Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, March 19, 1995 TAG: 9504080004
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: G3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: ROBERT L. BIXBY
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
It is time now for each party to come forward with its plans to balance the budget.
Some are saying that this will prove difficult without the amendment. It is true, of course, that the amendment would have provided structural discipline and a corresponding political cover for cutting popular spending programs, or raising taxes. Now, members of Congress will not be able to face down angry interest groups with the quip, ``The Constitution made me do it.''
That may pose a bit of a problem for wary budget-cutters on Capitol Hill. But the more important point is that the amendment is dead for now, while the deficit problem itself is alive and well.
Lest anyone forget, our deficit this year is expected to be $176 billion. Absent policy changes, it will swell to $284 billion within five years, and $421 billion within 10 years. Addressing this problem cannot await further wrangling over the Constitution.
There are disturbing signs, however, that assigning blame for defeat of the amendment will take priority over the actual work of cutting the deficit. Republicans hope to use the defeat as a club against Democrats in 1996. For their part, Democrats see an opportunity to portray themselves (yet again) as the saviors of Social Security.
But assigning blame for defeat of the amendment is wasted energy. It will not get us any closer to a balanced budget to punish Mark Hatfield, the sole Republican holdout, or to run attack ads against the six Democrats who changed their votes from last year in favor of the amendment.
Indeed, such recriminations will only serve as a barrier to solutions. Both parties will soon be reminded that they need each other as they search for an estimated $1.2 trillion of deficit reduction to balance the budget by 2002. The problem is simply too big for a one-party solution. So, by all means, Congress should get out the long knives. But they should use them on the budget, not each other.
If the search for political advantage can be set aside, there is reason to hope that a bipartisan consensus can be achieved this year on a credible long-term plan for deficit reduction.
The building blocks for consensus are there. First, there is a growing realization that efforts to rein in federal debt cannot wait much longer. Every member of Congress is aware of the dire warnings issued last year by the Bipartisan Commission on Entitlement and Tax Reform. They know that the combination of an aging population and rising health-care costs will put an enormous strain on the budget within the next decade.
For that reason, responsible members of both parties, such as Sens. Bob Kerrey, D-Neb., and Judd Gregg, R-N.H., have been urging their colleagues to consider the long-term future as they prepare this year's budget.
Second, because members of Congress know that standing still is not a sustainable option, deficit hawks in both parties have expressed disappointment that the president's proposed budget did not do more to control the red ink. Budget leaders, on a bipartisan basis, have promised to do better.
Third, significant numbers in both parties have declared that, at this time, deficit reduction should take priority over tax cuts. Among those taking this position are Virginia's two senators, Republican John Warner and Democrat Charles Robb.
These broad areas of agreement were attracting bipartisan support prior to the crash landing of the balanced-budget amendment. It remains to be seen whether they survived the crash. But if so, they could provide a base on which further, more specific agreements could be reached.
As Congress moves forward with its budget resolutions in the House and Senate, cooperative efforts must be encouraged. It will help if everyone first concedes that opposition to the balanced-budget amendment did not necessarily signal opposition to a balanced budget; and that support for the balanced-budget amendment did not necessarily signal support for the tough choices needed to actually get the job done.
The hardest votes lie ahead. Congress should wipe the slate clean and the American people should judge what comes next by whether it is fiscally credible, socially fair, and generationally responsible. It will be a tough standard for the representatives and senators to achieve, but after all, they volunteered for the job.
Robert L. Bixby is Virginia state director of The Concord Coalition, a nonprofit organization established in 1992 to focus attention on federal deficits.
by CNB