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I think the big assumption is that revenue must stay at 15-20% of GDP, tariffs won't cover that alone. But maybe a smaller government with less revenue is the direction the US is heading in.
Too early to know how Canada will react to the tariffs, I suspect things will just get more expensive in the coming months.
Obviously, I would love a smaller government that absorbs less revenue, but entitlement reform is the only way to make a real dent and that's not even being discussed.
entitlement reform
True, but the largest single line item is either interest on debt or defense, both of which could be brought down significantly by firing 80% of federal workforce
I don't mean their salaries consume that much, but their actions do.
Defense is even more of a non-starter than entitlements, though.
The workforce reduction messages from the Trump administration have indicated that there will be increased military personnel.
Trump administration have indicated that there will be increased military personnel.
Hopefully less wars = less spending
Agreed
Medicaid is a handout not entitlement
A distinction without a difference
we need to stop using the word entitlement because no one is entitled to any government welfare program
I agree, but all of those programs are handouts. People are entitled to what they've acquired voluntarily and nothing else.
Medicare
Social Security
Medicaid
Defense
Interest on debt
Not necessarily in this order
We can make cuts in Medicaid. For instance stop covering pregnancies. I know Ron Paul delivered babies but Medicaid should not
I'm on board for any reductions in any of these programs.
I haven't heard any serious proposals to do so, though.
politically, Medicaid is easiest to cut
Sort of. It might get replaced by a Medicare for All disaster, but I don't see doing away with government provided health care for the poor.
vs senior citizens?
The poor have the least political influence
Medicare for all will never happen or it will happen for 6 months and the medical system will collapse
The poor have indirect political influence through all the virtue signaling liberals.
You'd think it was end of days, based on the news coverage. Our premier in Ontario said a couple weeks ago this will mean 500K job losses in Ontario alone.
I've stopped trying to understand Trump. It's clear he, or his handlers want something. Why not just say it? I've heard 2% GDP on defence. I've read increase border security. Who knows?
My sats are on some type of Euro-style unified North American currency.
With Trump, that Euro-style currency will be the dollar.
What makes the most sense to me is that it's about border security.
I've never seen that graph before.
The questions that are going to hang people up is whether it's possible to replace that much revenue with tariffs and, when they realize it's not, how high of sales taxes will they have to pay.
How are Canadians taking the new 25% tariff rate?