Maine Center for Economic Policy (MECEP) President and CEO Garrett Martin reacts to the debt ceiling agreement:
“While we’re relieved the nation isn’t headed for a catastrophic economic meltdown next week, we never should have been in this situation to begin with. The time to negotiate spending is during budget negotiations, not afterwards. This plan doesn’t ask people with wealth to pay their share but will take food stamps away from 225,000 older Americans struggling to make ends meet — including 2,000 in Maine. The plan also helps people continue to avoid paying what they owe in taxes, shortchanging $40 billion from public revenue and increasing the deficit by $19 billion. The only deficit reduction plans that should be taken seriously are those that make the wealthy pay their share. This plan doesn’t.”
