Government Spending Out of Control

Daniel Henninger, is deputy editor of The Wall Street Journal’s editorial page. In his editorial about excessive government spending, Mr. Henninger explains how the Democrats will be defeated in the next Congressional and presidential elections. His article entitled "It’s the Spending, Stupid”, suggests that the American people are not merely concerned about Uncle Sam’s spending, but that they are furious. The point he articulates is that the public’s concern over spending has exploded from one of concern to that of a broad public movement. Mr. Henninger is a well acclaimed author. He became a staff writer for the National Observer in 1971 and went on to become an editorial page writer for the Journal in 1977. In 1983 he was appointed assistant editor and quickly rose to chief editorial writer and senior assistant in October 1986. In November 1989 he became deputy editor of the editorial page. He has won numerous awards for his editorial writings on a range of issues including being a finalist for a Pulitzer Prize.

Mr. Henninger begins his article with President Obama admitting at a backyard town-hall meeting in Fairfax, VA , that the public has a right to be concerned with the large amount of spending that has take place as the result of the Recovery Act . He argues the point that the President’s refusal to acknowledge the anger of the American people and the political rage of the Tea Party Movement will ultimately result in the transfer of power back to the Republicans. He targets the two $3 trillion-plus budget passed on Obama’s watch and the trillion-dollar health care entitlement. Independents are angry about the economy, and they are ready to remove the party in power. His passion and the statistics he presents are very compelling. Would America be better off without all the bailouts? I think the auto and home industry should have faced the consequences of buying more than they could afford. I think raising taxes to cut the deficit is a bailout for spenders. Henninger seems somewhat conservative in his view, but he is quick to point out that the GOP needs to establish credibility on spending, otherwise the voters two years from now will throw them under the bus.

His editorial criticizes both Democrat and Republican parties as the public spending has been excessively growing for years at the hands of congress. He gives the compelling argument that the President and Congress need to cut spending in order for economic recovery. I don’t understand why the current administration is not listening to their constituencies. I think amongst the younger voters, President Obama’s image was initially viewed as that of hope and change, but now he is viewed as the joker of socialism. I found this article definitely informative and worth reading. I think that many will suffer as a result of spending cuts, but it is imperative in order for our economy to recover.