The best way for the federal government to balance the budget is through a combination of spending cuts and increased taxes, more than half of the voters in an informal Yahoo! Finance poll said Thursday.
With 10,283 total responses to the question, 52% said some combination of those two actions would be preferred to the other choices provided. However, 41% of respondents wanted to only cut spending in order to balance the budget, making for a very strong second-place showing. With those two options making up 93% of the total vote, you can see quickly how readers feel about raising taxes alone as the preferred course of action. Our poll ran the same day that a group of corporate CEOs called on Congress to implement tax hikes and lower spending to tackle the nation's budget deficit.
The question was one of seven we asked readers in a bid to get a sense of what they believe the government should do to improve its financial standing. The poll, the first in a series of three we'll release, was not scientific -- for instance, 91% of respondents said they were male. But we do hope the series will provide a place to weigh in with constructive thoughts on the economy, both in the questions and in the comments.
The U.S. financial situation is a crucial topic in the 2012 elections and the race for the White House between President Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney. It matters to our readers. That's why we want to hear from you, the taxpayer and voter, on what you want to see Washington do or not do. Now that part one is done, have a look today at part two, which has seven new questions relating to the economy. Part three will run next week.