As progressive candidates lay waste to pedestrian moderates in Democratic primaries from the Bronx to Florida, the excitement over proposals for universal health care coverage, free college, and further advances in social welfare has so far tended to mute the “affordability” question. But this question will return, if and when elected progressive legislators acquire the power to actually do good things.

Right now, the most common rejoinder to “how are we going to pay for it” is, “fuck you, the Republicans never talked about paying for their wretched proposals.” Quite so. Even some centrists have taken note of the dynamic in which Republicans repeatedly run up the deficit for dubious projects, leaving Democrats to assume the unpopular task of clean-up (tax increases and spending cuts), leading to the alienation of their own base and political defeat. However, this realization hasn’t precluded centrist criticism of emerging progressive politicians.

If we permit ourselves to imagine future political success, Democratic legislators in that progressive future will have to grapple with how to offset their proposed spending projects, in the form of spending cuts and tax increases. I’m not suggesting that the answers I provide in what follows are good political tactics; I’d rather leave that question to those who know how to win elections (a different skill than crafting fiscal policy). But these answers may prove useful once the elections have been won.