If you’re a dictator, that is. The New York Times has a fun silly thingy whereby you too can take a machete to the US budget deficit. It’s easy! My Cunning Plan even produces surpluses in both 2015 and 2030. 65% of my proposals are achieved by cutting spending; 35% by taxes. And I didn’t even use the Fantasy Catch-All of “capping Medicare growth”. I even let the Congress peeps keep their earmarks. Just for fun.
So, yes, balancing the budget is easy. Provided you never need to run for election yourself. No-one would win if they promised my, or anyone else’s, plan – at least not given the choices offered by the NYT.
It is, again, a problem of scale. In a continent-sized country of 300 million people, every interest is a powerful interest. We may agree that farm subsidies are a noxious boondoggle but it’s hardly surprising that farm states quite like them and are determined to keep them.
Britain’s best politics newsletters
You get two free articles each week when you sign up to The Spectator’s emails.
Already a subscriber? Log in
Comments
Join the debate for just $5 for 3 months
Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first three months for $5.
UNLOCK ACCESS Just $5 for 3 monthsAlready a subscriber? Log in