decade,” The New York Times, 4/3/2011)

DCCC CHAIR STEVE ISRAEL: “Everyone agrees we must cut spending and tighten our belt, but House Republicans have chosen to do so on the backs of America’s seniors, not the oil companies making record profits and getting tens of billions in taxpayer subsidies. Forcing seniors to pay higher health costs is not the right way to balance our books and it’s not the only way to do it.” (“DCCC Chairman Steve Israel’s Statement on the House Republican Budget Proposal,”DCCC, 4/5/2011)

REP. PETE STARK (D-CA): ” ‘Paul Ryan can call his budget plan whatever he wants, but the fact remains that it will destroy the Medicare program, turning seniors’ care back over to the private insurance industry — the very industry that wouldn’t cover senior citizens and forced the creation of Medicare in the first place,’ said Rep. Pete Stark (D-Calif.), who chairs the House subcommittee responsible for most federal health programs.” (Lori Montgomery, “GOP Budget Tackles National Debt,” The Washington Post, 4/5/2011)

SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER (D-NY) DEMAGOGUES EFFORTS TO SAVE AND SECURE MEDICARE: “On Tuesday, Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) said Democrats believe that programs such as Medicare and Medicaid could be preserved by making them run more efficiently. Republicans, he said, would cut them across the board.” (Phillip Rucker and David A. Farenthold, “GOP 2012: Overhauls on Entitlements and Taxes, $6.2 Trillion in Cuts Over Decade,” The Washington Post, 4/4/2011)

CURRENT DEM GOVERNORS SAY RYAN PLAN WILL… WORSEN THE DEFICIT?“ ‘We are concerned that Congress, in an attempt to reduce the federal deficit, may pursue the exact opposite course of action by creating a mandated block grant which would do little to address cost growth while shifting costs to states and threatening program integrity.” (Sam Stein, “17 Democratic Governors Launch Preemptive Strikes Against Paul Ryan’s Medicaid Proposal,”The Huffington Post, 4/4/2011)

Meanwhile, the White House is hiding behind their sham of a 2012 budget, which was widely ridiculed for its failure to offer serious solutions to the nation’s budget deficit:

WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY JAY CARNEY: “I think the President’s position on Medicare is — can be seen in his Affordable Care Act; can be seen in the way he’s addressed it in his 2012 budget proposal.” (Remarks by Jay Carney, “Press Briefing By Press Secretary Jay Carney,” The White House, 4/4/2011)

Reliable left-wing groups are doing what they do, toeing the Democrat line:

DEMAGOGUERY FROM THE LEFT-WING “CAMPAIGN FOR AMERICA’S FUTURE”: “Rep. Paul Ryan’s budget plan will push rising health care costs onto those least able to afford them – the elderly, the disabled and the poor.”(Statement from Robert Borosage, “Ryan’s Roadmap to Ruin,” Campaign For America’s Future, 4/5/2011)

SCARE TACTICS FROM THE CENTER FOR AMERICAN PROGRESS: ” ‘Despite the evidence, however, conservatives continue to make tax cuts for the rich one of their highest priorities. Tax breaks for top earners and for corporations certainly benefit a select few individuals and companies. But they also produce massive deficits that conservatives seek to close by slashing public services,’ said Michael Linden, director for tax and budget policy at the liberal Center for American Progress.” (William Douglas and David Lightman, “House Republicans Unveil ‘Path to Prosperity’ Budget,” McClatchy Newspapers, 4/5/2011)

Meanwhile, the national debt is on track to hit 90 percent of GDP—a critical threshold linked to steep declines in economic growth. When will the Left get serious about the nation’s growth-crushing debt problem?:

MAJOR ECONOMIC STUDY LINKS GOVERNMENT DEBT TO SLOWER ECONOMIC GROWTH: “The sharp run-up in public sector debt will likely prove one of the most enduring legacies of the 2007-2009 financial crises in the United States and elsewhere… Our main finding is that across both advanced countries and emerging markets, high debt/GDP levels (90 percent and above) are associated with notably lower growth outcomes… Seldom do countries simply ‘grow’ their way out of deep debt.” (Carmen M. Reinhart and Kenneth S. Rogoff, “Growth in a Time of Debt,” American Economic Review Papers and Proceedings, 12/31/2009)

GOLDMAN SACHS RESEARCH: “The eventual effect of sustained fiscal imbalance is slower growth and greater risk of a fiscal crisis.  Our estimates suggest that a 10-point increase in the debt/GDP ratio lowers growth four years later by 0.2 percentage point, and increases the probability of a debt crisis by 2.5% in the aftermath of a financial crisis like the recent one.  (See No Rush for the Exit,” Global Economics Paper, No. 200, June 30, 2010 and “When One Crisis Leads to Another,” US Economics Analyst, 11/04, Jan. 28, 2011.)  To avoid this, lawmakers must begin to identify deficit reduction strategies.

“Ultimately, what goes up must come down. In the case of the federal budget, this means that a deficit-financed boost to growth will eventually lead to a drag. While policymakers can try to smooth the transition by phasing in cuts and incorporating multi-year fiscal commitments, achieving a sustainable fiscal policy will inevitably be a painful but necessary process.” (Jan Hatzius and Alec Phillips, “Fiscal Restraint: A Question of When, Not If,” Goldman Sachs Global ECS U.S. Research, 3/2/2011)

SEN. KENT CONRAD (D-ND): “The gross debt of the United States as you know is going to reach 100 percent of the gross domestic product of the United States this year. And the best economic analysis that’s been done by two professors who looked at 200 years of economic crisis studied 44 countries found that when you get to a gross debt of more than 90 percent of your gross domestic product you’re in the danger zone and you compromise future economic growth in a substantial way. So that’s what this is all about: future opportunity, future jobs for the American people. Too much debt acts as a lodestone around the American economy. It’s critically important we deal with this.” (Remarks by Sen. Kent Conrad, MSNBC’s Morning Joe, 3/2/2011)