Balanced Budget Amendment

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The Balanced Budget Amendment is a mostly right-wing populist proposal to pass an amendment that would force the United States federal government to always maintain a balanced budget. It's one of the few policy proposals that both many right and left leaning economists can agree is a very bad idea,[1] though it maintains some popularity with those who conflate microeconomics with macroeconomics (such as comparing the debt of the U.S. to the debt held by an individual household).

The main problem with the idea is that during a recession the government would be forced to make ends meet by raising taxes and drastically cutting spending, which would make recessions much longer and more brutal than necessary.[2][3]

[edit] Footnotes

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