[This collection of two articles comes from Article V Caucus Newsletter]

by Stuart MacPhail  August, 2019

A June 25 statement issued by the Democratic Blue Dog Coalition says: “The nonpartisan CBO report should sound alarm bells within both parties to work together to get our nation out of this fiscal mess.  If we don’t act, future generations will be forced to bear the burden of our failure.  On the current path, next year, we will spend more on interest on the debt than all federal funding that supports our kids.  

“In 27 years, we will spend more on interest than the entire discretionary budget, including defense and all domestic programs.  It is clear we are on a dangerous and unsustainable course—and we need to do something about this now.  The decisions won’t be easy, but our children and our grandchildren are counting on us to make this right.  In the coming months, we look forward to pulling together a plan to turn the tide around and begin to get our nation back on the path to fiscal sustainability.”

The Blue Dog Coalition updated their call for a federal Balanced Budget Amendment (BBA) in mid-July, as reported by The Hill under the heading Moderate Democrats renew calls for balanced budget amendment as spending deal nears.  Read it HERE.

The actual Blue Dog Blueprint for Fiscal Reform is available HERE.  It sets forth an extensive list of priorities that the minority Democratic group believes will help reduce federal budget deficits and bring down national debt.

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On July 5 The American Spectator carried a piece by economists John Merrifield and Barry Poulson lauding two Democratic Congressmen for introducing House Joint Resolutions 55 and 18, supported by the Blue Dog Coalition, calling for a constitutional amendment to restrain federal spending.

The writers observe that “In the current legislative session, Republicans have introduced 16 resolutions calling for a balanced-budget amendment to the Constitution.  With such bipartisan support, enacting a resolution for a balanced-budget amendment should be a slam dunk.”  Read their piece HERE.

Article V Caucus Newsletter