Christopher Jacobs writes for the Federalist about the best way to extend the original Trump tax cuts.

Will Congress actually take steps to reduce federal spending or try to fob off the tough decisions on the Department of Government Efficiency and the Trump administration? That’s the gist of a wonky debate going on inside the Beltway, and specifically within the corridors of the Capitol, about how to consider the renewal of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) provisions that expire at year’s end.

The question is whether Congress, in considering a budget reconciliation bill extending the TCJA, should adopt a “current policy baseline” or a “current law baseline.” The “current law baseline” — the standard way most legislation gets scored — assumes the TCJA provisions expire on Dec. 31 and that extending them will cost upwards of $4 trillion, including interest costs. The “current policy baseline” assumes the TCJA gets extended — on the grounds that Americans should not face a massive tax increase next year — making the cost of an extension $0, at least on paper.

According to recent reporting, President Trump has expressed support for the latter approach. But when the federal government has $36 trillion of debt and rising, putting trillions more on the national credit card will have long-run implications, few of them positive.

A recent Congressional Budget Office report requested by Joint Economic Committee Chairman David Schweikert, R-Ariz., shows the long-term damage this accounting gimmick could create. The analysis shows that extending the tax provisions would significantly increase federal debt over the long term, particularly if doing so leads to an accompanying increase in interest rates. …

… Better for Congress to do what it has failed to do for decades: put on its big-boy pants and finally get serious about lowering spending. Given all the government giveaways under the Biden administration, lawmakers have a target-rich environment where they can generate the savings necessary to pay for a permanent TCJA extension — provided they have the spine to do so.