The GOP's Funding Cuts: A Double-Edged Sword.

Republicans' proposal to cut IRS funding as part of a debt limit deal would actually worsen the deficit, as forecasters generally agree that beefing up tax enforcement is a money maker for the Treasury. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimates that rescinding $71 billion in IRS funding pushed through by Democrats last year would cut projected tax receipts by $191 billion over the next decade, resulting in the government finding itself an additional $120 billion in the hole. Democrats disagree, saying they will train the IRS’s scrutiny on the rich while emphasizing the dividends the effort will pay to the public fisc.