John Boehner

Boehner's Debt-Limit Demands and No-Facts Zone

As I wrote Monday, House Speaker John Boehner gave a speech in New York on the state of the economy and our fiscal challenges. Today, the press reacted:

If you read one thing today, be sure to read the Bloomberg piece by James Rowley and Mike Dorning entitled "Boehner Builds Economic Case on Assertions at Odds with Markets, Studies."

In The Washington Post, Ruth Marcus takes a look at Boehner's lack of reality, and says he has an "incoherent, impervious-to-facts economic philosophy." Indeed.

And The New York Times Editorial Page similarly rips Boehner's speech, saying "There is no way to solve the country's fiscal ills without an accurate diagnosis and rigorous prescriptions for a cure. Mr. Boehner's speech was devoid of both."

The massive gulf in understanding between the two parties, either because of ignorance or ideology, about how the economy actually works and what drives the federal deficit, is a big reason why there's a gap between what Democrats and Republicans are willing to do. And it's why there are stories like this about the Biden-led deficit negotiations, because Republicans won't event come to the table in a serious manner. It's good that much of the media has stopped pretending that there is merely a difference of opinion; John Boehner has his own facts.

Watch: MSNBC's Keith Olbermann Cites NDN's Boehner Economic Plan Analysis in Interview with Robert Reich

Last night, in an interview with Robert Reich, MSNBC host Keith Olbermann referenced NDN's analysis of Congressman John Boehner's (R-OH) economic plan. For context, check out Simon's recent blog post.

Boehner Plan Raises All Sorts of Questions About GOP's Economic Arguments

In a new study released by NDN today, we calculate that the plan released by John Boehner yesterday would add more than $3 trillion to the deficit over the next ten years.

That the new economic plan from the House Republican Leader explodes the deficit and does nothing meaningful to cut government spending raises very real questions about the Washington Republican Party's commitment to the promise of a new age of austerity and fiscal rectitutde Republican victories will bring.

I would also add that the utter lack of fiscal seriousness of this proposal - despite the very public positioning of the Republican Party today - recalls the economic recklessness of the recent conservative era in Washington which brought a decline in wages and benefits for the average American, an exploding structural deficit, the Great Recession/massive job loss and a global financial meltdown.  Boehner's new plan makes no effort to break from this horrendous legacy, and raises very real questions about the economic strategy of the GOP which must be answered by the GOP leader and all his candidates seeking the House. 

Of the many questions to be asked, there is a simple one all Republicans should answer now: "how exactly are you going to reduce the deficit over the next ten years?"

My guess is that not a single Republican running for major office could actually lay out a plan that would reduce the deficit over this time frame.  If anyone finds such a plan - rather than a rhetorical commitment to do so - please send it along.

PM Update - Sam Stein of the Huffington Post, and Jonathan Cohn of TNR have each written pieces today based on our study.  If you see any more let us know.  And feel free of course to spread this important study through your networks too.

Friday Update - Keith Olbermann talked about our study on the air last night, and a smart new Newsweek piece by Andrew Romano also references it.

Friday PM Update - CBO reports this week that if the health care bill passed this year is repealed, as Boehner proposed in his economic plan, it would add another $455 billion to the deficit over the next ten years, pushing Boehner's plan over the $4 trillion mark.

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