Two Parties on Spending: Dwindling Difference

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Posted: Aug 11, 2022 12:01 AM

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For a few years, I have sounded the alarm that a growing wave of conservatives are working to make Republicans indistinguishable from Democrats on social spending. Some say that to win elections, Republicans need to pay more attention to families — by which they mean dole out ever more money to families like the Democrats do. Exhibit A for this development is the newly reintroduced New Parents Act.The Act was recently reintroduced by Sens. Marco Rubio, R‑Fla., and Mitt Romney, R‑Utah. It’s a massive handout to parents, pretty much regardless of income level. If adopted, it would significantly expand the role of the federal government as it further swells the deficit and national debt.The proposal has many parts, but two illustrate my point best:First, it would create a federal paid-leave program that would allow new parents to advance themselves up to three months of parental-leave benefits today by drawing funds from their Social Security retirement benefits. This scheme is based on misconceptions that are hard to explain away. Romney and Rubio ignore the reality that the private sector, not the federal government, is the best provider of paid leave.In fact, a majority of women today are paid during their leaves by their employers through various and flexible arrangements an …