THAT’S NOT SOMETHING THAT I’M REALLY IN FAVOR OF.
MARIA: JOINING ME RIGHT NOW THE
PRESIDENT OF AMERICAN ACTION
FORUM, CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET
OFFICE DIRECTOR AND MCCAMPAIGN
ADVISER DOUGLAS AKIN.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING
US.
US. SO IT’S OKAY FOR THE STATES TO
GO BANKRUPT AND USE IT AS COVER.
>> SOME STATES, ILLINOIS IN
PARTICULAR HAVE EXTRAORDINARY
PENSION PROBLEMS THAT HAVE BEEN
AROUND FOR A LONG, LONG TIME AND
IT’S BEEN RECOGNIZED THAT
THEY’RE GOING TO HAVE TO SOMEHOW
DEAL WITH THIS AND SIMPLY
HAVEN’T.
HAVEN’T. SOMETHING TO DO WITH THE
PANDEMIC AND CERTAINLY STATES
AND LOCALITIES ARE SUFFERING,
THE REVENUE WENT AWAY AND SALES
TAXES WENT AWAY TOO AND
UNEMPLOYMENT INCOME TAXES ARE
GOING AWAY.
GOING AWAY. THERE’S LEGITIMATE CONCERN ABOUT
STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS BUT
BORROWING MONEY NOW TO FIX THE
PENSION PROBLEMS HAVE NOTHING TO
DO WITH THE PANDEMIC.
THIS IS A PROBLEM THAT THE
STATES SHOULD TAKE ON.
IF THEY HAD ACCESS TO BANKRUPTCY
IT WOULD BE A GOOD WAY TO WORK
IT OUT AND SHARE THE PAY AND
PRETTY GOOD OBSERVATION BY THE
MAJORITY LEADER.
MAJORITY LEADER. MARIA: TREASURY SECRETARY STEVEN
MNUCHIN SAID THAT, QUOTE, WE
NEED TO SPEND WHAT IT TAKES TO
OVERCOME THE CORONAVIRUS CRISIS.
YOU KNOW, NOW WE ARE TALKING
ABOUT THE AMOUNT OF DEBT THAT
THIS COUNTRY FACES, $22 TRILLION
JUST ABOUT THE SIZE, EVEN
BIGGER, BIGGER THAN THE SIZE OF
OUR ECONOMY.
OUR ECONOMY. >> YEAH, THIS IS AN
EXTRAORDINARY MOMENT.
EXTRAORDINARY MOMENT. CERTAINLY FOR SOMEONE LIKE ME I
NEVER DREAMED WE WOULD SEE THESE
KINDS OF NUMBERS.
WE PROBABLY HAVE A FEDERAL
DEFICIT OF $4 TRILLION THIS YEAR
VERY EASILY AND THE REALITY IS
IN THIS MOMENT THOSE MONEYS ARE
BEING USED TO KEEP THE
INFRASTRUCTURE, THE U.S. ECONOMY
IN PLACE DURING THE WORST OF
THIS PANDEMIC, KEEP PEOPLE
ATTACH TODAY THEIR EMPLOYERS AND
DOLLARS WELL SPENT AND I THINK
THE LESSON HERE IS TWOFOLD,
FIRST YOU SHOULDN’T START A
PANDEMIC WITH A TRILLION DOLLAR
DEFICIT BECAUSE THAT’S A
TRILLION DOLLARS WE COULD HAVE
USED EVERY YEAR SO TRY TO FIGHT
THIS NASTY PLAGUE AND IN THE
AFTER MATH OF THIS WE ARE GOING
TO HAVE TO GET THE DEBT UNDER
CONTROL.
CONTROL. NO ONE HAS REALLY DONE ANYTHING
AND IT’S TIME.
MARIA: BRIAN BRENDBERG.
BRIAN: YEAH, DOUGLAS, THE LONGER
THE STIMULUS BILLS GO ON, THE
MORE ROUNDS THAT WE GET OF THIS
THE MORE LIKELY IT IS TO COVER
THINGS THAT EXISTED BEFORE THE
CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC EVER AROSE.
YOU’RE SEEING THAT WITH THE
STATES NOW.
STATES NOW. THEY WANT TO SOLVE PROBLEMS THAT
REALLY HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH
CORONAVIRUS.
CORONAVIRUS. YOU’RE SEEING CONGRESS TALKING
ABOUT MORE AND MORE REGULATIONS
ON BUSINESS WHICH ENDS UP
KILLING THE GROWTH THAT WAS
DRIVING THE ECONOMY.
IT SEEMS TO ME WE NEED TO STOP
THE STIMULUS BILLS AS SOON AS
POSSIBLE BECAUSE THE LONGER THEY
GO ON THE MORE THEY UNDERMINE
THE STRENGTH OF THE ECONOMY.
>> YEAH, I THINK YOU MAKE A GOOD
POINT.
POINT. THERE’S TWO DIFFERENT THINGS,
THE ACT OF PRESERVING BUSINESSES
AND ATTACHMENTS OF THE WORKERS
THROUGH LOCKDOWN AND THE WORST
OF THE PLAGUE, BUT THEN THERE’S
WHAT DO YOU DO AFTERWARDS.
YOU GO BACK TO GROWTH.
THE PROBLEM ISN’T STIMULUS OR
THROWING MONEY AT PEOPLE.
IT’S GOING TO BE GETTING MONEY
AND IF THAT’S DONE THE ECONOMY
WILL TAKE CARE OF ITSELF.
THE U.S. ECONOMY HAS WEATHERED
ENORMOUS HEADWINDS OVER THE, YOU
KNOW, OVER 20 YEARS THAT IT’S
BEEN AROUND.
BEEN AROUND. THE LARGEST MOST POWERFUL
COMPANY IN THE GLOBE FOR A
REASON.
REASON. YOU DON’T NEED TO MANAGE IT FROM
WASHINGTON AND YOU NEED TO GET
OUT OF THE WAY.
THE TIME OF THE STIMULUS HAS
PAST AND NOW TIME TO TURN FOR
ECONOMY TO GROW.
DAGEN: IS THERE ANY WAY THAT
TACKS GO -- TAXES GO UP ON THE
RICH TO PAY FOR THIS?
IS THERE ANY WAY TO AVOID THAT?
>> I THINK IF YOU ROLL THE CLOCK
FORWARD 2, 3, 4 YEARS, ANY
FISCAL REALITY WHATSOEVER WE
WILL SEE REVENUE GO UP.
THE PRESSING QUESTION IS HOW,
HOW DO YOU RAISE THE REVENUE?
DO YOU DO IT IN PUNITIVE SANDERS
LIKE SANDERS AND WARREN WEALTH
TAXES OR BROADEN BASE, KEEP
RATES LOW AND LET THE ECONOMY
GROWTH DRIVE REVENUE UP.
I’M CONCERNED ABOUT THE FORMER.