Who, What, Why: Who first called it a 'fiscal cliff'?

By Tom Geoghegan
BBC News, Washington
The phrase "fiscal cliff" is now part of the American leicon, descri!ing the looming
deadline when ta c"ts epire and spending c"ts #ic# in$ B"t where did the term come
from and is the image a helpf"l one?
No sooner had %resident Barac# &!ama awo#en from his election night 'ictory rally than
the media was disc"ssing the net pressing iss"e sitting atop his in(tray$
The so(called fiscal cliff descri!es the a"tomatic ta increases and spending c"ts d"e to
ta#e effect on ) *an"ary, a com!ination which economists say wo"ld p"sh the +, into
recession ( with glo!al conse-"ences$
The Congressional B"dget &ffice estimates the economy wo"ld contract in ./)0 !y /$12
and "nemployment wo"ld rise to 3$)2$
B"t the White 4o"se and Congress are trying to agree a pac#age of meas"res that wo"ld
di'ert the co"ntry from the fiscal cliff$ &n Wednesday, the president repeated his call for
increased taes on high earners to !e part of the sol"tion$
The phrase "fiscal cliff" has -"ic#ly ta#en its place in the national con'ersation, !"t what
are its origins?
5ong !efore the fiscal cliff came the "fiscal precipice", says leicographer Ben 6immer,
pointing to an editorial in the Chicago Tri!"ne in )730:
"The free sil'er shrie#ers are stri'ing to t"m!le the +nited ,tates o'er the same fiscal
precipice$"
The first #nown "se of "fiscal cliff" is tho"ght to !e in )318, he says, when it appeared in
the property section of the New 9or# Times$ Written !y Walter ,tern, the article "sed the
term to refer to people o'er(!orrowing to !"y their first home$
:n the )38/s and 7/s, it was "sed to descri!e the precario"s state of city, state and federal
!"dgets, most nota!ly in relation to New 9or# City's !r"sh with !an#r"ptcy in )381$
&ne of its first "ses in the &!ama era was !y ,enator *im ;e<int in .//7, spea#ing
a!o"t the president's spending programme$
B"t it wasn't "ntil Ben Bernan#e, chairman of the =ederal >eser'e, "sed it in a speech to
a congressional committee in =e!r"ary of this year, in reference to the e'ents of ) *an"ary
./)0, that the phrase leapt into the mainstream$