Can We Balance the Federal Budget on the Backs of the Billionaires?

Some Good Things Achieved by the Trump Administration

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2033383/fan_mail/new] Noted political philosophers Adam and Jeff discuss some of the positive achievements of Trump's second administration.  First, Jeff points out that all the stops have been pulled out to enable the United States to become the dominant energy producer in the world.  Energy self-sufficiency brings about both economic independence and permits greater freedom of movement in the international arena.  The war with Iran highlights the fact that much of the world's energy must pass through chokepoints which highlights the vulnerability of China's economy to potential disruptions.  Adam and Jeff also applaud Trump for continuing to bring an America First approach to most issues.  Trump has also avoided becoming bogged down in a protracted land war.  Finally, Adam and Jeff suggest that the Trump Administration's execution of the laws as in the case of border security underscores what can be done when a chief executive actually enforces the law instead of ignoring it.

The Fourteenth Amendment and Birthright Citizenship

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2033383/fan_mail/new] In their continuing effort to fix all of the wrongs in human society, Adam and Jeff discuss the concept of birthright citizenship.  In rendering a Shakespearean-worthy reading of the Fourteenth Amendment, Adam points out that the basis for granting birthright citizenship is that a person born in the United States is subject to the laws of the United States.  However, this is a weasely standard because a foreign national could commit a crime in the United States and be subject to its jurisdiction.  Birthright citizenship also creates a "divided loyalty" issue because most birth tourism babies are born in the United States and then immediately whisked back to their homeland where they will be raised with little likelihood of having any attachment to the United States.  In the case of China, Jeff points out that you could eventually have hundreds of thousands of U.S. citizens who are ordered to vote a particular way in American presidential elections to elect candidates who are more sympathetic to the Chinese Communist Party.  Jeff argues that the inclusion of the word "reside" in the Fourteenth Amendment is more important because it conditions citizenship on actually living in the country and paying taxes as opposed to conferring citizenship on a baby who happens to be born while his or her parents are visiting Disneyworld.

Can We Balance the Federal Budget on the Backs of the Billionaires?

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2033383/fan_mail/new] Almost-but-not-quite-billionaires Adam and Jeff consider whether a national wealth tax on billionaires would be a good way to balance the federal budget.  After considering the extent to which the $38 trillion national debt is compounding upon itself and the limited supply of billionaires, they are not optimistic that such an approach will work.  They also point out that the fundamental problem is not a lack of tax revenue with tax collections totaling $5 trillion per year but persistent overspending which is now in excess of $7 trillion per year.  So even if you tax every billionaire into abject poverty, it will only be a drop in the bucket and the annual shortfalls will continue to compound.  Jeff offers the radical idea that maybe, just maybe, the solution might be that we spend no more than we receive in tax revenues each year.  Adam pointed out that Jeff was suffering from a high fever and probably needed to go home until his hallucinations went away.

Has the United States Become the Latest Victim of Imperial Overreach?

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2033383/fan_mail/new] Global strategists Adam and Jeff ponder the historical cycles that have seen empires in the past decline when their commitments exceed their ability to project economic and military power.  Jeff talks about the rise and fall of the British Empire and marvels that such a small island with such poor food choices and regrettable dental hygiene was able to assert control over much of the known world when colonization was all the rage.  Adam and Jeff bemoan the structural deficits that are adding $2 trillion dollars per year to the national debt even though almost all of the $38 trillion debt has accrued in the past 4 decades.  Of course this was at a time in which the United States was not threatened by another power; instead it has been a structural deficits fueled by increased entitlement spending.  Adam points out that in a few years the entire budget will be consumed by spending on Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security and interest on the debt.  In other words, all other spending including government subsidies to the Omaha Bugle will be crowded out.  However, Adam and Jeff agree that in the event the dollars become tight, the Fed can always starting running another printing press 24/7.

Russia Celebrates 4 Years in Ukraine. . . . Put is not Amused. . . . Russia Delays its Plans to Invade Greenland

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2033383/fan_mail/new] Adam and Jeff discuss the state of Russia's 4-year misadventure in the Ukraine and point out that this conflict has lasted longer than Russia's involvement in World War II.  Jeff points out that Russia has suffered about 1.2 million military casualties. This conflict has taken a toll on the Russian economy because there is a severe shortage of young workers to man the factories.  The war has also exposed the poor state of the Russian military and highlighted the "fight to the death" mentality of the Ukrainians.  Jeff points out that Ukraine's tenacity is rooted in part in Russia's repeated invasions and engineered famines of Ukraine over the centuries.  Adam and Jeff also discuss the fact that Texas-sized Ukraine is the second largest country in Europe and should not have been viewed as a low-risk high-reward adventure like Putin's previous outings in Georgia and the Crimea.  Ukraine's historical animosity toward Russia has fueled unprecedented nationalism and drained Russia's military capacity while also causing both Sweden and Finland to join NATO.  Even though Russia may end up occupying a strip of territory on Ukraine's eastern frontier indefinitely, it is hard to see how this conflict has helped Russia in any way, particularly as it has become ever-more reliant on its "eternal friend" China.