WSFA.com: News Weather and Sports for Montgomery, AL.Editorial: Default averted

Editorial: Default averted

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By Mark Wilder - email

  • Editorials

  • Friday, May 18 2012 7:20 PM EDT2012-05-18 23:20:53 GMT
    If you text and drive it's a matter of WHEN and not IF you will be involved in an accident. The odds are stacked against you when your eyes and hands are more focused on your cell phone than they are
    If you text and drive it's a matter of WHEN and not IF you will be involved in an accident.  The odds are stacked against you when your eyes and hands are more focused on your cell phone than they are the other motorists on the roadways.

  • Tuesday, May 15 2012 7:20 PM EDT2012-05-15 23:20:31 GMT
    On our editorial suggesting that the governor raise taxes to fund Medicaid, we received these comments: "If the budget is passed at this severely cut rate, the shortage of physicians, hospitals, and clinics
    On our editorial suggesting that the governor raise taxes to fund Medicaid, we received these comments:

  • Tuesday, May 1 2012 7:20 PM EDT2012-05-01 23:20:35 GMT
    If your commute includes I-85 in the mornings I'm sure you've noticed men alongside the roadways picking up trash and road debris and thought to yourself "who would want to do that?"
    If your commute includes I-85 in the mornings I'm sure you've noticed men alongside the roadways picking up trash and road debris and thought to yourself "who would want to do that?"

  • Friday, April 20 2012 7:20 PM EDT2012-04-20 23:20:42 GMT
    For the next sixty seconds I want you to give yourself permission to push pause on whatever you are doing and listen and reflect for a moment. I did this recently after reading an article titled "Top five

  • Wednesday, April 18 2012 7:27 PM EDT2012-04-18 23:27:31 GMT
    Representative Christopher John England (Tuscaloosa) has sponsored a bill in the Alabama legislature that would allow convicted felons of drug crimes to receive food stamps under certain circumstances.
MONTGOMERY, AL (WSFA) -

Another fascinating episode in American politics ended this week as Congress finally came to a compromise agreement on raising the national debt ceiling. 

Under the plan, the debt limit increases some $2.1 trillion over the next two years.  Spending cuts will take longer… the first 900 billion over the next 10 years, and another 1.4 trillion yet to be determined. 

It does not address long term spending cuts of Medicare, Medicaid and defense, the programs which drive our debt. Nor does it address revenue increases with higher taxes. In typical Washington fashion, the tough decisions were put off until after their election in 2012.  Unfortunately, this same issue will come up again in early 2013, so be careful who you vote for next year.

But lest we be too critical, consider this.  We as a nation are about half Democrat and half Republican.  We elected Congress and the president to fight for our views on complex issues like this…and they did.

Neither Democrats nor Republicans were completely happy with the deal. But they did what they had to do, albeit at the last minute, to keep the U.S. from defaulting on our debts.  Had they not accomplished that, then we really should complain.

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