Canton— It has been 16 days since the sequestration took place and mixed feelings continue to stir. Washington’s inability to commit to a budget has caused automatic spending cuts to take place across the board, impacting federally funded programs and more.
Approximately 2.3-2.4% of spending cuts took place with the intent to force Congress’s hand to pass a federal budget. “There hasn’t been an actual budget passed in several years now, they keep re-authorizing the same spending bills,” said Dr. Steven G. Horwitz, Professor of Economics at St. Lawrence University in Canton.
The severity of the spending cuts have varied from state to state, though Government jobs such as U.S. Customs and Border Protection jobs have suffered furloughs. However, according to Dr. Horwitz people have had cataclysmic thinking with regards to the sequestration. “If you see what happened in the last 10 days, unemployment has gone down and the stock market has been higher than it has ever been in 17 years,” said Dr. Horwitz.
According to Dr. Horwitz, if the sequestration was as catastrophic as people assumed, then the stocks should have fallen as soon as the sequestration hit. “Professional investors didn’t think that a 2.4% cut was going to make much of a difference,” said Dr. Horwitz. “Everyone agrees that the cuts should have taken place a different way. But, as far as the stocks are concerned, I don’t know what is driving the optimism.”
Targeted spending cuts would reduce any potential risk or damaging effects on the economy. According to reports, numerous conversations and meetings President Obama has had with various lawmakers has done little to balance the budget. According to Dr. Horwitz, the sequestration at least helps to cut the deficit in the long run and limit spending.
