Brian Gongol
The Speaker's angle on the debt-ceiling deal
The President says it delivers "the lowest level of annual domestic spending since Dwight Eisenhower was President" -- by which he undoubtedly means the lowest level of discretionary spending relative to GDP. Because it's obvious that Social Security, Medicare, and debt payments are certainly larger than they were. What could be quite interesting about the outcome of the deal is how the committee of Senators and Representatives is formed to propose a deficit deal by November. The people serving on the committee will all be active politicians, most of whom will probably be looking for re-election.
