RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
William A. Galston, November 23, 2009, The Brookings Institution
As the United States begins to recover from the deepest recession in decades, policymakers and the public are increasingly turning their attention to our long-term fiscal problems. To help alleviate the deficit, we need to fix the social contract. William Galston presents evidence which suggests that if done right, strengthening the link between income and net benefits would allow entitlement programs to meet essential social objectives without antagonizing upper-income beneficiaries and undermining cross-class coalitions. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
William A. Galston, November 10, 2009, Senate Budget Committee
Speaking before the Senate Budget Committee, Senior Fellow William Galston discussed how the Untied States’ current fiscal course is unsustainable. The level of deficits, debt, and borrowing from abroad projected for the next decade threatens not only our economic prosperity, but also our currency, global leadership, and national independence, he asserted. Galston recommended that an independent, bi-partisan commission be created to address the challenge of developing a sustainable fiscal policy. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Isabel V. Sawhill, November 03, 2009, National Journal
In light of the news that a group of ten senators has called for the creation of a bipartisan commission on the budget to create a long-term plan to reduce budget deficits, Isabel V. Sawhill cautions that failing to institute such a plan could lead to slower growth or an economic crisis, along with reduced flexibility to get the economy moving again or handle a new international threat. Read More
PAST EVENT
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
12:30 PM to 1:30 PM
Washington, DC
On Wednesday, September 30, Brookings guest scholar and former Member of Congress William Frenzel, along with Politico’s Fred Barbash, answered your questions about the U.S. budget deficit and its link to health care reform and economic growth. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Bill Frenzel, September 30, 2009, The Brookings Institution
The soaring U.S. budget deficit is projected to total more than $1 trillion for the fiscal year that ends September 30. Brookings guest scholar and former Member of Congress William Frenzel, along with Politico’s Fred Barbash, answered your questions about the danger of the increasing U.S. budget deficit and its link to health care reform and economic growth. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
William G. Gale and Alan J. Auerbach, September 15, 2009, The Brookings Institution
William Gale and Alan Auerbach review recent economic events and their impact on U.S. fiscal performance and prospects, highlighting the historic nature of the 2009 budget outcomes, the unsustainability of plausible ten-year budget projections, and the increasingly dire long-term fiscal problem. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
William A. Galston, September 01, 2009, The Brookings Institution
We are likely to enter a period of new normality marked by lower household debt, higher personal savings, and less consumption as a share of GDP, writes William Galston. Despite these positive trends, we still need a new era of public restraint, not just private thrift. Once economic growth has become self-sustaining and the private sector’s need for capital returns to more normal levels, Congress and the administration will have to turn their attention to the difficult fiscal questions they have long evaded. Read More
VIDEO
Alice M. Rivlin, August 27, 2009
President Barack Obama has nominated Ben Bernanke to serve a second term as Chairman of the Federal Reserve. The nomination came on the same day the White House announced a sharp increase in projected deficits. Alice Rivlin says the deficit projections should serve as an impetus for officials to step up efforts to fix the floundering economy. She also gives the Bernanke nomination her nod of approval.
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Alan J. Auerbach and William G. Gale, August 24, 2009, Financial Stability and Macroeconomic Policy Conference
Facing the most severe recession since the 1930s, the U.S. government has pursued an aggressive countercyclical fiscal policy, which is striking given the consensus a decade ago against the use of discretionary fiscal policy as a stabilization tool. In this new paper, William Gale and Alan J. Auerbach consider the evidence on the effects of discretionary fiscal policy, beginning with how the practice of this policy has changed over time.
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VIDEO
Bill Frenzel, August 14, 2009
The debate over health care reform has moved from Capitol Hill into the heartland where Members of Congress are hosting dozens of packed town hall meetings on the issue. William Frenzel, a Brookings expert and former U.S. representative from Minnesota, and the a co-chair of The Committee For a Responsible Federal Budget—which holds community meetings to gauge how the public feels about government spending—says town hall meetings should be used judiciously.
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
William G. Gale and Alan J. Auerbach, July 30, 2009, CNNMoney.com
William Gale and Alan Auerbach discuss the size of the long-term budget deficit and why it must be brought under control. They urge fiscal discipline with delicate timing: imposing spending cuts and tax increases too late risks precipitating a crisis in financial markets; imposing fiscal discipline too soon risks weakening the recovery or worsening the recession, as actually happened in the United States in the 1930s. Getting this mix right will require luck, discipline, imagination and leadership. Read More
PAST EVENT
Wednesday, July 08, 2009
9:00 AM to 11:00 AM
Washington, DC
The federal government responded aggressively to the economic crisis with fiscal, financial and monetary interventions. While boosting the economy has to be the top priority in the short run, it would be dangerous to lose focus on medium- and long-term fiscal issues that represent future threats to the economy and the solvency of the federal government. On July 8, Brookings experts and colleagues examined the delicate balancing act between economic recovery and fiscal sustainability. Read More
VIDEO
William G. Gale, June 22, 2009
While many steps have been taken to help shore up the floundering U.S. economy, William Gale says that the long-term fiscal situation is still very dire.
VIDEO
William G. Gale, June 05, 2009
As the administration continues to wrangle with the floundering economy, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke has advised that the growing budget deficits have to be cut. Economic Studies director William Gale agrees saying there needs to be a more comprehensive approach to stabilizing the economy.
PAST EVENT
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
12:30 PM to 01:30 PM
Washington, DC
As soon as President Obama sent his detailed budget to Capitol Hill early May, political battles erupted over spending increases, proposed cuts and the increasing load of debt and deficits. Brookings expert Isabel Sawhill took questions on the hard budget choices and consequences with moderator Fred Barbash, Politico senior editor, in this edition of The Scouting Report. Read More