# Congress Plays Budget Games with America’s Fiscal Future 

March 3, 2025 • News Releases 

In a [new piece](https://url.avanan.click/v2/r01/___https://zwly9k6z.r.us-east-1.awstrack.me/L0/https:%2F%2Fwww.cato.org*2Fblog*2Fall-eyes-doge-congress-plays-budget-games-americas-fiscal-future/1/010001955cc36de2-b02dbda9-3d35-4c98-9b9a-dd7e32398719-000000/cV7tJrmtXqLMetZTAOmK0TVJF-A=415___.YXAzOmNhdG9pbnN0aXR1dGU6YTpvOjM4NjIzNGQ5ZTM5ZmNkYjlhNmEwZTU1YmNlZjRjNjMyOjc6YTA0MjpmMTRjYzdiYTUxMmRlZmZkZTk3ZGQwNWY4NjQ0YWU1MDRiY2VjZGUyMTdiMTM5OGU0MjM0ZTdiN2IzZGY0NDAyOmg6VDpO), Cato Institute Director of Budget and Entitlement Policy [Romina Boccia](https://url.avanan.click/v2/r01/___https://zwly9k6z.r.us-east-1.awstrack.me/L0/https:%2F%2Fwww.cato.org*2Fpeople*2Fromina-boccia/1/010001955cc36de2-b02dbda9-3d35-4c98-9b9a-dd7e32398719-000000/47vLSFDRmcwZYixna9dztfBLhFk=415___.YXAzOmNhdG9pbnN0aXR1dGU6YTpvOjM4NjIzNGQ5ZTM5ZmNkYjlhNmEwZTU1YmNlZjRjNjMyOjc6OGZkYzo0ZDEzMDY4MGEzYzQ4YTcyNzFkZDU1ZDAzZjljZDg2MmEzMGY5OGFmMTY0YTY1ZWYxMTM0ZjliZjBhZmE1ZTA5Omg6VDpO) discusses the Senate attempting to rewrite the budget resolution by switching to a “current policy baseline.”

Boccia explains that if the Senate’s plan succeeds, tax cut extensions won’t count as new costs, which means they don’t need to be offset to make the reconciliation budget math work. This maneuver in turn would then make room for additional tax cuts.

Boccia writes:

“Neither the House nor the Senate budget plan is a serious attempt at restoring fiscal sanity. The House at least nods toward spending cuts, even if they won’t fully match planned tax cut extensions. But the Senate’s baseline-switching gimmick is pure fantasy accounting. In the real world, making the 2017 expiring tax cuts permanent without paying for them will balloon the deficit, just as refusing to rein in Medicaid spending while putting Social Security and Medicare’s unfunded obligations on the ‘do not touch’ list will drive the US further down the road to fiscal ruin.”

If we continue down this road, there won’t be a tomorrow where America’s finances—a key foundation of the nation’s economy—are still intact, Boccia concludes.

You can read the full piece [here](https://url.avanan.click/v2/r01/___https://zwly9k6z.r.us-east-1.awstrack.me/L0/https:%2F%2Fwww.cato.org*2Fblog*2Fall-eyes-doge-congress-plays-budget-games-americas-fiscal-future/2/010001955cc36de2-b02dbda9-3d35-4c98-9b9a-dd7e32398719-000000/MW9ubHfgNp3rJSRIqeGKwmgYFks=415___.YXAzOmNhdG9pbnN0aXR1dGU6YTpvOjM4NjIzNGQ5ZTM5ZmNkYjlhNmEwZTU1YmNlZjRjNjMyOjc6MDQ5YTo2YTg2N2VjN2FjMGUzYWJkZDExNjE3NmQzZjJiZDNmZDcyYzgxMzY0YzgyZTM1NWJiMjcwZWNmMDJmMzg2MGQ3Omg6VDpO). If you would like to speak with Boccia on this issue, please contact me to set up an interview.

Best regards,

**EMILY ADAMEC** 
Manager of Media Relations 
[eadamec@​cato.​org](mailto:eadamec@cato.org) 
O: (202) 216‑1410

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