We need to get this to the Fiscal Cliff! What could go wrong? (Photo credit: DonkeyHotey)

Kicking Spending Cuts To March 1st But Raising Taxes

When the Fiscal Cliff solution came about at the beginning of the year, the Democrats received a lot of what they wanted in tax increases on the rich but gave nothing in return. The cuts were delayed until the end of February, which has now arrived. The cuts are about to happen in a $85 billion reduction in new spending for 2013 which is good for our budget trouble and slightly negative for growth. But growth was slowing already for a number of reasons related to natural disasters, tax increases, and business regulation. Now the country hopes to either live through the sequester or modify the sequester to make smarter cuts than just the generic across the board cuts required.