Since the economist is the least bias source I could find and they could explain it better than I could-
I know it won't ever get implemented, and I'm not a fan of medicare and medicaid or one of those "TAX THE RICH!" people but what the hell is the point of slashing so much spending if you are going to blow a huge hole in tax revenue with a 25% tax rate for the group that makes up the tax base? The whole plan would make life financially harder for everyone except the wealthy who are going to make more money through their personal and corporate tax rates going down.
I don't want to tax the rich to death or want anything like European tax rates (or their social programs) but but we can't keep cutting taxes and hope to maintain the same standard of living. Cut some stuff out of the budget sure, but don't build upon the structural deficit.
So yeah, anyone here actually think his plan makes any sense?
http://www.economist.com/blogs/freeexch … et_deficitIt claims to slash the federal budget deficit from a little over 9% of GDP this year to just 1.6% by 2021. By contrast, the Congressional Budget Office reckons the deficit would fall to just 4.9% under Barack Obama’s budget. He does this without, on net, raising taxes. By closing loopholes, he would pay for a cut in the top personal and corporate rates. So how does he shrink the deficit? Through an eye-watering assault on entitlement spending, in particular health care. Mr Obama’s health care reform would be ditched, Medicaid would be converted to block grants, and traditional Medicare would be replaced with vouchers.
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Mr Ryan notes that with the government now paying roughly half of all health care costs, more disciplined federal funding could force efficiency into the system. However, that still leaves rising costs due to technological progress, an aging population, and the shrinking coverage offered by private sector employers. Mr Ryan’s cuts will have real consequences. The proportion of Americans with no insurance, which was set to decline significantly under Mr Obama’s plan, will rise instead. Medicare beneficiaries, who now enjoy benefits on a par with those enrolled in private plans, would instead have to accept a far less generous range of services, or pay out of pocket for more.
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On taxes, Mr Ryan proposes chopping the top personal rate to 25%, from its current 35%, and from the 39.6% it is scheduled to reach if George Bush’s tax cuts expire as planned in 2013. He would also cut the top corporate rate to 25% from 35%, bringing America’s rate in line with international norms. Mr Ryan implies that his plan would be revenue neutral by eliminating loopholes and deductions.
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Of the plan's $6.2 trillion in spending cuts over 10 years, more than a quarter come from "other mandatory" categories, without specifying which: food stamps? Pell grants? Veterans' benefits? If the Congressional Budget Office scores this plan, it may well find the numbers don’t add up.
I know it won't ever get implemented, and I'm not a fan of medicare and medicaid or one of those "TAX THE RICH!" people but what the hell is the point of slashing so much spending if you are going to blow a huge hole in tax revenue with a 25% tax rate for the group that makes up the tax base? The whole plan would make life financially harder for everyone except the wealthy who are going to make more money through their personal and corporate tax rates going down.
I don't want to tax the rich to death or want anything like European tax rates (or their social programs) but but we can't keep cutting taxes and hope to maintain the same standard of living. Cut some stuff out of the budget sure, but don't build upon the structural deficit.
So yeah, anyone here actually think his plan makes any sense?
