Simpson-Bowles Is Not Going Anywhere But It Deflects Attention From Our Current Problems

Paul Krugman knows that Simpson-Bowles has no chance to go anywhere in the US.  Our politics are too polarized to permit any agreement on a grand strategy that primarily affects our fiscal outlook in the distant future.  It is not pointless, however, because it puts deficit reduction, primarily through spending cuts, on the front burner.  Our most important problems are elsewhere.  As long as we have high unemployment, stagnant wages, and large trade deficits, we will continue to have large budget deficits.