Jeff Merkley in Trump campaign vs. Trump administration

On Welfare & Poverty: Protect entitlements from GOP budget cuts

Asked if the Trump administration would address "entitlement reform," chief economic advisor Larry Kudlow said it will "probably" look at "larger entitlements" next year. Entitlement reform generally refers to changes or cuts to large government social programs such as Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid or food stamps. "I don't want to be specific, but we'll get there," Kudlow said. "But I agree, we have to be tougher on spending."

Democrats jumped on the comments, with calls to protect health-care coverage and social safety-net programs while Republicans trim spending on those programs in order to make up for budget deficits of $1 trillion from last year's GOP tax cuts. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) tweeted that "Social Security and Medicare are on the line" in November's midterms.

Kudlow downplayed the effect of tax cuts on budget deficits and instead pointed to a longer-term spending problem. "People are quick to blame deficits on tax cuts," he said. "Well, I don't buy that."

Source: CNBC's Jacob Pramuk on 2018 Trump Administration Sep 18, 2018

The above quotations are from Campaign promises compared to follow-up actions taken by the Trump Administration. Click here for other excerpts from Campaign promises compared to follow-up actions taken by the Trump Administration. Click here for other excerpts by Jeff Merkley. Click here for a profile of Jeff Merkley.
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Page last updated: Nov 02, 2024