The Partisan Foundations of Balanced Budget Politics

Abstract

The historical image of the Republican Party as a party strongly supporting the balanced budget norm has come under increasing scrutiny as many prominent Republicans, including President George W. Bush, have overtly argued that tax cuts should be a higher priority than deficit reduction. Have the Democrats truly surpassed the Republicans as being better advocates for deficit reduction, however? To determine partisan support for balancing the budget, I analyze balanced budget amendment votes in Congress since 1982, the “Fiscal Responsibility” vote scores given to members of Congress by the Concord Coalition, and the relationship between party control of the White House and the size of the deficit. Findings suggest mixed evidence to support both Democratic and Republican claims to be the party most likely to back deficit reduction. While evidence from the legislative branch implies that Republicans are competitive with the Democrats in regards to deficit reduction, the story from the executive branch suggests that Democrats have done a much better job of reigning in budget deficits. As a result, the leadership of the White House in regards to balancing the budget appears to be more important than ever.