Washington Faces a Simple Test: Keep Temporary Spending Temporary

The Wall Street Journal reports that Speaker Johnson is signaling caution toward a push to extend the COVID-era boost to Obamacare premium subsidies. That caution is warranted. These subsidies were created as a temporary response to the pandemic, and they should expire on schedule. Conservatives are right to oppose any attempt to extend them. If a program was created as a short-term emergency expense, it needs to remain short term.

For years, both parties have papered over fiscal problems by treating temporary programs as permanent fixtures. Every extension adds to a deficit that is already out of control, and taxpayers feel the bill in higher prices and weaker growth. The federal budget needs a reset that puts spending restraint ahead of political convenience.

This moment is a chance for lawmakers to show some discipline. Spending must be slashed. Temporary programs must remain temporary. That is the only way to regain control of the federal balance sheet and give families a healthier economy.

If Congress cannot draw a line here, it is hard to see when it ever will.