Weekend Editorial Roundup

Here are the highlights from this weekend’s editorials on fiscal and budget policy:

• The New York Times criticized the House Financial Services Committee’s draft legislation on regulating “too big to fail” financial institutions. The Times cautioned that oversight power should not be concentrated in the Fed because it failed to prevent the current crisis.
• The Washington Post also discussed the legislation on “too big to fail” institutions. The Post summarized the reform proposals and reminded readers that no one can be entirely sure how new regulation will affect the market.
• The Wall Street Journal attacked the House Healthcare bill as among “the worst bills Congress has ever seriously contemplated.” The Journal said the costs of reforming healthcare under this bill are enormous and will almost certainly require tax increases.
• In “Could America go broke?” Washington Post Op-Ed columnist Robert J. Samuelson compared the U.S. debt levels to those of Japan and wondered if a fiscal crisis similar to Japan’s could happen here. The lesson to learn from Japan’s experience, he said, is that the U.S. cannot deficit finance indefinitely.

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