It is this reporter's opinion that it is unfortunate that we Americans must wait until our public officials leave office before we are permitted to share in some of the behind-the-scenes intricacies of our government.
One example is Alan Greenspan who served as Federal Reserve chairman for 18 years and was the leading Republican economist for the last three decades.
After these government officials take their leave, only then do we learn through their books, radio, and television interviews, or public forums actually what went on.
Greenspan, though condemning both parties for their fiscal behavior, their rampant federal spending, is harsher on President George W. Bush. It is Bill Clinton who emerges as the political hero in Greenspan’s 531-page memoir, "The Age of Turbulence: Adventures in a New World."
Greenspan had an eight-year alliance with Clinton and the Democratic Treasury secretaries. Greenspan praises Clinton’s mind and anti-deficit policies calling his 1993 economic plan “an act of political courage.”
On the other hand, Greenspan expresses deep disappointment with Bush that his biggest frustration was the President’s unwillingness to wield his veto against out-of-control spending.
Greenspan considers Bush’s “corroborate — don’t confront" approach as a major mistake. Greenspan accuses the Republicans who presided over the parties’ majority in the house as being too eager to tolerate excessive federal spending in exchange for political opportunity.
What a great service Greenspan could now perform by telling us that the nation’s debt is rising $600 billion per year, that without major budget cuts or tax increases, it could reach more than $11 trillion dollars by 2010. The interest alone would cost us $560 billion.
He could tell us that every man, woman, and child living in the United States is currently obligated to pay $145,000 to make good on Uncle Sam’s financial obligations. Aside from George W. Bush’s catastrophic pre-emptive war in Iraq and its catastrophic costs is the ever present illegal immigration monstrosity which costs taxpayers a whopping $338.3 billion a year.
And Mr. Greenspan could tell us time is short, that unless we take drastic action now, and put a freeze on total federal spending with a balanced budget amendment to our Constitution, we are headed for disaster.
Our federal spending is completely out of control. How does one spell bankruptcy?
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