Coburn proposes $9 trillion deficit cut measure

If the Congress had adopted the  Dr. Coburn, Sen Burr (R-NC), Rep Paul Ryan (R-WI), and Rep Deavin Nunes (R-CA)  their bicameral plan for healthcare, we wouldn't be stuck with the turkey of Obamacare. It was much, much shorter, made sense, and would have worked, but Obama, Pelosi, and Reid were not about to allow it to see the light of day.

When you see both sides squealing at Dr. Coburn's plan, it is likely a good plan.  Some people were complaining before they ever read the plan.  That seems to be catching in DC to go negative on a plan or bill before you read it or better yet voting on it so you know what is in the bill like Pelosi told everyone to do on Obamacare. 

What happened to doing your job as a member of Congress which means reading the bill before you vote instead of automatically voting yes or no depending on who submitted the bill.  Of everyone, Pelosi still stands out as the most egregious with her comments about the Obamacare vote.  She should have been removed as Speaker the minute she said you have to vote for the bill before you read it.  That is no way to run the House, but then we never figured out how someone so far left could be elected Speaker.

Dr. Coburn has been a bright light in the Senate because he truly does believe that as a Senator it is his responsibility to represent all Oklahomans and if that is working with someone from the other side of the aisle, he won't hesitate.   When you talk fiscal conservative, you need to put Dr. Coburn at the top of the list -- he doesn't just talk about being a fiscal conservative but he has a plan to cut the deficit while others prefer to get face time never giving a plan on what can be done.

Joining him at the top of the list is Cong Paul Ryan (R-WI) who is the same way as Dr. Coburn and believes if you are going to talk about something you better have a plan to fix it.  He also gets the same treatment when he offers a plan the negatives start before anyone can possibly have read it.  Both men have shown they are not afraid to put out a plan with the hard decisions in order to get America back on firm footing. 

We need more people in Congress like Coburn and Ryan who actually read bills and come up with their own plans to cut the deficit yet both men are targets of the left and a few on the right.  At the end of the day both of these honorable men can look in the mirror and know that are doing the real work of the people by coming up with a plan not just talking about what needs to be done.

Coburn proposes $9 trillion deficit cut measure

By ANDREW TAYLOR - Associated Press | AP – July 18, 2011

WASHINGTON (AP) — One of the Senate's staunchest budget-cutters unveiled Monday a massive plan to cut the nation's deficit by $9 trillion over the coming decade, including $1 trillion in tax increases opposed by most of his fellow Republicans.

The plan by Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., is laced with politically perilous proposals like raising to 70 the age at which people can claim their full Social Security benefits. It would cut farm subsidies, Medicare, student aid, housing subsidies for the poor, and funding for community development grants. Coburn even takes on the powerful veterans' lobby by proposing that some veterans pay more for medical care and prescription drugs.

Coburn would also eliminate $1 trillion in tax breaks over the coming decade, earning him an immediate rebuke from Americans for Tax Reform, an anti-tax organization with which Coburn has had a running feud. He would block taxpayers from claiming the mortgage interest deduction on second homes and limit it to homes worth $500,000. He would also ease taxpayers into higher tax brackets more quickly by using a smaller measure of inflation to adjust the brackets.

Coburn was a member of President Barack Obama's fiscal commission and voted for its plan to cut the budget by about $4 trillion over a decade. He recently dropped out of the closely watched "Gang of Six" senators seeking a bipartisan agreement to rein in deficits and break through the partisanship engulfing official Washington over the deficit.

His re-entry into the deficit debate comes as Obama and lawmakers struggle over increasing the so-called debt limit and avoid a first-ever default on U.S. obligations.

Coburn's $9 trillion savings figure doesn't include another $2.4 trillion in cuts to Social Security that are funneled back into the program. In addition to raising the retirement age gradually, he would peg future benefits to a less-generous measure of inflation and curb benefit increases even more for the top 40 percent of earners.

Cuts to the Medicare program for the elderly and the Medicaid health plan for the poor and disabled would total $2.6 trillion over 10 years, far more than proposed by the fiscal commission or House Republicans. He proposes raising the Medicare retirement age to 67 by 2027 and then gradually increasing it until the retirement age hits 69 in 2080. It would also raise Medicare premiums for doctor visits so that premiums pay 35 percent of such costs instead of the 25 percent currently covered.

Coburn would cut $1 trillion from the Pentagon budget over a decade. He would block military retirees from the Tricare Prime health care plan, the option with the lowest out-of-pocket cost, saving $115 billion, and he would raise the prescription drug copayment under the program, as well as require higher out-of-pocket fees. He also would reduce the fleet of aircraft carriers from 11 to 10 and Navy air wings from 10 to nine.

"I have no doubt that both parties will criticize portions of this plan, and I welcome that debate," Coburn told reporters. "But it's not a legitimate criticism until you have a plan of your own."

Source: Yahoo