It does not really make sense to declare that either side of the ledger is "to blame" for a deficit. Eliminating a deficit requires that either revenues must go up, or expenses down. Failing to even consider the possibility of raising taxes is evidence of an ideology-driven mindset, not rational thought.



During the great recession, a deficit was appropriate policy. It should, in fact, have been far bigger, to get people back to work. That would have ended the recession long ago. However, it now seems to be pretty much ended despite the lack of adequate stimulus, and it is appropriate now to at least start trimming the deficit. It can be done in two ways: either raise taxes or cut expenditures. Broadly speaking, tax increases would hurt the rich while spending cuts would hurt the poor.



It certainly seems to me, with inequality growing rapidly and many of the poor in the U.S. becoming worse off, that it is no time to simply ignore the possibility of balancing the books through tax increases.