| From Faith in Public Life |
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| Wednesday, 03 August 2011 09:18 | |
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Debt Deal: No Shared Sacrifice
Congress and the White House have finally agreed to a debt-ceiling deal that averts a default crisis manufactured by Republican leaders. Preventing default was crucial, but this deeply flawed legislation asks for no shared sacrifice from the wealthiest Americans and makes steep spending cuts with potentially severe consequences for vulnerable families.
It would have been worse if not for mainstream faith leaders’ tireless efforts to prevent immoral budget decisions. Thanks in part to our community’s witness, Medicaid and protections for low-income Americans are shielded from harmful funding cuts (at least for now). And make no mistake: these programs were squarely on the chopping block. The Cut, Cap and Balance legislation passed by the Republican-controlled House and supported by the Religious Right would have eviscerated our safety net.
A broken system
The President called the legislation a bipartisan victory. That says a lot about what passes for bipartisanship today. From the beginning, Tea Party leaders threatened to intentionally cause an economic catastrophe if their demands of draconian spending cuts without tax increases weren’t met. Their rhetoric about fiscal responsibility rang hollow -- bringing us to the edge of default was the epitome of irresponsibility.
This episode also established a dangerous precedent: threatening to crash the economy is now considered a morally acceptable tactic. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is already threatening another debt-ceiling showdown in 2013.
A bad deal
What we’re left with is legislation that defies the American people’s priorities and puts our fragile economy at risk. Most Americans want a balanced approach to addressing the deficit, involving both spending cuts and tax increases. Furthermore, voters consistently rank jobs and the economy as higher priorities than the deficit. Yet we got a cuts-only package that economists say could cost jobs and weaken the economy. Leaders have a responsibility to do what’s right for the country in the long term, which can involve tough choices. But this deal neglects the immediate needs of American families without putting our economy on sound long-term footing.
Where we go from here
We can’t let up in our efforts to defend the common good. Tea Party leaders are pushing an agenda that harms people who are already struggling without asking millionaires to give up their tax breaks. Political maneuvering alone can’t stop them. Someone has to offer an alternative moral vision. That’s where we come in.
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| Last Updated on Wednesday, 03 August 2011 09:45 |
