Letters: Don’t dismiss Simpson-Bowles

Re “Deficit debate driven by the wealthy,” Column, July 29

Your readers are entitled to better than Michael Hiltzik’s column on deficit reduction, which substitutes invective for rational discussion.

The Simpson-Bowles plan may not be the best possible for deficit reduction, but to dismiss it out of hand is absurd. The plan was considered by a bipartisan committee of 18 members chosen by the president and Congress. It was approved by 11 of the 18 members of the commission.

To the eternal shame of the Republican Party, it was the “no” votes of the three House Republicans that doomed the proposal, which needed support from 14 members to go to Congress for an up-or-down vote. Now we can wait until the Chinese tire of supporting us. Only then, it appears, will our politicians take deficits seriously.

Arthur Armstrong

Manhattan Beach

ALSO:

Letters: Romney goes overseas

Letters: Boot camp for teachers

Letters: Tallying the true cost of coal