Washington, D.C. hasn’t gotten the grand bargain that poobahs (wrongly) think America needs. But a very useful analysis from Michael Linden and Michael Ettlinger shows how much deficit reduction has already been enacted in a series of smaller deals.
It’s quite a bit of deficit reduction, about $2.4 trillion worth, and just a hair over a quarter of it via higher taxes with the rest coming from lower spending. It would be great to do more if people have more examples of genuinely wasteful spending or of revenue ideas like a carbon tax or slightly higher alcohol taxes that have other social benefits. But don’t let anyone convince you that nothing’s being done. The economic recovery is reducing the deficit, and measures already enacted are bringing further deficit reductions.
