Balanced Budget Amendment

Thoughtfully, it becomes necessary to suggest that we are in need, in the worst of ways, a Constitutional Amendment that requires Congress to both pass and balance an annual budget.  Federal lawmakers live in the maddening world of "continuing resolutions" and have parliamentary devices that allow them to shirk their duty as representatives of the people which have been duly elected to do the business of the people.  With perpetual lack of accountability we somehow have tolerated this behavior and many see little problem with the fact that Congress failed the American People in their duty to act according to their constitutionally mandated fiscal responsibilities.

Thus, a balanced budget amendment should be enacted as quickly as possible to force the hand of legislators to do the tough business of governing without respect to upcoming election cycles or other political motivations.  The requirement to pass a budget and to balance a budget annually would put an end to the "continuing resolution" non-sense that has for so long both "kicked the can down the road" and in addition, allows legislators to shirk their most critical responsibilities.  The idea that the people have allowed this atmosphere to exist for as long as they have is not a flattering commentary.  It is time to change the system fundamentally in this regard.

Now, having taken such a stance my only present worry concerning this suggestion is that there are times of real crisis comprising acts of war or perhaps severe economic downturns, to name a few, that constitute "short seasons" in which some deficit spending might (and I stress "MIGHT") be appropriate.  How one would reconcile a need for this flexibility with the constitutional requirement that the budget must be balanced with revenue available without the necessity of borrowing to live with a priority placed on reduction and possible eventual retirement of public debt is a complex and difficult question.  Some mechanism must make such reconciliation possible.  Brighter minds than mine will need to implement such a judicious fix.

In the meantime, a BALANCED BUDGET AMENDMENT requiring at least these items is imperative.