October 21, 2011

CAN WE HANDLE THE TRUTH?

Posted: 20 Oct 2011 03:05 PM PDT

Lt. Governor Greg Bell’s Blog

“The single biggest threat to our national security is our debt.” -Admiral Michael E. Mullin, Chairman, U. S. Joint Chiefs of Staff.¹

As I’ve spoken to a few groups lately, I’ve emphasized the threat to our liberty and security the budget deficit poses, and that balancing the federal budget will require Americans to sacrifice. People invariably nod their heads in agreement. One group was particularly exercised about the federal government not controlling the budget. I suggested to them that the main problem is the unsustainable growth of the entitlement programs Social Security (SS), Medicare and Medicaid. I asked them if they were willing to take a cut in their benefit. Their vehement response was, NO!

So are Americans truly ready to balance the federal budget? Late last year, the Simpson-Bowles Commission² released its recommendations to get the budget under control. Sen. Alan Simpson, speaking in Salt Lake City this summer, said the Commission was quickly dubbed the “Cat Food Commission” for recommending modest changes to future, not current SS benefits, such as increasing the retirement age to 67 in 2037, 68 in 2050± and 69 in 2075±. Those affected by the 2075 change are now five years old and younger. This will hardly require that beneficiaries resort to eating cat food.

2011 is the first time ever that SS will pay out more than it took in.³ Left unchanged, SS will go bust. Anyone who reads a newspaper must be aware of this indisputable reality. The good news is that the Simpson-Bowles Commission said SS can be saved—with fairly minor changes and without affecting current payees. The bad news is that it’s not politically possible to even discuss the problem. Just ask the “Cat Food Commission”.

When faced with cancer, we expect the doctor to level with us about our chances of survival and the risks of treatment. We don’t want our accountants to hide the real numbers from us, or our mechanics to tell us our brake pads are just fine when they aren’t. We demand the facts so we can make informed decisions. Oddly, however, we won’t let our elected officials speak the truth. We want it sugar-coated, to postpone judgment day, to procrastinate the reckoning. Apparently, we want politicians who will enable our fantasy.

Living in denial is one thing; it’s quite another to acknowledge a major problem but refuse to address it. The debt ceiling stand-off this summer brought to the fore the balanced budget amendment to the Constitution. A recent poll showed a whopping 72% of Americans favor the amendment. However, that support sinks to 31% if the amendment would require, “…major spending cuts to entitlement programs like Medicare and Social Security.” It’s frightening that less than a third of our countrymen are willing to make personal sacrifices to rescue this nation from grave financial peril.

We must admit the truth…and the consequences of the truth. Let us agree not to disqualify politicians for telling us the truth. Let’s judge the candidates by how candidly they describe our challenges and by the realistic solutions they propose. Then we’ll have solid reasons to vote for or against them…because we’ll come much closer to knowing what they really think and what they’ll really try to do. I’d sure love to know that before I vote.

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