House Votes to Change the Way Economic Legislation is Scored

Last night the newly sworn in House of Representatives voted, along party lines, to fundamentally change the way the CBO scores economic legislation so that it would include future macroeconomic effect of the legislation being scored. This is often called "dynamic scoring," and it is little more than an attempt by Republicans to change mathematics.

For decades Republicans have claimed that reducing taxes led to growth which eventually led to increased revenue, in spite of having reduced the overall tax burden. They have used this system of thought to justify the last two major rounds of tax cuts during the Reagan administration and GWB administration. They only problem is that it doesn't work, at least not for long. History shows us that this system of thought only works when the economy is at the peak of it's potential. But reality says that we cannot stay at the peak of economic potential all the time, and manufacturing an environment to maintain peak performance creates economic bubbles that eventually have to burst. The result, is that in practice their system of thought leads to record deficits, which both of the past two rounds of tax cuts have shown us. Yet time after time, the Republicans introduce budgetary legislation littered with astericks that note to the CBO that they arrived at their numbers based upon their speculation of what kind of effect the legislation might have on the economy, not based upon the plethora of other facets that are actually based in reality, in what we can measure. The CBO has continually refused to include this Voo Doo mathematics into their scoring and this is what has led to the Republicans desire to change the game.

This is becoming an alarming trend for Republicans. When the rules don't fit their agenda they try and change them. Just in the last three months they have changed the rules of CBO scoring and are attempting to mount an effort to have historically blue states like Michigan and Ohio, who happen to have Red state houses, to change how they allocate their electoral votes while keeping the rules the same in historically red states to offset their deepening disadvantage with minorities. Essentially the Republicans have admitted defeat in Presidential elections and their desire to change the rules highlights this fear. This is nothing more than an attempt to, in a roundabout way, gerrymander the states' respective electoral college votes. At some point you would have to think that Republican would take a look at their platform and make alterations to be more inclusive. But so far they seem hell bent to full steam ahead toward keeping it white and right.

In other news, the House just voted to roll back portions of Dodd-Frank, and not the parts that needed it either. I mean that they just passed a two year hiatus of a portion of the bill that keeps banks from making risky bets....you know, the kind that helped us into this economic mess in the first place. This should be scaring the shit out of everyone, Republican and Democrats. In fact, to be certain, there were a large number of Democrats who voted for this also.

 

Isn't the macroeconomic analysis model already in use by the Joint Committee on Taxation? They provided macroeconomic analysis of major bills such as the Senate's 2013 immigration overhaul or the 2010 health care law. Not to mention the recent and soon to be replaced Director Doug Elmendorf, was a Democratic appointee. Did the Dem ruled House not pursue an agenda that suited their purposes?

I know Democrats want to say it's all about tax breaks for millionaires, it wouldn't apply to all legislation. "The new scoring approach would only be required for major legislation in which the budgetary effects of legislation — meaning an increase or decrease in revenue, spending or deficits — are at least 0.25 percent of the size of the economy. Had the rule been in effect last year, the threshold would have been $43 billion." And on the other side, why don't Dem's want a reform of the tax code which is a likely outcome of this legislation?

 

Dam, ALREADY screaming like a bitch?

LMAFAO. You seriously saying that. Your prez just stuck this country the finger on immigration. Call me when the Republicans start using Exec Priv to do things like that.

White folk are soon to be in a minority. At what point will it be okay for a white men to fight for what's in their best interest like every other ethnicity?

 

its just a way to have the CBO put out false numbers so it looks like voodoo economics work, which everyone with any sense knows is untrue.

Man I really, really can't believe this country put 80 percent white males in office. Steady moving backwards should be the new motto of the United States. Is it 2016 yet?

 

When you have to change the rules, districts, prevent people from voting, etc to win then the problem is your message...

 

Signed, Obama

 

Well here you go again....justifying the unjustifiable. No, it's not all about tax breaks for millionaires, it's about untold tax breaks for corporations. You honestly think it's millionaires who fund the Republicans? Hell no, it's corporations and that's who stands to benefit the most from it. Better yet though, this is merely a changing of the rules to make the standards meet their agenda and not the other way around. It's a way of justifying further tax cuts and to dupe the American people into believing it is revenue neutral. No one is against revising the tax code as long as we use real math when we do so. Changing the rules is the de facto way of saying that they cannot press their agenda within the current rules.

 

This is a poorly conceived post, even for you tiga. The president didn't do anything that isn't within his constitutional power. He had to change no rules to issue the executive order. Hell, Reagan did the exact same thing in the 80's....the only difference being that he had the blessing of the Democrats to do so and Obama obviously didn't have the blessing of the Republicans.

Yeah, us poor white people have it rough don't we? Since when did 2043 become soon? That's 28 years from now and also when the Census Bureau predicts that white people will no longer be in the minority. That said, white people will still be the largest race for long after that champ.

Next.....

 

I know right? That sure didn't take long

 

It's the Washington game. Both sides do it. Dems accuse Republicans of wanting to hide the rising deficit. Republicans accuse Dems of not telling the truth in terms of cost and revenue offset. That was my point. And BTW, corporations fund both parties.

What I know is the tax code is a joke, it needs reforming. This legislation will enable that. I also know that there is not much legislation that will fall under it's parameters. And you didn't answer....isn't this "voo doo" macroeconomic forecasting analysis currently in use by the Joint Committee on Taxation that provided analysis on two of Obama's biggest pieces of legislation?