Political malpractice

President Bush's budget plan does almost nothing to address the severe long-term budget problems facing U.S. taxpayer | Timothy Lamer

Imagine going to your doctor with a high fever and having him focus intently on a hangnail on one of your fingers.

The fiscal equivalent of that scenario is now playing out in Washington, as Republicans and Democrats debate the federal budget that President Bush proposed last week. The Bush budget makes some nods toward short-term fiscal discipline, and those moves are gaining a lot of attention. But his plan does almost nothing to address the severe long-term budget problems facing U.S. taxpayers.

President Bush, for example, proposes to freeze domestic discretionary spending this year to help pay for the war against terrorism—a big change for a president who up until now has increased discretionary spending across the board.