[lbo-talk] Budget Quickie

Max Sawicky sawicky at verizon.net
Mon Feb 1 13:37:38 PST 2010


Based on a profound reading of the summary tables. Some good news and some bad news.

Non defense discretionary, stays at or over 3.6% through 2013. Arguably the only period that matters, if that. Not awful.

SS+M2 = 9.5% in 2009, 10.9 by 2019. No big deal. An increase, but nothing to get excited about. (Is net of some proposed "savings" in the programs.)

TARP cost: 1.8% in 2009, negligible otherwise. Basically a one-off, non-factor in the budget outlook. (Does not include Federal Reserve balance sheet.)

Defense: up to 4.8% in 2010, slides down to 3.1 by 2019. Not awful, aside from the question of wars of choice.

Taxes at 19.5% by 2019, above historic average. Once the Gov gets the money, not easy to let it go. Good news.

Tightening (change from 2010 to 2011): 1.1% discretionary, split evenly between defense and non-defense; .7 in 'other mandatory' (not TARP); receipts up 1.5%. Total is 2.5% of GDP (the difference is an increase in net interest paid), as DH said yesterday. (Terrible fiscal policy)

Tax cuts (10 yr totals): $737b for regular folks, $71b for business. Cancellation of Bush tax cuts: $615b. Least noticed piece; non-trivial progressive redistribution of the tax burden. (Does not include effects of 'climate revenues.'

Structurally in terms of big aggregates, not bad. "Spending freeze" (sic) discourse of course panders to GOP mindset. No "transformational" stuff to see here.



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