Liberal critics of the Republican tax plan have long warned that it’s just the first part of a two-step plan that, after adding $1.7 trillion to the nation’s long-term debt, would quickly lead to GOP calls for slashing programs like Social Security and Medicare in order to pay for tax cuts that largely benefit the wealthy and corporations.
The New York Times highlights those concerns again after the Congressional Budget Office on Tuesday indicated that, due to budget rules, the tax bill could trigger automatic cuts of $25 billion to Medicare and up to $90 billion in other spending.
Alan Rappeport writes that “in recent weeks, Republican leaders have quietly started to indicate that if they succeed in passing tax cuts, they will, in fact, look to overhaul government welfare programs.”
The latest example: “At a town hall-style event in Virginia on Tuesday night, Paul D. Ryan, the House speaker, said the most important steps that could be taken to reduce the national debt were spurring economic growth and making changes to entitlement programs.”
