In a world where fiscal responsibility often seems like an afterthought, leaving only a few voices clamoring for sanity in spending, a conservative debate continues to unfold over government budgets and deficits. As some politicians consider spending cuts too tepid and lacking in ambition, these same figures find themselves grappling with an unpleasant truth: the proposed arithmetic doesn’t seem to add up. This time, the skies above Washington are filled with the echoes of fiscal forecasts that predict a troubling picture—up to five trillion dollars more in debt, depending on which side of Congress you ask.
The House says the debt will explode by four trillion, which might ironically seem quaint when one considers the Senate’s vision of a five trillion-dollar increase. Meanwhile, this year’s fiscal year-end, looming ever closer in September, promises a whopping 2.2 trillion-dollar deficit. Now, one might hear whispers blaming Biden’s spending levels for such grim projections. Still, it begs a question—didn’t almost every Republican fall into lockstep this March, assenting to a continuation of these so-called Biden spending levels? History, it seems, is not without its ironies.
What on earth happened to fiscal conservatism? Here we are, with a bill that proposes increasing the debt ceiling by four to five trillion dollars. Disconcertingly, it implies the continuation of a hefty deficit, with this year dangling a two-trillion-dollar price tag and the next itching to top that. It doesn’t exactly align with what one might consider conservative—far from it. Somewhere in the midst of all this, whispers echoing the demand for spending cuts have been reduced to a whimper as loud as a mouse’s sneeze. Truly, these cuts are as potent as decaf coffee.
A vocal few are pushing back, though, raising their hands to state the glaringly obvious: “Why raise the debt ceiling?” It seems that simply adding more debt to a load already as burdensome as Atlas’ would be counterproductive. Could there still be someone left in Washington who understands that deficits are wrong and should be curtailed? Identifying these individuals is like finding a unicorn among horses—rare but not entirely impossible.
In a landscape where compromise often equates to bending on principles, some conservatives remain determined. If, by some providence, they could strip out the debt ceiling component, there might be room for discussion about passing the rest of the bill. But a five trillion dollar debt ceiling increase simply cannot be stomached. Someone must lead the charge in another direction, back to a place where fiscal responsibility is not just hoped for but demanded. In a world gone awry, perhaps it is indeed time for a return to a budget that is in the black rather than one soaking in red ink.
