Introduction
Aligning personal political views with economic concepts is vital to identify if one is aligned with conservative or liberal views. Based on the test, I am more of a populist right. This is because of the highly restrictive views I hold about immigration policies. In addition, big business corporations and the economic system have a negative impact on the way things are happening in the nation. I highly support higher taxes on prominent and wealthy corporations. Generally, I am very conservative and overwhelmingly Republican, and I hold a positive attitude toward former President Donald Trump.
Discussion
As a populist right, I believe that the government should be more involved with the American people’s lives. The federal government should be at the forefront of providing more programs and services to the people even though the programs cost a lot of money, which comes from taxpayers. They should also focus on making politics more representative. This is because populism focuses on representing the people rather than the elites, who may be more susceptible to foreign influences. Generally, the federal government should be more involved in providing the people with programs that ensure they are safe from terrorism, and natural disasters, have safe medicine and food, and have a more robust economy and proper infrastructure.
Pertaining to the question if Americans are more conservative or more liberals, it is difficult to make a statement about the political beliefs of individuals because political views vary among individuals depending on political ideologies, gender, race, and geographical position. However, according to research studies and surveys, the political belief of American citizens tends to be evenly split between liberal and conservative ideologies, with a minor portion identifying as independent or moderate. In the past five years, the U.S.A. has become less liberal but not necessarily more conservative. According to Morning Consult Survey (eyokley), there is a declining share of American liberals. The share of the electorate identified as liberal on a seven-point scale has dropped in the past five years from 34% to 24% (eyokley). The decline in liberals has not led to an increase in conservative alignment.
Balancing a budget requires finding methods to reduce expenditures to exceed or match the revenue. The two approaches include increasing taxes and other revenue sources and reducing spending on services and programs. As an executive in the Office of Management and Budget, I will use both approaches to close the $1 trillion gap in the 2017 federal budget. First, I will increase the corporate, investment, excise, and estate taxes by half. This will enable the large corporation to contribute $0.5 trillion more to the federal budget. This is because big corporations and investors are taxed less and bring less to the federal budget even though they enjoy huge profits. The tax increment will target specific groups, including industries and high-income businesses, and not individuals. Even though this decision can be politically challenging because it might be unfair or burdensome to some corporations and big business and will lead to rebels and loss of political jobs, it will provide significant revenue to the government.
On the other hand, I will reduce government spending on some programs and projects. I will ensure that the government uses Public-Private partnerships to secure government projects in diverse sectors, including education, transportation, housing, and communication development. Using PPPs in these programs will help cut costs by up to $100 billion. I would also reduce military spending by $350 billion to help depress the country’s economy. This event will only be possible by cutting the forces’ size, reducing the cost to operate and maintain the forces, and purchasing less expensive weapons. Additionally, I will also reduce veterans’ benefits by half to veterans older than the full retirement age for social security. This action will allow the budget to have another extra $45 billion to fill the $1 trillion budget gap. Lastly, discretionary spending on science will be reduced to $20 billion. It will allow the administration to have an extra $6 billion to cover the $1 trillion deficit.
Conclusion
Combining all the discretionary spending cuts, which is $506 billion and the $0.5 trillion increase in corporate tax will fully cover the $1 trillion deficit. Though all these decisions might impact the people of America, they align with my political views and will help balance the budget and help the country avoid huge debts.
Work Cited
“America Has Become Less Liberal, but Not Necessarily More Conservative.” Morning Consult, Web.