The calendar will soon read September.
In Washington, it may as well read “Debtember.” Deficit spending will dominate the month in Washington.
While congressional Republicans champion efforts to cut federal spending and slash the swelling national debt, they’ll have little chance to cut federal dollars in the next few weeks.
Consider what’s on the congressional docket.
Congress must approve a catchall, massive spending measure to fund the government beyond Sept. 30, the end of the federal fiscal year. A slate of 12 annual appropriations bills pay for every government program. The House approved a conglomeration of four spending bills in July. The Senate hasn’t touched any of those. The House is now trying desperately to advance the remaining eight bills – if for no reason than to brag that it did its job and passed the necessary bills. But without Senate cooperation, that leaves the House and Senate one option: a “Continuing Resolution” or CR, a stopgap spending bill to fund the government for a short period of time and avoid a government shutdown.
The government shutters if there’s no spending plan in place by Oct. 1.
But there’s a problem with a CR when it comes to deficit spending: CR’s simply renew old funding to keep the government afloat. Congress can wield more authority and actually reduce spending if it individually approves the 12 annual appropriations bills. Granted, the total price tag of those 12 bills usually jumps each year. But Congress can better control spending if it handles the bills one by one rather than glomming everything together in a gigantic package.
This will be deficit spending.
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There's only one way to get deficit spending and the national debt back under control: an Article V Convention of States. Congress is clearly unwilling to make the tough financial decisions, so the states and the people must do it for them.
