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Former CBO Director Douglas Holtz-Eakin on the health-care law and the need to rein in government spending.
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A new report out this afternoon showing the country will go over a fiscal cliff with congress doesn't act joining me now Doug -- seek informant former director of the CEO now the president of the American action former.
-- -- welcome to the show again and -- -- old organization the CBO act out what the study I've got to get you to comment on this just this afternoon.
Saying that allowing the bush era tax cuts to expire and is scheduled round of automatic spending cuts will send this economy spiraling.
Into a recession.
Do you agree and how big is a threat to the economy.
I think this is a very real threat Jerry imagine investor -- -- got a dividend tax rate of 15% now facing a potential dividend tax rate of 44%.
Come January 1.
It's not going to take till January -- implications to start showing up.
Investors are gonna start getting nervous this fall I think markets are gonna react -- see some severe economic impact so.
It's time to address the real problems that -- the United States that the overspending may be uncertain about the tax code.
Put in place something that investors can count on.
And it's a reminder that our problems are because we have that limits and things like that our problems are we have problems.
But we have problems at our main problem is betting too much money and money we -- family.
You know who I -- talking about John Boehner -- The speaker of the house has been out talking about -- okay okay will come to agreement on lifting the debt ceiling but if you do that let's have some consent commensurate cut.
And he's taken help for that I mean the Democrats are all over him.
You can't initiate in this country it seems to me the meaning cop meaningful conversation about cutting spending because the left just won't allow it.
Well I didn't know wants to default on the debt burden but also -- wants to have a downgrade and remember Japan doesn't have a debt limit to Japan just got downgraded why.
-- too much debt the fundamental problem is the debt speaker Boehner is talking about an approach to addressing the real problem which is -- spend in the causes the debt.
And we have to deal with that not just the symptoms -- -- we can just have a clean debt limit increase -- Rawlings everything's gonna find is really badly mistaken.
We have the president just this weekend meeting with world leaders he's said essentially that this idea that we need to spend more is fundamentally right 22 up pull your battery session and of course the threat that the US would go into a recession to I think to be diametrically opposed to what you just -- Well there's this great fear of austerity the United States -- but but don't talk about austerity we're talking about sensible reforms of the big spending programs that are driving the debt -- Social Security is an example.
It's sort of reform Social Security at all the what happened is that.
And we're working that would know what the deal -- in retirement.
International investors another we could deal with the traditional third -- politics there -- no cut in immediate spending can be no impact on the recovery so.
Fear of austerity is just an excuse to not make reforms we need and which are citizens really deserve.
You know big headlines around Catholic institutions now suing the federal government.
Over Obama care and these requirements really that these institutions.
Fund birth control funding to -- just fundamentally opposed to I want you to respond to comments from.
Cardinal Timothy Dolan from right here in New York City here's what he had to say.
What the federal government did unfortunately and which which got our Irish up.
Is when they sit and oh by the way will define what -- churches.
Will tell you what you can and can't will set the parameters.
As to how you can minister T -- -- minister minister.
And the motives that -- director ministry.
That's a character that's the tone of -- straitjacket in exemptions.
Their response.
Well I mean what you're hearing is that the cardinal saying -- -- tramples on religious freedoms that are the core of what America is built on.
It also -- on economic freedoms the individual mandate.
And as you know tramples on small businesses this is a reform that really.
Did not service -- -- -- cutting costs costs are going up not down and in the process has trampled all over things which we count on in America.
Well you know it's interesting you bring up small business that there was just -- a story today.
About how small businesses are not signing up for this tax credit they'd expected four million small businesses to get the free money I mean we're talking about free money here.
But in fact about 170000.
Did it does that surprise you.
That there's a lot of research that says that this credit is not particularly valuable because it penalize you if you hire won't fit penalize you -- if you pay better.
Is incredibly complicated and hard to figure out this temporary whereas the burdens that obamacare imposes.
Our permanent so the research said you know this isn't so good we're now seeing the evidence that that's exactly right it's not going to work.
Well you know it it -- in just a few short weeks we're gonna get the answer from from the Supreme Court on what they think about the individual mandate in obamacare generally.
There's a lot of talk about what's gonna happen -- and I know -- spent a lot of time thinking about that is there -- indeed -- do you have any fresh insight.
Into what the Supreme Court might do.
I haven't had a vision of what the vote is but certainly I think the like the scenarios are ones in which.
If there's something overturn it's just the individual mandate and the Supreme Court says out of an abundance of caution will do no more.
You congress go fix this or since is nowhere to stop between that and everything.
They overturn everything so there there -- only three things I'm looking for -- that upholds the -- we go from there.
Get rid of the individual mandate or throughout the entire law most of the other outcomes I don't think -- very likely.
All right well -- thanks for coming on tonight appreciate anytime comebacks in.
