Monday
May242010
Administration Facing Important Fiscal Decisions, Says Larry Summers
Monday, May 24, 2010 at 5:48PM
By Miles Wolf Tamboli-Talk Radio News Service
National Economic Council Director Lawrence Summers spoke positively Monday about America's economic situation, but warned that the U.S. is not in the clear yet.
"The fiscal policy choices the United States makes over the next several years will be as consequential as any we have made in a very long time," said Summers, emphasizing the importance of the decisions the Obama administration will be making and has been making since 2008.
Summers attributed much of the recent economic growth to the administration's Recovery Act, stating that, "the combination of tax cuts, emergency support for the newly unemployed, fiscal support for states and a range of catalyzing investments from infrastructure to energy have played their intended role."
Citing estimates by the Federal Budget Office, Summers then stressed the role of redefining health care in economic recovery. According to Summers, health care costs constituted 18% of our national GDP this year; twice the percentage of 1980. This figure is expected to expand to one third of our GDP by 2040, which would explain Summers' support of new health care legislation; "It is for these reasons that the president believed and acted on the conviction that reforming our health insurance system had to be the top priority in renewing our national economy"
Summers expounded that, although he believes the Obama administration acted prudently and prospectively, he warned against over-confidence; "The depression scenario that appeared a very real threat a year ago now appears remote. Yet ... [despite] growing signs of recovery, for millions of Americans the economic emergency grinds on."
National Economic Council Director Lawrence Summers spoke positively Monday about America's economic situation, but warned that the U.S. is not in the clear yet.
"The fiscal policy choices the United States makes over the next several years will be as consequential as any we have made in a very long time," said Summers, emphasizing the importance of the decisions the Obama administration will be making and has been making since 2008.
Summers attributed much of the recent economic growth to the administration's Recovery Act, stating that, "the combination of tax cuts, emergency support for the newly unemployed, fiscal support for states and a range of catalyzing investments from infrastructure to energy have played their intended role."
Citing estimates by the Federal Budget Office, Summers then stressed the role of redefining health care in economic recovery. According to Summers, health care costs constituted 18% of our national GDP this year; twice the percentage of 1980. This figure is expected to expand to one third of our GDP by 2040, which would explain Summers' support of new health care legislation; "It is for these reasons that the president believed and acted on the conviction that reforming our health insurance system had to be the top priority in renewing our national economy"
Summers expounded that, although he believes the Obama administration acted prudently and prospectively, he warned against over-confidence; "The depression scenario that appeared a very real threat a year ago now appears remote. Yet ... [despite] growing signs of recovery, for millions of Americans the economic emergency grinds on."
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