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CBO: We Can’t Estimate Cost of Intervening in Syria

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Photo Credit: AP

Photo Credit: AP

The Congressional Budget Office has published its official statement on how much American taxpayers would need to cover if the full Congress were to approve the authorization for the use of military force in Syria (S.J. Res. 21) that the Senate Foreign Relations Committee approved last week.

The CBO’s bottom line: There is no bottom line to the U.S. military intervention in Syria that was approved by the Senate committee in its resolution.

“The Administration has not detailed how it would use the authority that would be provided by this resolution; thus, CBO has no basis for estimating the costs of implementing S. J. Res. 21,” said the CBO’s four-paragraph statement on the matter.

“S. J. Res. 21 would authorize the President to use military force against the government of Syria, for up to 90 days, in response to its use of chemical weapons,” said CBO. “Prior to the use of force, the President would be required to provide a determination to the Congress addressing several criteria to show that such action is necessary and in the national interest. In addition, it would require the President to submit to the Congress a strategy for negotiating a political settlement to the Syrian conflict, a comprehensive review of U.S. policy towards Syria, and periodic reports on the progress of military operations.”

Last night, in a nationally televised address, President Barack Obama said that he had asked congressional leaders to postpone any final vote on whether to authorize him to use force in Syria.

Read more from this story HERE.

Video: The question is not “if,” it’s “when” our nation collapses from insolvency

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This new “Government Gone Wild” video explains in simple terms that both parties are selling this country out. Collapse is inevitable absent fundamental change.

Heritage: Another Recession Is Imminent

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Photo credit: Ed Yourdon

Yesterday, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) reported that without a doubt, America will have a fresh recession next year unless Congress and the President prevent it.

We are facing the largest tax increase in history—Taxmageddon, scheduled to take effect January 1—and what experts are calling a “fiscal cliff” of sharp and unforgiving budget changes that will send the country spiraling downward. Congress and the President have the power to prevent this, and when the August congressional recess is over, that is exactly what they should do.

In its new report, the CBO said that if Congress does not act, it’s not economic growth we should be worried about, because the economy will actually shrink next year. It will shrink by 0.5 percent, and the unemployment rate will spike to 9.1 percent. As Heritage’s J.D. Foster explains: “Forget percentages—what does this mean in actual jobs lost if President Obama and Congress fail to act? It means roughly 1.6 million more Americans will be out of work—on top of the 12.8 million who already want to work but can’t find jobs.”

Preventing Taxmageddon and the fiscal cliff are necessary just to keep the economy from taking a nosedive. The status quo isn’t attractive, but Congress certainly shouldn’t make things worse. If Congress moves to prevent the nosedive, the CBO projects that the economy will grow only slightly next year, at an anemic 1.7 percent, and the unemployment rate will remain stuck around 8 percent.

Why? The CBO report makes it clear: Our spending problem continues, and it’s driven mainly by the three major entitlements: Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security. Spending on these programs will outpace tax revenue over the next decade.

Read more from this story HERE.