It’s time to get real about the deficit

The House and Senate have finally agreed on a budget deal to keep government running through the end of the fiscal year.

But just when you thought the fighting was over, it’s only just begun. Still on the table is a proposal on whether to raise the federal debt limit above $14.3 trillion. And so, finally, after weeks of Republican pressure, President Obama attempted to prove that he was just as serious as his counterparts about our country’s fiscal health by taking on the deficit.

Unfortunately, the president’s speech on the deficit on April 13 fell way short and proved that he was in need of a reality check. The partisan speech, which even had Vice President Biden dozing, included proposals to reduce the deficit by $4 trillion in 12 years or less.

The Wall Street Journal called the speech “toxic” and an “even worse plan for deficits and debt.” This is because the president severely missed the boat by failing to announce cuts and reform to entitlement programs — Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security — that have forced us into this dire situation. While he did suggest trimming health care costs by cutting waste, the fact of the matter is that unrestrained entitlement spending will cost billions more. And let’s be honest. Every time a politician wants to sound like he’s pinching pennies, he promotes cutting waste and fraud, but it’s all smoke and mirrors.

Another farce was Obama’s suggestion that by lowering borrowing costs, you can reduce interest on the deficit. I’m sure we all remember Economics 101. The larger our deficit becomes, the greater the likelihood of interest costs soaring.