Yesterday, I mentioned that the Obama administration has nominally embraced the concept of creating a special blue-ribbon commission on deficit reduction. Since then, one of the leading proponents of such a commission -- Senator Judd Gregg (R-N.H.) -- has been busy describing his opposition to Obama's proposal:
Sen. Judd Gregg (R-N.H.), a sponsor with [Senator Kent Conrad (D-N.D.) of legislation to create a budget commission by law, called a presidentially appointed panel "a fraud" designed to do little more than give Democrats political cover.
"It's a fraud among anyone interested in fiscal responsibility to claim an executive order could structure something that would actually lead to action," Gregg said.
Of course, it's a fraud for anyone interested in fiscal responsibility to claim that the measure put forth by Gregg and Conrad could structure something that would lead to action, as well.
The only difference between the two proposals is cosmetic. Gregg wants an 18-member commission composed of eight Democratic lawmakers, eight Republican lawmakers and two representatives from the Obama administration. To get an idea out of the commission and before Congress, it would need 14 members to agree on anything, which is impossible. On the other hand, President Barack Obama has proposed a commission composed of six Democratic lawmakers, six Republican lawmakers and six members picked by the Obama administration (two of which would have to be Republican). To get an idea out of the commission and before Congress, they would need 14 to agree on anything, which is also impossible.
Over at Wonk Room, Pat Garofalo observes:
This is pretty amusing coming from Gregg, whose "precedent for success" in this matter is the 1983 Greenspan Commission. According to Gregg, the Greenspan Commission was "the catalyst that drove the process" behind that year's fix for Social Security. But the Greenspan Commission was created by executive order.
Gregg is a good example of what CAP's Michael Linden is calling "deficit peacocks": lawmakers who "like to preen and call attention to themselves, but are not sincerely interested in taking the difficult but necessary steps toward a balanced budget." For instance, while Gregg is criticizing those he deems not sufficiently "interested in fiscal responsibility," he's voting to cut taxes for the heirs of multimillionaires. As the Atlantic's Derek Thompson put it, "if you want to hear politicians croon utter nonsense about the debt with their fingers crossed behind their backs, please listen to Sen. Judd Gregg."
Let's remember, with amusement, that at one point Obama wanted Gregg to be his Commerce Secretary!
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