Readers with long memories will recall that last week I used the Corner to ask Bruce Bartlett, a fine economist and a thorough expert on the federal budget, to comment on the recent article in the Wall Street Journal by Joshua Bolten, director of the Office of Management and the Budget. Bolten argued that, allowing for spending on defense and homeland security, President Bush’s domestic spending has actually proven…modest. Subtract the spending that Osama bin Laden has forced on us, in other words, and you’ll see there haven’t been all that many dramatic increases.
Today I heard from Bruce:
“Bolten is wrong. He is using budget authority instead of outlays and completely ignores supplementals. Spending is out of control in this administration, even adjusting for the war and homeland security. The Medicare drug bill is a disaster, utterly irresponsible from a Republican administration.”