Reigning in Entitlements

By Janet Parshall
Beyond the News

The president has just unveiled his 2007 budget--and it's going to make some politicians squirm. His proposal is built on the concept of furthering those ideas that work, like spending restraint and making tax relief permanent. The president's goal is to cut the deficit in half by 2009, which can only be achieved by holding discretionary spending below inflation.

But the most controversial part of the budget proposal is the call to slow the future growth of entitlement spending over the next five years--an idea that could save us $65 billion dollars. He believes the greatest threat we face financially is the unsustainable growth in programs like Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. And he's right!

Congress must work now to plan for America's future and they need to immediately begin a robust debate on repairing the Social Security system, which is indisputably broken.

If Congress cannot find the will to tighten our financial buckle, then they will have to will monstrous debt to generations to come.