A more cynical Simpson visits Seattle

Former Sen. Alan Simpson (R-Wyoming), with his trademark humor and pointed directness, took biting aim today at the many ills he perceives as standing in the way of a fiscally responsible federal budget. This is only a partial list: the rising cost of health care caused by trial lawyers; doctors and hospitals; defense spending; the 10,000 people turning 65 each day in the U.S. and its impact on social security; the AARP (nothing but a marketing agency); and combative rather than collaborative politics. These issues are coming to roost, he argued, because social security checks will be 25 percent less by 2033 if changes aren’t made.Simpson was in town to speak at the William D. Ruckelshaus Center's annual chairman's circle luncheon at the Washington Athletic Center. (Editor's note: Mr. Ruckelshaus is an emeritus member of Crosscut's board of directors.) His talk focused on the "myths and misunderstandings of America's fiscal situation." Simpson, retired from the Senate in 1997 but reappeared on the national stage when President Obama appointed him to co-chair a presidential commission on fiscal responsibility and reform with Erskine Bowles, President Clinton's chief of staff.Simpson told the audience, which included former Congressional colleagues from Washington state and other friendly local leaders, that his political disposition has moved from skeptic to cynic. Simpson said he continues to travel the country talking straight to Americans about the nation's $17 trillion debt, which he advocates solving with a balanced approach that includes cuts in government spending, economic growth and smarter taxation.His cynicism comes, in large part, from his observation that Americans' today focus very personal ire on individual politicians rather than being open to solutions and ideas. Simpson is from a not so distant era, as David Brooks writes today for The New York Times, “when conservatism was at its most politically and intellectually vibrant,” a time when dominant voices in the movement celebrated Lincoln, the Progressive Era and even the New Deal.       (reported by Greg Shaw)