A Way Out Of the Budget Impasse

In a column posted today on Bloomberg Views I suggested a way to resolve the budget impasse. It starts with the fact that about $6 trillion in deficit reduction is needed over 10 years to get to balanced budget.The proposal is that the President and the Congress  agree now to $2.5 trillion spending growth reductions and increase the debt limit by the same amount. The question about how to close the remaining $3.5 trillion gap--tax increases or more spending reductions--is then left to debate next year as part of the 2012 election.

This chart--which I have used before--shows the feasibility of the idea. In a speech on April 13 President Obama already suggested about $2 trillion in spending growth reductions. So we are almost there.