GOP takes shot at bigger target

Give Republicans in the House of Representatives big points for leadership. They unveiled a sweeping budget proposal yesterday that finally teed up the debate the nation urgently needs to have about deficits, spending, taxes, entitlements and the role of government in our lives.

The proposal would slash federal spending by more than $5 trillion over the next decade, fundamentally alter Medicare and Medicaid, rewrite the federal income tax code and repeal President Barack Obama's health care reform. It would leave Social Security and the military largely unexamined. Including them would have upped the political risk considerably, but they're too costly to get a pass.

Still, it took courage to be the first out with a serious deficit-reduction plan. It's a target sure to draw withering political fire. But somebody had to do it, and Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), chairman of the House Budget Committee, has the smarts and the skills to lead the charge. While ostensibly the GOP budget proposal for 2012, what he announced yesterday is really much more. It's the embodiment of the Republican image of a limited federal government that lives within its means.

It's also a direct challenge to Obama and congressional Democrats who shied away from taking the lead. They need to step up, reveal their own deficit-reduction ideas and defend their view of the proper role of government.

More important, it also challenges taxpayers to realistically confront two key questions -- what do you want from the government and how much are you willing to pay for it?

The Republican plan would radically, possibly too radically, restructure Medicare and Medicaid, ending their status as entitlements.

For people not yet 55 years old, Medicare would be replaced with a federal tax credit that individuals could direct to help pay for private medical insurance. And Washington would no longer write a blank check to fund its share of the Medicaid program for the poor and disabled. It would give states block grants instead, along with greater flexibility to manage the program. But with federal funding limited, states could be on the hook for more of the cost.

Republicans would also reform the federal tax code, capping the top rate at 25 percent and ending deductions and other breaks for corporations and individuals, perhaps including those for state and local taxes, a hard sell on high-tax Long Island. This is an area where Republicans and Democrats may find common ground. The GOP plan is similar to reforms recommended by Obama's deficit-reduction commission.

The Republican proposals are far-reaching and must be tested against other ideas for reining in deficits. But with that profound debate in the offing, it would be ludicrous to shut down the government over the relatively small cuts in discretionary spending for the next six months that Congress and the White House are currently fighting about. Lawmakers need to resolve that skirmish. It's a sideshow that will have little impact on the deficit.

It's time for an adult conversation about the nation's money.