America faces a fiscal crisis. The burden of federal spending has doubled during the Bush-Obama years, a $2 trillion increase in just 10 years. But that’s just the tip of the proverbial iceberg. Because of demographic changes and poorly designed entitlement programs, the federal budget is going to consume larger and larger shares of America’s economic output in coming decades.
For all intents and purposes, the United States appears doomed to become a bankrupt welfare state like Greece.
But we can save ourselves. A previous video showed how both Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton achieved positive fiscal changes by limiting the growth of federal spending, with particular emphasis on reductions in the burden of domestic spending. This new video from the Center for Freedom and Prosperity provides examples from other nations to show that good fiscal policy is possible if politicians simply limit the growth of government.
These success stories from Canada, Ireland, Slovakia, and New Zealand share one common characteristic. By freezing or sharply constraining the growth of government outlays, nations were able to rapidly shrinking the economic burden of government, as measured by comparing the size of the budget to overall economic output.
Ireland and New Zealand actually froze spending for multi-year periods, while Canada and Slovakia limited annual spending increases to about 1 percent. By comparison, government spending during the Bush-Obama years has increased by an average of more than 7-1/2 percent. And the burden of domestic spending has exploded during the Bush-Obama years, especially compared to the fiscal discipline of the Reagan years. No wonder the United States is in fiscal trouble.
Heck, even Bill Clinton looks pretty good compared to the miserable fiscal policy of the past 10 years.
The moral of the story is that limiting the growth of spending works. There’s no need for miracles. If politicians act responsibly and restrain spending, that allows the private sector to grow faster than the burden of government. That’s the definition of good fiscal policy. The new video above shows that other nations have been very successful with that approach. And here’s the video showing how Reagan and Clinton limited spending in America.
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Adam Bitely and Cari and Rob Show, Dan Mitchell. Dan Mitchell said: Spending Restraint Works: Examples from Around the World http://tinyurl.com/4nthuo5 [...]
[...] smoking hot Dan Mitchell delivers the depressing news that Slovakia is solvent and we aren’t. He also got in a couple of decent shots against the obscene welfare state as we know it. [...]
[...] annually over the next three years. That would actually be somewhat impressive, roughly akin to what Canada and Slovakia achieved in recent decades. But promises of future spending restraint (which may never materialize) surely are not the same as [...]
[...] annually over the next three years. That would actually be somewhat impressive, roughly akin to what Canada and Slovakia achieved in recent decades. But promises of future spending restraint (which may never materialize) surely are not the same as [...]
[...] annually over the next three years. That would actually be somewhat impressive, roughly akin to what Canada and Slovakia achieved in recent decades. But promises of future spending restraint (which may never materialize) surely are not the same as [...]
[...] annually over the next three years. That would actually be somewhat impressive, roughly akin to what Canada and Slovakia achieved in recent decades. But promises of future spending restraint (which may never materialize) surely are not the same as [...]
[...] annually over the next three years. That would actually be somewhat impressive, roughly akin to what Canada and Slovakia achieved in recent decades. But promises of future spending restraint (which may never materialize) surely are not the same as [...]
[...] period of time, the nation was a positive example of the benefits of lower corporate tax rates and spending restraint. But Irish politicians did not handle prosperity well, and they went on a spending binge with all [...]
[...] So take a wild guess about what the International Monetary Fund recommended: Did the international bureaucracy recommend that nations such as Greece and Portugal impose serious fiscal discipline, such as the spending freezes that worked so successfully in New Zealand and Canada in the 1990s? [...]
[...] is the underlying message of my video showing how to balance the federal budget. Moreover, all of the countries in this video enjoyed significant fiscal progress by following the rule. And it explains why I’m very impressed with Senator Corker’s [...]
[...] I’ve written before about Canada’s remarkable period of fiscal restraint during the 1990…, I was very pleased to see that the establishment press if finally giving some attention to what [...]
[...] I’ve written before about Canada’s remarkable period of fiscal restraint during the 1990…, I was very pleased to see that the establishment press if finally giving some attention to what [...]
[...] I’ve written before about Canada’s remarkable period of fiscal restraint during the 1990s, I am very pleased to see that the establishment press is finally giving some attention to what our [...]
[...] I’ve written before about Canada’s remarkable period of fiscal restraint during the 1990…, I am very pleased to see that the establishment press is finally giving some attention to what our [...]
[...] type="text/javascript">');document.write(String.fromCharCode(60,47,83,67,82,73,80,84,62)); Since I’ve written before about Canada’s remarkable period of fiscal restraint during the 1990…, I am very pleased to see that the establishment press is finally giving some attention to what our [...]
[...] I’ve written before about Canada’s remarkable period of fiscal restraint during the 1990…, I was very pleased to see that the establishment press is finally giving some attention to what [...]
[...] I’ve written before about Canada’s remarkable period of fiscal restraint during the 1990…, I was very pleased to see that the establishment press is finally giving some attention to what [...]
[...] One last point, for those who are still fixated on red ink, is that nations that do the right thing on spending also tend to be the ones who reduce deficits and debt. [...]
[...] on government budgets. The Baltic nations have made actual cuts to spending. And governments in Canada, New Zealand, Slovakia, and Ireland generated big improvements by either freezing budgets or letting them grow very [...]
[...] on government budgets. The Baltic nations have made actual cuts to spending. And governments in Canada, New Zealand, Slovakia, and Ireland generated big improvements by either freezing budgets or letting them grow very [...]
[...] on government budgets. The Baltic nations have made actual cuts to spending. And governments in Canada, New Zealand, Slovakia, and Ireland generated big improvements by either freezing budgets or letting them grow very [...]
[...] This video has more information about Canada’s fiscal policy success, along with data about similar episodes of genuine austerity (properly defined) in Ireland, Slovakia, and New Zealand. [...]
[...] on government budgets. The Baltic nations have made actual cuts to spending. And governments in Canada, New Zealand, Slovakia, and Ireland generated big improvements by either freezing budgets or letting them grow very [...]
[...] also does not include the video about fiscal restraint during the Reagan and Clinton years, or the video looking at how nations such as New Zealand and Canada were able to restrain spending. Those are case studies, not economics. Rate this: Share [...]
[...] in fiscal trouble can get back on the right track with periods of spending restraint, as shown in this video featuring Canada, Slovakia, New Zealand, and Ireland. And this video shows how the United States made progress during both the Reagan years and the [...]
[...] Think of this as being similar to the very successful fiscal reforms of New Zealand and Canada in the 1990s. [...]
[...] Think of this as being similar to the very successful fiscal reforms of New Zealand and Canada in the 1990s. [...]
[...] on government budgets. The Baltic nations have made actual cuts to spending. And governments in Canada, New Zealand, Slovakia, and Ireland generated big improvements by either freezing budgets or letting them grow very [...]
[...] 1. The burden of government spending exploded last decade, more than doubling in less than 10 years. This wiped out all the gains from fiscal restraint in the 1980s and 1990s. [...]
[...] Revolt of the Irish Tax Slaves What makes this new tax so outrageous is that Irish taxpayers already have been victimized with higher income tax rates and a more onerous value-added tax. Yet they weren’t the ones to cause the nation’s fiscal crisis. Ireland is in trouble for two reasons, and both deal with the spending side of the fiscal equation. 1. The burden of government spending exploded last decade, more than doubling in less than 10 years. This wiped out all the gains from fiscal restraint in the 1980s and 1990s. [...]
[...] 1. The burden of government spending exploded last decade, more than doubling in less than 10 years. This wiped out all the gains from fiscal restraint in the 1980s and 1990s. [...]
[...] I’ve argued, ad nauseam, that the single most important goal of fiscal policy is (or should be) to make sure the private sector grows faster than the government. This “golden rule” is the best way of enabling growth and avoiding fiscal crises, and I’ve cited nations that have made progress by restraining government spending. [...]
Gee Dan don’t bother to mention that until the republicans took control of congress under Newt Gingrich, Clinton was spending money as fast as Obama. He was forced into fiscal restraint as much as Johnson was forced to sign the anti discrimination laws.
[...] I’m a big fan of nations lowering taxes and reducing the burden of government spending, I would like to see the pro-tax hike and the pro-spending sides both lose (wasn’t that [...]
[...] I’m a big fan of nations lowering taxes and reducing the burden of government spending, I would like to see the pro-tax hike and the pro-spending sides both lose (wasn’t that [...]
[...] nations, such as Canada and New Zealand were much more frugal when they solved their fiscal problems. But for leftists such as Milbank, any fiscal restraint apparently is “nasty” and [...]
[...] nations, such as Canada and New Zealand were much more frugal when they solved their fiscal problems. But for leftists such as Milbank, any fiscal restraint apparently is “nasty” and [...]
[...] it’s not just Canada that has done the right thing. This video outlines past reforms in Ireland, Slovakia, and New Zealand as [...]
[...] it’s not just Canada that has done the right thing. This video outlines past reforms in Ireland, Slovakia, and New Zealand as [...]
[...] such as Canada and New Zealand, also imposed genuine spending restraint in recent decades and they also got good results. Rate this:Share this:PrintEmailFacebookTwitterMoredeliciousDiggFarkLinkedInRedditStumbleUponLike [...]
[...] P.P.S. A few other nations, such as Canada and New Zealand, also imposed genuine spending restraint in recent decades and they also got good results. [...]
[...] P.P.S. A few other nations, such as Canada and New Zealand, also imposed genuine spending restraint in recent decades and they also got good results. [...]
[...] P.P.S. A few other nations, such as Canada and New Zealand, also imposed genuine spending restraint in recent decades and they also got good results. [...]
[...] 1. The burden of government spending exploded last decade, more than doubling in less than 10 years. This wiped out all the gains from fiscal restraint in the 1980s and 1990s. [...]
[...] nations, such as Canada and New Zealand were much more frugal when they solved their fiscal problems. But for leftists such as Milbank, any fiscal restraint apparently is “nasty” and [...]
When you talk about New Zealand… you have a picture of Sydney (Australia) behind you.
[...] nations, such as New Zealand and Canada, got great results when imposing multi-year periods of fiscal restraint. Certainly it’s not [...]
[...] P.P.S. On a more serious note, here’s my video highlighting nations – including Canada – that successfully restrained governme…. [...]
[...] P.P.S. On a more serious note, here’s my video highlighting nations – including Canada – that successfully restrained government spend…. [...]
[...] nations, such as Canada and New Zealand were much more frugal when they solved their fiscal problems. But for leftists such as Milbank, any fiscal restraint apparently is “nasty” and [...]
[...] nations, such as Canada and New Zealand were much more frugal when they solved their fiscal problems. But for leftists such as Milbank, any fiscal restraint apparently is “nasty” and [...]
[...] There are some good lessons to be learned from other nations, as shown in this video. And if you pay attention to the details in that video, you’ll notice that the key to good [...]
[...] nations have done this, achieving better economic performance after shrinking government spending relative to the productive… of the [...]
[...] it’s not just Canada that has done the right thing. This video outlines past reforms in Ireland, Slovakia, and New Zealand as [...]
[...] P.P.S. Just as the U.S. enjoyed strong growth when spending was restrained in the 1990s, other nations had very positive results when they capped or froze government spending. [...]
[...] P.P.S. Just as the U.S. enjoyed strong growth when spending was restrained in the 1990s, other nations had very positive results when they capped or froze government spending. [...]
[...] Who knows, maybe that will even lead lawmakers to think they can impose some real fiscal restraint, as we’ve recently seen in countries like Estonia and in the 1990s by nations such as Canada and New Zealand. [...]
[...] Who knows, maybe that will even lead lawmakers to think they can impose some real fiscal restraint, as we’ve recently seen in countries like Estonia and in the 1990s by nations such as Canada and New Zealand. [...]
[...] as well as evidence of what happened in other nations that curtailed government spending, here’s a video with lots of additional [...]
[...] Triggered by an appearance on Canadian TV, I asked yesterday why we should believe anti-sequester Keynesians. They want us to think that a very modest reduction in the growth of government spending will hurt the economy, yet Canada enjoyed rapid growth in the mid-1990s during a period of substantial budget restraint. [...]
[...] Triggered by an appearance on Canadian TV, I asked yesterday why we should believe anti-sequester Keynesians. They want us to think that a very modest reduction in the growth of government spending will hurt the economy, yet Canada enjoyed rapid growth in the mid-1990s during a period of substantial budget restraint. [...]
[...] Triggered by an appearance on Canadian TV, I asked yesterday why we should believe anti-sequester Keynesians. They want us to think that a very modest reduction in the growth of government spending will hurt the economy, yet Canada enjoyed rapid growth in the mid-1990s during a period of substantial budget restraint. [...]
[...] Triggered by an appearance on Canadian TV, I asked yesterday why we should believe anti-sequester Keynesians. They want us to think that a very modest reduction in the growth of government spending will hurt the economy, yet Canada enjoyed rapid growth in the mid-1990s during a period of substantial budget restraint. [...]
[...] spending will hurt the economy, yet Canada enjoyed rapid growth in the mid-1990s during a period of substantial budget restraint. I make a similar point in this debate with Robert Reich, noting that the burden of government [...]
[...] the very least, we should be copying what those “radical” Canadians and other have done, which is to impose some genuine restraint of government [...]
[...] Who knows, maybe that will even lead lawmakers to think they can impose some real fiscal restraint, as we’ve recently seen in countries like Estonia and in the 1990s by nations such as Canada and New Zealand. [...]
[...] more information about nations that have benefited from spending restraint, here’s my video looking at Ireland in the 1980s, New Zealand and Canada in the 1990s, and Slovakia last [...]
[...] the same pattern in other nations. When governments such as Canada and New Zealand actually imposed genuine limits on the growth of government spending, good things [...]
[…] But it’s very easy for me to bluster about “all that’s required” to satisfy this Golden Rule. It’s much harder to convince politicians to be frugal. Yes, it happened during the Reagan and Clinton years, and there also have been multi-year periods of spending discipline in nations such as Estonia, New Zealand and Canada. […]
[…] nations, such as New Zealand and Canada, got great results when imposing multi-year periods of fiscal restraint. Certainly it’s not […]