imreallyperplexed
Council Member
Though Simpson-Bowles, the fiscal cliff, and the importance of a grand (genuinely) bi-partisan bargain to reduce the debt and deficit while promoting economic growth was sometimes mentioned during the Presidential campaign, the actual debate was - in my opinion - at a very debased level. Nevertheless, during the campaign, Paul Krugman reminded folks that he felt that Bowles-Simpson was bad fiscal policy but predicted that - if Obama was reelected (with Republicans in control of at least one house of Congress) - that Simpson-Bowles would reemerage as the "model" for a deal.
http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/09/30/a-public-service-reminder-simpson-bowles-is-terrible/
That said, though I may differ with certain aspects of the Bowles-Simpson plan (e.g. specifics of tax policy. entitlement reform, and defense savings), I am sympathetic to the general sentiment behind the plant to put everything on the table and to aim to have everybody sacrific a bit. I am a bit more progressive in the sense that I am sensitive that people in dire economic straights have less room for "sacrifice." Nevertheless, I am also sensitive to the fact that a healthy economy is in everyone's interest. I am curious what other folks think about Simpson-Bowles as a blueprint for compromise. Here is a clip from a MTP interview with Simpson and Bowles from September 2012.
[video=youtube;PkcsoLdIDCU]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PkcsoLdIDCU[/video]
http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/09/30/a-public-service-reminder-simpson-bowles-is-terrible/
That said, though I may differ with certain aspects of the Bowles-Simpson plan (e.g. specifics of tax policy. entitlement reform, and defense savings), I am sympathetic to the general sentiment behind the plant to put everything on the table and to aim to have everybody sacrific a bit. I am a bit more progressive in the sense that I am sensitive that people in dire economic straights have less room for "sacrifice." Nevertheless, I am also sensitive to the fact that a healthy economy is in everyone's interest. I am curious what other folks think about Simpson-Bowles as a blueprint for compromise. Here is a clip from a MTP interview with Simpson and Bowles from September 2012.
[video=youtube;PkcsoLdIDCU]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PkcsoLdIDCU[/video]