Growing Deficit May Force Tax Revisions or Spending Cuts

The momentum is growing for Congress and the Administration to address the deficit. There’s more and more talk every day about how to come up with new sources of revenue. The easy targets have already been taken — leading the government to start seriously considering areas that were previously unthinkable.

A piece in today’s USA Today lays out the stark and painful choices:

The White House, Congress, budget experts and typical Americans are growing anxious about the nation’s mounting debt, which is helping to fuel the rise of the anti-tax, anti-big government Tea Party movement.

Yet the only solutions capable of raising enough money are politically dangerous for the president and Congress: tax increases and major reductions in Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security.

We’re seeing repeated proposals to look at reducing the deduction for charitable giving.