With a thank-you to Brianna Lyman, who reported it in her article at dailycaller.com, this exchange actually took place Between CNBC’s Joe Kernan and Deputy Treasury Sec. Adewale “Wally” Adeyemo:
Kernan: “We hear the president consistently, and a lot of his people, bragging about having cut the deficit when it was a trillion last year, and it’s a 2 trillion this year. Are you concerned? What about next year? What should — should we not be like, perhaps misleading the public about how we’ve done with the deficit and start tackling it?”
Adeyemo: “So I think the truth is that we cut a deal with Republicans.”
Kernan: “No, I just mean, big picture. What do we do? Another 2 trillion — no, we haven’t cut the deficit this year, we doubled it from last year.”
Adeyemo: “I think big picture, the goal has got to be that we take steps to make sure that we have fiscal sustainability. The president laid out a plan that includes $3 trillion of bringing down — that will bring down the deficit. I think the question really is what is the other side proposing? We’ve proposed increasing funding for the IRS, so we can collect some of the money that people who don’t pay, pay. Ultimately we have a gap in terms of the money the IRS is owed, it is about $600 billion a year. If we close that gap, that’s up to $6 trillion over the same period.”
“You know, I think the president’s also called for certain cuts and making sure that we’re in a position where we can reduce the cost of health care, which is a huge cost in our economy, by cutting the cost of prescription drugs, looking at ways that we can cut subsidies in the economy, to oil and gas industry. But I think in order for us to get to a deal, you’ve got to have the other side be in a position where they have proposals that are credible going forward, and the president’s willing to and committed to having that conversation, to try and make sure that we’re on a fiscally sustainable path.”
My reaction: ????????????????????????
Did I miss something? Didn’t Mr. Kernan note that the Biden budget deficit went from $1 trillion to $2 trillion in the past year – which, as any reasonably capable 4th grader would be able to tell you, is a doubling of that deficit.
And what was Dep. Secretary Adeyemo’s response? Something about cutting a deal with Republicans, and we have to do something about this, and Biden has proposed a plan that will do something about it, and if it does what Biden says it will the problem is solved and where are Republicans on this, and…
…uh, do you see anything responding to Mr. Kernan’s question? Explaining the basis for Biden and his people bragging they cut the deficit last year, even though, in reality, the deficit doubled? Or, given that Biden and his people lying about what happened to the deficit, why we should believe a word about what his proposed legislation would accomplish?
I’m betting you don’t. Because I know I don’t.
I guess this is the latest episode of “Bidenomics”.
Maybe they should rename it “BidenComics”. Because, credibility/believability-wise, everything Biden or someone around him – like Adeyemo -, tells us about it is laughable.
