The deficit control policy Democrats and Republicans can love

When it comes to fixing America's ballooning debt problem, there is one policy option that both Democrats and Republicans should be rushing to embrace. It is the proposal to replace the current Consumer Price Index (CPI) with a more accurate measure of price inflation: the Chained-CPI. If this index were used to calculate cost of living increases in Social Security benefits, income tax brackets and the like, the government could realize significant savings. The current CPI's exaggerated estimates of inflation are a wasteful leak in the fiscal pipeline. Politicians who are serious about "rooting-out government waste and inefficiency" should be demanding a switch to the Chained-CPI.

By Robert Yentzer

January 28, 2013