Associated PressSpeaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., speaks during a news conference at the Capitol in Washington, May 7, 2024. A promising start has given way to challenging political realities for supporters of a bipartisan commission to tackle the federal government's growing debt challenges. Johnson lauded the idea of establishing such a commission on his first day in office.
Many Democrats and left-leaning advocacy groups oppose the commission because they fear it would recommend cuts to Social Security benefits. Some Republicans and right-leaning groups are against it as well, fearing the panel would recommend tax increases. They've labeled the commission a"tax trap." The fiscal realities that would face any commission are well documented and center to a large extent on Social Security and Medicare, which consume an ever-growing share of the federal budget, and interest payments on the nation's debt.
Supporters of a new debt panel noted that they modeled their bill on something that has succeeded in the past — commissions to consolidate the nation's military bases. The new commission would work under a similar structure with the legislation requiring each chamber to vote on its final proposal expeditiously.
More than 100 Democratic lawmakers also signed onto a letter opposing the commission back in January as powerful groups such as the AFL-CIO and AARP voiced their concerns. Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform, said any mechanism that allows for tax increases undermines former President Donald Trump and other Republicans running for office on a platform of cutting taxes. He said the focus must be strictly on spending reductions, and"tax increases are what politicians do instead of making decisions and hard choices."
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