The average American home is almost 2,200 square feet. An average home in the United Kingdom is a minuscule 818 square feet, in Finland 880 square feet and in Germany under 1,200 square feet. Cramped. Americans have bigger houses and a higher material standard of living — more appliances, clothing and cars — largely because they can keep more of what they earn. The U.S. is a low-tax nation — for now.
Europeans, in comparison, have to fork over much more of their earnings to the government. They enjoy paid maternity leave, free health care, nearly free college and many other government benefits. But they settle for a lower standard of living.
Are Americans willing to settle for less, too? As Washington politicians fight over the debt ceiling and whether to limit government spending, the real issue is whether Americans are ready to pay more taxes and have less spending money in order to finance European-style government benefits.
In the U.S., two-thirds of the nation’s gross domestic product is spent on things people want for themselves — cars, computers, housing, furniture, vacations, you name it. In Europe, only 50% goes for these things. Government sucks up the other half.
Workers in Europe spend half the workday toiling to prop up their government’s socialistic programs.
Advocates for a liberal welfare state slam our materialistic lifestyles — our giant refrigerators with built-in ice machines, and in-sink garbage disposals. Bloomberg columnist Allison Schrager deplores Americans’ “overconsumption” and argues we should learn to live like Europeans. That’s her opinion.
Americans who disagree, and don’t want to trade their take-home pay for cradle-to-grave benefits, need to speak up.
Democratic politicians won’t admit there’s a trade-off. They want you to believe taxing “the rich” will pay for big government programs without taking a dollar out of your pocket.
President Joe Biden told Steamfitters Local 602 last week: “As long as I’m president, no one making less than $400,000 will have a single penny of their taxes raised. Period.”
That’s the Democrats’ script. They’re hawking magic. There aren’t enough rich people to pay for all the programs Biden Democrats are pushing.
Manhattan Institute economist Brian Riedl added up all the extra revenue that would be produced by Rep. Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez’s proposed 70% tax on income over $10 million, plus Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s proposed corporate tax rate hikes and payroll tax hikes, and Sen. Bernie Sanders’ wealth and estate tax measures. Together, these soak-the-rich proposals can’t close the current budget deficit, much less finance the Biden nanny state agenda.
Paying for that agenda would actually require draining the middle class. “If America wants to spend like Europe, it must tax like Europe — and that means large payroll and value-added taxes on the middle class,” says Riedl.
That brings us to the drama in Washington, D.C., over House Republican demands that any debt ceiling hike be linked to future limits on government spending. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer opposes any conditions, bashing Republicans for “hostage-taking.”
But Schumer’s out of touch. A staggering 86% of registered voters polled say Democrats should agree to negotiate, including 44% from Schumer’s party. Fifty-eight percent of voters say the Biden administration has been “reckless and loose” with people’s money, including 44% of Democrats, according to the same Harvard/Harris poll.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen claims raising the debt ceiling should be automatic: “This is something you can’t negotiate or bargain about.” That’s B.S. History proves that the expiration of the debt ceiling, which happens every year or two, is the biggest opportunity to rein in Washington spendaholics.
Over the last 25 years, Congress has hammered out eight laws to control spending. All eight were tied to debt ceiling hikes.
At stake in this current debt ceiling struggle is preserving what sets the United States apart from Europe.
In the United States, working people get to keep most of what they earn and decide how to spend it.
Don’t let the Washington pols treat your paycheck as if it belongs to them.
Betsy McCaughey is a former lieutenant governor of New York and chairman of the Committee to Reduce Infection Deaths. Follow her on Twitter @Betsy_McCaughey. To find out more about Betsy McCaughey and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website.
COPYRIGHT 2023 CREATORS.COM
The average American home is almost 2,200 ?
hahaha good luck affording that. Boomer must be loaded lol
Of course lowering the American standard of living is what all the Democrat policies are all about. Duh!!!! Everytime a Democrat politician talks about how “unjust” or “inequitable” the United States is compared to say Europe, South America, the Middle East, Africa or most of Asia, the implied message is the United States needs to be knocked down several rungs on the economic ladder in order to bring us into equilibrium with some country the Democrats want us to emulate. Usually they point to Europe or China as beacons we should emulate. When compared to the rest of the world, which is either socialist, communist or some form of a religious or military autocracy, we stand out like a sore thumb. For committed globalists, that simply can’t be allowed to exist for the following reasons:
1) It shows that their so-called ideal form of governance underperforms what was created in the United States by our Founders. So the Democrats have been very busy trying to undermine and destroy it for well over a 100 years now. They’ve made great strides in advancing that destruction over the last couple of years, with a major assist by certain RINOs in the Senate.
2) It offers hope and a model for a better life to literally the rest of the world, if they have the strength and will to emulate it. You can’t have that sort of thing out there when the globalist message is everything has to be the same and everything for the masses is equal. People, in the globalist view, have to be devoid of hope and be completely willing to accept whatever little crumbs those running their governments decide to give them.
That the American people continue to sit idly by and allow the Democrat Party to systematically undermine this country at every turn is far from pleasant to watch. Yet given that most Americans seem content to simply allow this destruction to continue, that is all the few of us who actually understand what is going on can do. The Democrats themselves have absolutely no incentive to stop their destruction of our country, because they do not fear any meaningful response will be coming from the American people. So far, they have been correct.
Prety much everthing the DemocRats promote are bad for this Nations democratic Constitutional republic. But they things that they promote are designed to improve the status and wealth of key members of the DemocRat Party.
With PRESIDENT TRUMP we were PROSPEROUS and #1 in the WORLD with SECURED BORDERS. N.Korea not testing any new Nuclear weapons, Russia not invading Ukraine, Economy #1, USA #1, Only U.S. PRESIDENT to be nominated 8 times for Nobel Peace Prize (they would given it to him if he was black like Obama who did nothing to earn it, Big time discrimination and racist towards PRESIDENT TRUMP), Safest the World ever was and Prosperous with PRESIDENT TRUMP.
With DICTATOR Beijing biden…
Illegally and unconstitutionally in White House by committing Election Fraud both in 2020 and 2022, Killed Energy Independence on 1-21-21, Destroying our Military and Schools, Sells our OIL from National Strategic Oil Reserves to Communist China and DRAINS it for political purposes, Destroys our Food Processing Plants, SPRAYS DAILY TOXIC CHEMICALS in AIR using LIE the Earth needs to cool, Protects his buddies TERRORIST antifa and TERRORIST blm, ILLEGAL ALIEN TERRORIST INVASION letting in Viruses, Diseases, Criminals, Insects, Animal’s, TERRORIST and Not once closed the Border with Lies on China Virus (Lockdowns but Border stayed opened and NO MASK or VACCINATED letting China Virus and More diseases and Viruses come in which means it was NOT that bad), Zero Energy Production through 2025, CLOSEST TO NUCLEAR WAR in History, Drains ALL our ammunition and weapons to Defend the USA and orders a tenth for replacements, ATTACKS and SPIES on AMERICANS and BANK ACCOUNTS, Most TAX INCREASES in History with More to come,
Food Shortages, Fuel Shortages, Fuel Prices, Food Prices, and INFLATION keep going up,
Attacks OUR U.S. CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS, Signs ILLEGAL and UNCONSTITUTIONAL
Bills and Executive Orders, Bows down to Communist China , Selling our Military Academies to Communist China, LIES about EVERYTHING and COMMITS TREASON on a DAILY basis.
Yet, this TREASONOUS TRAITOR is sitting in OUR White House
ILLEGALLY and UNCONSTITUTIONALLY with TOTAL WEAPONIZATION of the DOJ and EVERY Federal agency and FAKE news protecting this TREASONOUS TRAITOR and Hunter biden.
Thanks to DICTATOR Beijing biden the Doomsday Clock is now at 90 seconds the CLOSEST in History.
WAR is coming and Communist China is getting ready while DICTATOR Beijing biden SELLS US OUT leaving us wide open for ATTACK ON PURPOSE and we ALL know that DICTATOR Beijing biden and Communist harris will be HIDING or if not already in their buddies country Communist China for protection.
And YOU, the AMERICAN people have allowed this to happen.
Shame, Shame.
MIKE is a Troll. Ignore Mike and just maybe Mike will get tired and leave.
Democrats want more spending then let Democrats and ONLY DEMOCRATS PAY HIGHER TAXES TO PAY FOR IT! I’m tired at age 75 that I have to keep working or live in my car. But I guess living in the wonderful weather of Communist California, one can survive living in a car if need be. Pretty soon the rest of America will have the chance to experience California economy since our Governor Gavin *Gruesome” Newsom will probably be the next Presidential candidate for the Progressively Communist wannabe Democratic Party!
The government has no right to take our hard earned dollars and then decide where to spend it.
That is a dictatorship.
To make America a nanny country is not why the pilgrims came to this country.
Communism here we come.
It doesn’t work. Cradle to the grave care has been abolished in most countries. They don’t work.
Lower standard of living is accepted there. Here we are a young country where everything is possible the way our constitution is set up.
By working hard you can afford all these things you decide to buy. We do not look to DC to please may I buy this. We decide what and where and how we want to live. The opportunities are there. Except under Brandon.
They want to control you. They want to decide your income and thereby the standard of living so they keep the power over us forever. It is all self serving what they are doing. It is not for the people. It is for the 1%.
Each department (with the possible exception of DOD) should not see any funding increases. They can pay for raises by reducing the number of employees!
The economy of the area surrounding DC has been inflated by the excessive federal wages, a burden that we taxpayers (and our great, great grandchildren) must bear!
I think “Civil Service” was a huge mistake! It (and the ridiculous move of allowing government employee unions) has been largely responsible for the growth of our national debt!
We should require a 75% vote of both houses to raise the debt and require 1% of federal revenue be allocated to debt reduction!
Elimination of payroll withholding would raise awareness of the actual amount of wages and taxes has been proposed. But that would lead to a huge increase in the IRS to handle all the folks who would get behind and be unable to pay their taxes, not to mention the unfair burden on the working class!
A better way to accomplish the same thing would be to eliminate the income tax forever, by repealing the 16th Amendment and going with a National Sales Tax (like “The Fair Tax”) and allocating 1% to debt reduction. That plus a balanced budget amendment would require Congress to either raise taxes or cut spending! Any increase in the “Fair Tax” rate would be immediately apparent to the public which would rightfully put pressure on our spendthrift congress!
But none of the Constitutional Amendments will happen without the States exercising their right to force a “Convention of the States” to propose such amendments. . . . Because there is NO WAY Congress will police itself!!
Folks, the Income Tax Amendment passed because only those making the equivalent of millions today would have to pay any income tax! And look at it now!!
I like The Fair Tax because it’s simple, it has quite small administration costs, it uses a simple, brilliant method to eliminate tax on the poor and reduce it on those at the lower end of the spectrum. It sounds impossible, so a person needs to read “The Fair Tax” book to understand it.
I’m a Republican but let’s not forget they spend money We don’t have as much as Democrats.
Theater.
Base line budgeting automatically raises spending no matter what
While I don’t disagree with anything in the article it misses the bigger threat to our standard of living.
America as a nation (not just our gov’t) lives beyond it’s means, i.e. we consume more than we produce (I’m talking in terms of value). The measure of that is our trade deficit. Now, some of that trade deficit is recovered by foreigners investing in American capital assets (stocks, real estate, bonds, etc.). However, we don’t have enough of those to balance out our oversized trade deficit (having some trade deficit some of the time is actually good). That shortfall leads to over demand for our capital assets which pushes up prices of those assets which ultimately leads to bubbles (yes, the mortgage crisis, dot com bubble, commercial real estate bubble, etc. were all ultimately driven by the trade deficit).
We need to fix our oversized trade imbalance. We can do it one of two ways 1) cut what we consume (i.e. lower our standard of living), or 2) increase our productivity. For obvious reasons I prefer option 2, as would most Americans who are not on the Left. If we can’t accomplish option 2, then option 1 will eventually be forced upon us. Just like a household, a nation cannot continue to live beyond it’s means indefinitely.
That’s where we get the real threat to our standard of living — the Left’s policies are a *huge* hindrance to increasing productivity. Yes, the gov’t over spending/over borrowing is bad, but it itself is in part fueled by the trade deficit as many of the dollars that the gov’t borrows come from our trading partners who need somewhere to put their excess dollars. Our oversized budget deficit can in some ways be seen as a gov’t debt bubble — which like all bubbles must pop.
That’s where Trump succeeded the most — by encouraging increased American productivity or at least slowing/stopping the ever increasing hindrances to productivity growth. Trump also succeeded by helping America become energy independent, eliminating a major contributor to our trade deficit.
All that to say, simply balancing the federal budget won’t save our standard of living in and of itself. It is necessary but will not be sufficient if we can’t reign in another part of the Left’s agenda — central micromanagement of every aspect of our economy. We don’t have to go full blown communist for it to have an impact on our standard of living.
You can’t just blame the Demoncrats I am no longer a Republican Iam now an Independent and vote the Swamp dwellers Republican and Demoncrat alike out of Washington and praying for a Convention of States Article Five to put some control on the main problem which is Washington DC
Chuckie can go straight to hell. I like the American way of life, I don’t want to be like Europe, and I don’t know why we keep trying to be like them.
It’s bad enough gas is around $4.00 a gallon, milk and eggs are ridiculous, my property and real estate tax’s keep going up every year and I’m not talking twenty dollars or so, I’m talking hundreds of dollars…my utility bill’s keep going as well.
In my opinion this is all because of our governments policy’s of Equity and Wokeism, along with it’s immigration policy. They’re destroying this country. We have those that work and have worked, now having to pay for all those that do not work or ever intend to work. It doesn’t help when our government gives illegals benefits they’ve never worked for or paid taxes to receive.
Since when should someone who has never put in the time or effort been allowed to have the same as someone who has? They all want what you have but don’t want to put in the time or work needed to get there.
I talked to a young man a few months ago who had turned thirty, he was telling me that he deserved to make $30.00 an hour, a new car and a 3000 square foot home, just because he was thirty. Never mine the fact that he was a window washer, uneducated, and unwilling to improve his life. This all meant nothing to him. He was thirty and he deserved it because there were others he knew that had all those things. The same mentality applies to all the illegals that arrive in our country when they see everything the government has given those before them.
I’ve come to realize that every problem this country has ever had, can all be contributed to the Socialist democrats.
Let’s go Brandon!
It won’t matter what goes on in the world today. We are headed to a one world gov. that will usher in the antichrist . God is bringing judgment on the world for its no repentance on sin. Secular humanism is the God now. The glamorous thing now is abortion, hyper sexism of everything, race, and the list goes on. Politics is not going to solve the problem at all.
The Democrats Socialists plan is to bankrupted the United States. That way they can slither in and take over!
Taxes will not be raised because pennies will be raining from heaven says man from Fairy land
When you study the histories of multiple nations there is a pattern. George Bush Sr. in his presidential acceptance speech said these exact words: “We must usher in the New World Order”. I watched that speech. Tho’ I didn’t fully understand the context at the time it stayed embedded in my memory. For those who keep up with and understand God’s word this in itself is very well a precursor to the anti-Christ and one world rule. It’s going to get uglier and more intense as the next few years (?) continue.
So many nations have been disarmed, enslaved to poverty and hunger that were once fairly prosperous. Abortion is one method of population control, over 60 MILLION budding citizens destroyed in the name of “choice”, covid is now the real and present danger. There are ‘scientists’ working on more destructive covid mutations, alleged “vaccines” etc.
As far back as the mid 60’s I was living in Boulder, Colorado, Lamb was the governor. He made a statement on TV one evening that is still burned in my brain: “The elderly have a duty to die”. Remember Cuomo during covid putting covid positive people in nursing homes…about 15,000 died!
Supposedly it’s because of “money”…yet look at what the democrats …and rinos…have done to this country…over $31 TRILLION in debt. Inflation is ramping up, preventing of our own oil supplies from being tapped…and they are substantial. Inflation off the charts…yeah, Carter and Obama did the same thing…perhaps practicing for the eventual downfall of our monetary system??
Almost daily there is more “news” of the mad “scientists” mutating covid and inventing more “vaccines”. Children are being “inoculated” and have never needed it…Fauci is now the richest “man” in DC…and the poisons keep on being made.
The almost maniacal push to disarm this nation is going to ramp up even more than it has. As one said so long ago: “Dictators, tyrants and absolute rulers are sensitive to arms in the hands of the people.” Tyrants and dictators can’t abide a citizenry that can defend itself. Don’t believe the concentrated attacks on morality, decency, our justice system and truth are random. The Christian churches who still teach God’s Word are already under attack and it will get worse.
We who adhere to the Constitution, Bill of RIGHTS, our Declaration of Independence and our once proud history are in for a wild ride in the near future. It’s going to get even crazier and more dangerous. Those involved in this “new world order” are monsters. They will stop at nothing to establish their goals. To them We The People are nothing but an inconvenience to be gotten rid of, no more than cannon fodder.
My solution is simple. If you don’t pay taxes, you can’t vote.
Under DIMMs, we are becoming a third-world nation. They give OUR tax money to people who hate us, provide UNEQUAL treatment to citizens, strip our defenses by sending OUR arms to other nations, and promote SLOTH and perversion.
Good article although I can quibble with parts of it. For example, the “free” stuff in Europe such as healthcare is not free, of course, but is paid for by taxes. Worse, what is not mentioned is that same healthcare is also rationed to some extent so those needing more expensive care either wait long times or do without. That’s why our cancer treatment centers here in the U.S. see a lot of Canadians seeking treatment they can’t get at home. If you think that any government will put your medical welfare ahead of politics or budget restrictions you need serious mental healthcare. The socialist principles are sold to ignorant people with a promise of wealth redistribution, the giving of benefits that are claimed to be “free” but are really at someone else’s expense. It doesn’t work in actual practice, never has, and never will. It’s snake-oil.
WEanna be like Europe, go live in Europe. Even Canada ,its closer. Kyle L.
Here they give away to illegals we need to stop spending it is easy to collect taxes but when do they stop the giveaways if we do not stop spending the debt will never come down that is what is wrong in this country they feel the money is free for them to do what ever they like.
As the finite amount of money is spent more and more by the government, there will be less and less for our citizens to spend, thus a decline in the individual’s standard of living. We can’t have both huge government spending and a high standard of living.
I had to laugh when reading about the comparisons of Americans to Europe. You notice how the Govt. wants us to live in smaller homes and have less, what about all the millionaires and billionaires in DC and Hollywood that own and live in 10,000 to 20,000 + square ft homes, have their own Jets, all their cars, multiple homes, etc, etc, etc. You know damn well THEY aren’t going to give anything up. We have worked just as hard if not harder for what we have and they need to stop comparing us with everyone else. We are not them.
And I am sick of our Govt taking our hard earned money and giving it to useless lazy people, and people not from here. They disgust me.
The so called Advocates for a Liberal Welfare state, can rot for all I care.
Unfortunately I can’t say what I’d really like to say, or they will Censor it. They seem to be good at doing that.
The elite will not be happy until we are all serfs and they are kings.
All the Dems are out of touch
The politicians of the federal government and state governments for that matter are all rich!! BUT THE FEDERAL POLITICIANS have it best, they pay NO TAXES federal or state. They need to pay there fair share also!
Amazing this was their plan all along , the goal is to make us in to a third world country . There was no build back better accept to line their pockets , I’m so sick of these thugs that are in office were barely making it now yet they want to make sure we’re out on the street why they live high and mighty. Talk about double standards.
I don’t believe any other country has given away more monetary aid to other countries and to illegal aliens than the United States. We can help others if we kill off the fatted calf, the American dream of bettering yourself and prosperity.
The Socialist Democrats are the death of American prosperity.
I’d like to see more of the variables that impact these decisions discussed all at the same time: who owns US debt? What intrest are we currently paying? What would happen if the US taxes wealth other than housing?
When the elitists preaching all these changes live exactly like their “ideal lifestyle”, then I will believe it. They need to realize that not everyone drinks the “Koolaid philosophy” when they can’t do exactly as they say. I give enough money in taxes and receive very little help/discount for anything.
Please stop calling the crazy people the Democratic party, they are the Democrat party. They have absolutely nothing to do with Democracy. Changing their name was nothing more than a sales pitch.
That’s not ‘average’ for the average persons who live in my Michigan area. We consider over 2,000 sq.Ft as large.
Met CEO from Denmark telling me how big his home is and how it is for the well to do. I examined in America the workers keep a large part of their income spending on what they chose.Our garage is almost as big as his house and is paid for while some property there takes three generations to pay for it. If you like hunger and poverty vote for Biden again.Two years from now what freedoms will we have and who can afford our present standard of living.The democratic voters are mislead by their party to blieve they are looking out for their best future.This is treason at its worse and they are killing America and winning. Need a leader now and action to protect the constitution.God help us!!!!
Americans so not want what the Europeans have now, but we want politicians to keep making the debt ceiling higher, which makes it harder for the middle class people. Yes, it would be nice if the richest people would pay off taxes. Not a really big percentage, but that will help lower the debt ceiling slightly.
I, for One, do Not want a Higher Debt Ceiling. The song & dance says ‘tax the rich’ but you can be sure if it ever happens it won’t last long. The ‘rich’ contribute heavily to democrats campaigns and they’re rewarded. I recently read an article about the percentage of their income that the rich pay. In many instances it was ‘$0$’! Why, because their highly paid lawyers can find all kinds of loopholes, and their donations are tax deductible! Imagine that!