Congress should prefer direct economic stimulus to austerity.

I disagree with the standard. Seeing as Con is the instigator of the debate I see it fitting that he should have burden of proof, or in the least that it be equally shared. “Contention 1: Austerity improves economic growth” My opponent starts by citing the Cato Institute to validate that austerity has worked in Estonia. I would first like to point out that the Cato Institute is a biased source because they have a political agenda; therefore, they are not objective. Secondly, comparing Estonia and United States is like comparing apples and oranges. As my opponent mentions in his third contention the United States’ debt is 101% or 102% of GDP (he cites both). Estonia on the other hand never had debt more than single digits [1]. Next Sweden is given as an example to show austerity spurs economic growth. However, I would argue that Sweden is not truly practicing austerity. “The spending plan of Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt provides for an increase in spending from 2012 to 24 billion kronor (2.83 billion euros) – “of which 23.4 have already been spent”, reports Svenska Dagbladet – or between half and one percentage point of Sweden’s GDP. ” [2] Also refer to the graph below [3]. My opponent then claims, “These economies are so different, and makes austerity work in any country so it will work in America. ” This is not a very accurate statement though. Estonia and Sweden are actually similar in many ways: both small countries, in Europe, using the Euro, with much smaller debts than the U. S. Estonia has a population of 1.34M and Sweden of 9.453M (World Bank). “Contention 2: Austerity decreases the unemployment rate. " My opponent supports this claim by citing two sources who say unemployment went down in Canada and Sweden due to austerity. However, I could not find any such article online reporting this, so I wonder if my opponent might provide the link to said articles in the next round. Until then this point should not be seen as valid because my opponent does not explain why unemployment would go down, and only cites two vague sources which at this time cannot be found. “Contention 3: Austerity lowers debt. ” I agree that if implemented at the proper time under proper circumstances austerity lowers debt. However, if implemented at the improper time it will only hurt the economy. This is in fact the perfect transition to my own argument which is that now is not the proper time for the United States to enact austerity. At this present time austerity will only exacerbate the United States’ economic crisis. The US is still in what is considered the worst economic climate since the Great Depression. Applying Con’s principles to the current economy would not be beneficial in the slightest. Right now the job market is unstable, many are dependent on government funding, and businesses and families alike are in fear of looming tax hikes. What Con is proposing is, despite all that, we take more money from the economy, cut back on government programs and spending, all while placing a larger tax burden on the people. Even the IMF warns that the US will only “grow at a sluggish rate in the coming year as government spending cuts threaten its recovery. ” The report goes on to say, “Over the next few years, as federal fiscal policy shifts toward austerity, it is likely to be a headwind against economic growth” [4] [5]. What the US needs is a stable economy and a much larger growth rate. Making cuts and increasing taxes does not promote growth, and is therefore not the solution for the US. Overall, it is apparent that austerity will only hinder growth. This is why Congress should prefer economic stimulus, which as my opponent defines it, “is an investment designed to jump start something such as more jobs, more consumer confidence, more investment, and more growth. ” This is precisely the antidote to the current economic state in America. I look forward to my opponents’ response. Sources: . http://blogs.ft.com... . http://www.presseurop.eu... . http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com... . http://www.huffingtonpost.com... . http://www.imf.org...