I don't mind deficit spending as much some more fiscally conservative people.. and I am pretty darn fiscally conservative compared to most folks here at dKos.
It's a very big economy and a very big government budget.. it can handle some years in the red if doing so smooths over the hard times... as long as it is spent for that. Stimulating jobs.. providing a safety net during high unemployment.. etc.
But deficit spending is not sustainable forever. That's why I've harped so much about how we are going to pay for health care going into the future. It is really important that we do not borrow to pay for an ongoing program.
There are only 2 ways to get back into balance. Bring in more revenue or spend less. The prudent approach is to do a little of both. The wealthier need to pay a bit more. On the other hand, duplicated programs and questionable subsidies really have to be looked at very hard in these times. A budget freeze on these (and remember it is not a canceling of these programs.. just not growing them) seems reasonable to me. I would have been somewhat bolder in the freezes and cut whole programs if inefficient.
All too often, especially here at dKos, I see people thinking about our budget in zero sum terms. There's a pie. And if this slice gets smaller, then someone else's gets bigger. But we can grow that pie.
Have we forgotten the lessons of the 90's? The government was awash in revenues. Why? Because more people were working. And they were making more money than ever, and subsequently paying more taxes.
So, the quicker we get people back to work, the quicker we'll have them pouring tax revenues back into the system. But they cannot be government funded jobs, because that just adds to the deficit.
We need to promote businesses that will put Americans to work. We need millions of private sector jobs. Period.
How?
One way is tax breaks. That will increase deficits in the short term, but will increase revenues in the long term. Let's not go into detail on these.. "Tax Breaks" is a really dirty word around here, but they can be targeted very specifically to promoting certain industries and only if job creation is the goal.
Another is promotion of American goods and services worldwide. We have conceded too many markets to foreign competition.
And dare I say it? How about promotion of American products right here? Where is our pride in American goods? Personally, I feel the quality of goods we get "cheap" from foreign manufacturers is just that.. cheap! We need to promote "Buy American".
Another is to take back industries we have previously allowed to leave our shores.
Why are we so far behind in green tech manufacturing? Why are we buying even one wind turbine blade, or solar panel from China or Germany? That. Is. Insane. We should have surplus enough to export! Even if we attracted foreign manufacturers to open plants here, we would be way ahead of the game. To date, only a few such projects have been announced.
My point is, we need to grow this economy to the point where we will have the funds to do all the wonderful things we want to do. Until then, we'll have to tighten our belts and get to work.
It is not a zero sum game. We can create new wealth, and with that comes new revenues. We need the will and leadership to do it, however.
That is what the American people want to hear from Obama tonight. And he may say those things. I'm just not sure he will mean it.