montanamaven

In an ideal country, the federal budget would not only be balanced by the next session, but it should be balanced every session. However, in the history of the United States, these fiscal problems have never fully solved every year. Plus, the issue of government spending tends to be rather complex, with issues of debt maturity, bond issues and what sorts of spending are mandates, as opposed to discretionary. In this regard, it will be likely impossible to balance the budget in a short amount of time. Plus, given the political realities in both the Senate, House of Representatives and the White House, solving a range of long term problems in the short term will not happen.

Both parties have their list of concerns and pet issues. Democrats will likely not budge on major entitlement programs such as Social Security, Medicare and other issues. Republicans will not likely get all the cuts they wish for, and they will likely not get the specific tax or social reforms that have long been part of their party platform. Also, the GOP is seemingly split between two factions: the establishment and politicians sympathetic to with the disgruntled GOP rank-and-file, commonly referred to as “The Tea Party.”

While balancing the budget is an admirable aim, all parties involved should do the most practical thing. Come to a consensus on how to keep the government running on a short term basis. Shutting down the federal government over this issue should not be a credible options. The government provides too many vital services that would cease if funding runs out. This includes not only entitlement programs, but several institutions that have an international and financial scope. This is not to say that the budget needs to be ignored. However, the conversation needs to be focused on long term viability and not short term deadlines.