A Budget to Save the American Dream

America’s fiscal condition is dauntingly dismal. The national debt is well on its way to $17 trillion, 13 million Americans are out of work, and the country is stuck in the slowest recovery in the post-war era. Despite Washington bleeding taxpayers dry with reckless overspending, the U.S. Senate has not passed a budget since nearly a year before Apple released the original iPad, leaving the country in a lurch, desperate for leadership in Congress that will bring bold changes and an end to the unconscionable pattern of spending and borrowing.

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Last spring, America saw a bright spot emerge from the abyss when Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-WI) introduced a budget resolution that confronted the twin crises of spending and debt head on. Ryan’s proposal, which passed the House, was a solid step in the right direction — his budget would have gotten spending under control, repealed Obamacare, transformed Medicare, and offered a solid approach to controlling Medicaid’s spiraling costs. Unfortunately, the Senate said “no,” and America watched Washington get stuck in gridlock last summer, only to emerge with a half-baked deal that postponed real reform and put our national security in jeopardy. In the coming weeks, the budget will again pass through Congress’ orbit, and it will be up to Ryan to steer it in the right direction. The Heritage Foundation’s Vice President for Domestic and Economic Policy, David S. Addington, lays out six conservative goals that Ryan should include in his proposal — a tighter budget that spends less next year than this year; a budget headed toward balance (sooner rather than later); fixes to entitlements that get costs under control; no tax hikes; job-creating pro-growth tax reform; and ensuring a strong national defense:

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