Fiorina Claims ‘Economists Agree’ With McCain’s Pledge To Balance The Budget
Fiorina Claims ‘Economists Agree’ With McCain’s Pledge To Balance The Budget
On NBC’s Meet the Press this morning, host Tom Brokaw challenged the claim that Sen. John McCain’s (R-AZ) balance the budget by the end of his first term. Economists say that “you, in fact, can’t balance the budget in four years,” Brokaw told top McCain adviser Carly Fiorina.
Fiorina, however, disagreed, claiming that there is “a set of economists” who support the McCain campaign’s claims:
BROKAW: In fairness, economic analysts who are looking at both of these plans, say that they don’t add up. That, you in fact, can’t balance the budget in four years and in fact, you cannot get the revenues that you say that you can.
FIORINA: Actually, there are a set of economists who believe we can balance the budget in four years.
Watch It:
Fiorina is likely referring to the statement signed by 300 economists that the McCain campaign released when it announced McCain’s balanced budget pledge. The statement said the economists “enthusiastically” supported McCain’s economic plan.
But when contacted by reporters last week, many of those economists actually expressed deep reservations about McCain’s balanced budget pledge:
- “He’s not going to balance the budget.” [William Albrecht, professor emeritus at the University of Iowa]
- “[But] I am worried that continuing the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan will tear apart our social fabric and defeat any economic proposal to reduce the deficit and stimulate growth. Guns are crowding out butter.” [Michael Connolly, Professor of Economics, University of Miami]
- “No, I think some flexibility to run deficits and surpluses, although I agree that the deficit is too large.” [Glenn MacDonald, Distinguished Professor of Economics and Strategy at Washington University in St. Louis]
While the McCain campaign has repeatedly fip-flopped on its pledge to balance the budget, it seems that economists have consistently considered his proposal unrealistic.
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42 Responses to “Fiorina Claims ‘Economists Agree’ With McCain’s Pledge To Balance The Budget”
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A balanced budget sounds good intuitively. However, if the way to it is cutting social programs and raising taxes on working people, why is it desirable?
There are not enough discretionary programs to cut to balance the budget without gutting Social Security and Medicare, if Bush's tax cuts are made permanent as McBane wants.
July 13th, 2008 at 8:06 pmOne other point. One of the first actions of President Clinton was to raise taxes on the wealthiest 1%. The budget deficit shrank in every year of his presidency until it turned into a surplus in 1999 and 2000. Not surprisingly, in 2001 it was immediately back in deficit after massive Bush tax cuts overwhelmingly benefiting the rich!
July 13th, 2008 at 8:08 pmstewarjt, one correction: I believe that the budget ran a surplus in 2001 as well.
That was Clinton's final budget. During that year Bush, resentful of the government collecting money that his friends woiuld rather have in their own pockets, pushed tax cuts that the next year resulted in a deficit.
And before one of teh trolls claims that we needed to tax cuts because of 9/11, Bush signed the tax cut bill on June 7. Three months BEFORE 9/11. Just like he started wiretapping Americans without warrants before 9/11.
Maybe he knew something that the rest of us didn't.
July 13th, 2008 at 8:23 pmCarly Fiorina is just another silver spoon, airhead, elitist
with the right family connections preaching the ruling class agenda to the dumbed down public.
Carly Fiorina
AKA Cara Carleton Sneed
Born: 6-Sep-1954
Birthplace: Austin, TX
Gender: Female
Race or Ethnicity: White
Sexual orientation: Straight
Occupation: Business
Party Affiliation: Republican
Nationality: United States
Executive summary: CEO of Hewlett Packard, 1999-2005
The first woman to head a DOW 30 company, and one of only eight women who head Fortune 500 companies. She is responsible for the merger of Compaq with HP.
Father: Joseph T. Sneed (federal judge, former law professor)
Mother: Madelon (abstract artist, d. Dec-1998)
Husband: (div.)
Husband: Frank Fiorina (retired VP at AT&T, m. 1985)
Daughter: (2 stepdaughters)
University: BA Medieval History and Philosophy, Stanford University (1976)
Law School: UCLA (dropped out after one semester)
University: MBA, University of Maryland at College Park (1980)
University: MS, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1989)
Administrator: MIT Corporation (2004-)
Hewlett-Packard CEO (1999-2005)
Lucent Group President, Lucent Global Service (1997-99)
Philips Consumer Communications Chairman (1997-98)
Lucent President of Lucent Consumer Products (1996-97)
AT&T EVP (1995-96)
Member of the Board of New York Stock Exchange
Member of the Board of Kellogg (1997-)
Member of the Board of Merck (1999-2000)
Economic Club of Washington, DC
John McCain 2008
Via:
July 13th, 2008 at 8:32 pmNNDB.com
Mr. Wonder llama,
I refer to "on budget" deficits or surpluses that exclude the "off budget" items such as Social Security and Medicare, not the unified or total budget surplus or deficit reported by the media. I apologize for any ambiguity.
According to the OMB, the "on budget" deficit for 2001 was approximately $32B. Combined with a Social Security/Medicare surplus of approximately $160B, the unified budget surplus was $128B.
July 13th, 2008 at 8:37 pmstewarjt, I bow to your more detailed reasoning.
July 13th, 2008 at 8:51 pmMr. Brokaw, when someone you're interviewing says 'There are economists who agree with her plan. The question that begs--nay SCREAMS to be asked is "Who?"
It's not just good journalism--it's ordinary human behavior.
It's like someone daid "I'm dating a movie star," and you say, "That's nice," and move on.
Let me put it another way: What's wrong with you?
July 13th, 2008 at 8:56 pmFiorina is obviously incompetent.
July 13th, 2008 at 9:10 pmdasm,
July 13th, 2008 at 9:18 pmThe board at HP recognized that.
Actually, if you look at the economists' statement on McCain's website, they never use the words "budget" or "balance". They do use words like "controlling entitlement programs" "reducing taxes" and "pausing non-discretionary spending".
Their goal, of course, is to live in a country without social insurance programs and one way to achieve that goal is to run budget deficits. That's why they don't mention them. Fiorina just got trapped by Brokaw's question and decided that the best way out was to lie.
July 13th, 2008 at 9:25 pmInteresting...
lower taxes and raise revenues?
lower taxes and cut expenditures?
all while...
bailing out financial institutions
waging war on other nations
watching the dollar swirl around the drain
oil prices that have nearly doubled in a year
people losing their homes by the thousands daily
The only way he is going to balance the budget is to move more stuff off the books...like how Bush did with the wars.
July 13th, 2008 at 9:30 pm4. KEVKEV - as I remember it, her exit from HP wasn't exactly amiable.
July 13th, 2008 at 10:10 pm11. Jay - Of course the McCain-Graham economic team was intimately involved with the Enron Failure. So moving things off the books to show profit is pretty standard.
You'd think with the end-time orientation of the NeoCons, they would take know the surety of the day of reckoning.
July 13th, 2008 at 10:12 pmThese theives couldn't get away with it if their base wasn't so easily terrorized by their fear mongering.
It's a shame that the right-wing is made up of such quivering cowards.
July 13th, 2008 at 10:20 pmMcCain can balance the budget his first year in office.
All he has to do is transfer the entire Defense budget to emergency supplemental spending bills and the "budget" is balanced.
July 13th, 2008 at 10:23 pmResponse # 7 above by "pbq" says it in a nutshell. These reporters are giving McCain a free ride. Fiorina is not someone I would rely on to bolster my economic plan. Under her reign at Hewlitt-Packard, the stock tanked by about 50%, hence, she was asked to leave. Actually, I guess she decided to spend more time with her family - interesting, since she doesn't have one. No kids and divorced.
July 13th, 2008 at 10:24 pmBack to pbq's point - Brokaw should have insisted that she name names. This is akin to "journalists" saying lately about a given issue: "People are saying", or "some have said" - and NO ONE holds their feet to the fire to get specifics and I'm fed up with no follow up questions, especially on tough issues.
Tommy, I'm not so sure that the base is genuinely terrorized. I think they're probably just willing to pretend to be terrorized if it gets them their way.
July 13th, 2008 at 10:56 pmLet's be fair. All you have to do is find at least two economists who agree with you, and as long as your number is plural, you can truthfully say "economists" or even "a set of economists".
Fiorina would be a great deal more truthful if she would say how many economists agree with McCain's plan, whether they agree with the entire plan or just those portions of it they put on display for economists, what other comments these economists had to say about the plan, and the number of economists who think John McCain's plan is just plain nuts.
But hey -- it's all about marketing. And marketing showcases only those points you want to show off, stretched as far as possible.
July 13th, 2008 at 10:56 pmThe blind leading the deaf dumb and blind. The only person more clueless about economics than McCain and Gramm is Carly freakin' Fiorina. Why doesn't anyone call them out?
Fiorina was a terrible CEO and got booted from HP after a series bad decisions, inept leadership and clashes with top managers. HP's stock tanked during her reign and HP was overtaken by Dell and top dog. Is this who you want making economic decisions for the country?
July 13th, 2008 at 11:25 pmmcchimpy will save money by not starting wars, remember?
July 13th, 2008 at 11:35 pmMaster Shake Says:
Why doesn’t anyone call them out?
MMMMM wasn't Brokaw doing just that?
Sound like he's gonna ask question that need to be answered truthful and in detail.
July 13th, 2008 at 11:39 pmMacroeconomists have successfully predicted nine of the last five recessions.
July 13th, 2008 at 11:40 pm-Yoram Bauman, Ph.D., The world's first and only stand-up economist
There is a fine balance between paying taxes and getting our money worth. I'm not getting my money worth. Start with the infrastructure, school system and an up-to-date curriculum.
July 13th, 2008 at 11:44 pmThese right-wing thugs prefer to spend our money killing people instead of helping people. That's what he's saying.
Voting Republican means voting for the American Nazi Party.
July 13th, 2008 at 11:45 pmOnce again, Fiorina is just another blabbering face of a Republican Party who have nothing for America.
July 13th, 2008 at 11:53 pmBriseadh na Faire Says:
McCain can balance the budget his first year in office.
All he has to do is transfer the entire Defense budget to emergency supplemental spending bills and the "budget" is balanced.
You forgot about the interest.
July 13th, 2008 at 11:54 pmAbove the Clouds Says:
Once again, Fiorina is just another blabbering face of a Republican Party who have nothing for America.
You are so right. What is it with them to go against commonsense and truth? And why do they believe in sneak attacks and torture?
July 13th, 2008 at 11:59 pmAnd they are proud of their stupidness. Remarkable!
If there was a balanced budget the rethuglican party would destroy it like they did the surplus they inherited. They are the biggest bunch of lying crooks to ever darken the doors in DC. Never, ever elect a republican again.
July 14th, 2008 at 12:00 amkasinca
Remember when chimpy was gung-ho on finding martins?
July 14th, 2008 at 12:09 amIf there was a balanced budget the rethuglican party would destroy it like they did the surplus they inherited.
To be fair, Bush didn't "destroy" the surplus, he just "redistributed" it to the most deserving Americans. Besides, Clinton got a blow job.
July 14th, 2008 at 12:29 amFi, baby; a singular noun demands a singular verb. A mouthpiece should learn the basics of language before she goes back to the private sector to destroy yet another business.
Where was Saint John while Georgie was piling up chits at an unprecedented pace? Had someone removed his larynx? Did Johnnie Boy not know that a country's strength lies not in the military but in the ability to fund stuff like technologies, roads, bridges, and education, and the financial flexibility to meet exigencies pressed upon it? Did he not know that running a war of choice on tax cuts is the well-lit avenue to ruin? We've got real problems in this country thanks to the idiotic profligacies of the Cheney admin; we don't need, literally can't afford, four more years of idiots in charge.
July 14th, 2008 at 1:22 amMcSame is not the answer to anything.
July 14th, 2008 at 1:25 ammcchimpy will say anything and get away with it because he isn't viable. the msm has their thumb up chimpy and mcchimpy's slot.
mcgilligan is an idiot and his service is just bs fish story.
And the choir sings...
Master Shake Says:
If there was a balanced budget the rethuglican party would destroy it like they did the surplus they inherited.
To be fair, Bush didn't "destroy" the surplus, he just "redistributed" it to the most deserving Americans. Besides, Clinton got a blow job.
I know you are snarkin.
And the world including the US got screwed big time.
July 14th, 2008 at 1:39 amThis campaign promise is as silly as Bush's in 2000 when he promised to lower gas prices by "jawboning" the Saudis.
July 14th, 2008 at 6:54 amWhy is it that all these stories about McCain's 300 economists remind me of The Kids in the Hall's "30 Helens Agree" sketch series?
July 14th, 2008 at 7:07 amBig claims made by Fiorina..!!!
We still do not know how this year will end under Bush:
Stocks are more in trouble.
Housing and mortgage problems are getting worse.
The war in Iraq...
The return of the Taliban and escaltion of hostilities in Afghanstan war.
Possible war with Iran that can create havoc on US and world economy,which Bush and Neocons still have it in the their minds and on their table.
The Nional Debt is rising.
The dollar is steadily going down vs other currencies.
The trouble with some big banks and financial institutions.
The credit crunch,personal and business.
Running and managing public funds is different than running a business...the motive for business is always profit..but in public service...it is serving the public.
Macro economics is always different than business and micro economics..in business you compete with other to make a profit...in public,there is no business and nobody to compete with..and there are no pofits to chase.
Just because Fiorina ran a company does not mean that she is fit to make statements about balancing the budget in few years,which looks empty one.
McCain is not offering workable soltuions,he is suggesting to reduce taxes,but pushing for more wars, telling us little about where the dollars for these wars will be coming from.
The only source of revenue for government is taxing people,and to balance the budget means to spend people's dollars wisely,and that's not what is happening now,and that's why we are in trouble .
July 14th, 2008 at 7:23 amWe spend more than what we take as a government..and there is no end in sight and no quick fixing to this debt problem,specially if Bush started another war with Iran, which will bring many dangerous unknowns to play.
Uhm... wheren't the economists the ones recommending to invest in real estate just a year ago?
July 14th, 2008 at 7:29 amMaster Shake Says:
-Yoram Bauman, Ph.D., The world’s first and only stand-up economist
July 13th, 2008 at 11:40 pm
_______
Amartya Sen would disagree with this characterization.
July 14th, 2008 at 7:41 amBesides, Clinton got a blow job.
Jelousy really looks good on you.
July 14th, 2008 at 8:50 amAll of the War profiteers should be made to balance the budget.
July 14th, 2008 at 8:53 amProblem solved.
So why did the 300 economists sign this statement when now they disagree with it ? Has the statement changed since signing ? What gives ?
July 14th, 2008 at 10:13 amDieNowForPeace Says:
Jelousy really looks good on you.
The Clinton comment was something I like to call "sarcasm". I'll try to be more explicit next time.
texaslady Says:
So why did the 300 economists sign this statement when now they disagree with it ? Has the statement changed since signing ? What gives ?
It was a fraud: They were signing a simple 400 word statement of support, and those signatures were then attached to the full 15 page plan. They solicited support for McCain's plans in general, then attached that support to a detailed laundry list Monday. Obviously given the entire 15 page plan to sign, many if not most would have balked because of specific provisions which make no sense economically at all. (Thanks Daily Kos)
July 14th, 2008 at 1:49 pm