Former U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson Jr. told members of the Global Business Travel Association that the country’s deficit problem is solvable, but that any resolution will probably not come until after the next election.
The country needs to fix its fiscal situation before it can tackle other big issues like energy policy, immigration reform and trade, Paulson told a gathering of 6,000 people at the Denver Convention Center earlier today.
But Paulson said voters will have to go beyond sending a message to the political establishment that they want change.
“We want to solve big problems,” he said.
Reforms of the entitlement and tax systems are two of the biggest problems that need to be tackled. That requires going beyond budget cutting.
“Too often voters are saying we want benefits that we don’t want to pay for,” he said.
Regarding taxes, the country needs a system that can generate necessary revenues without hampering job creation.
The current system is not getting the job done, he said.
Aldo Svaldi: 303-954-1410 or asvaldi@denverpost.com
