Thomas Lindaman writes:
With the budget battles in Wisconsin garnering a lot of attention, it's easy to overlook the budget battle going on in Washington, DC, right now. And much like in Wisconsin, the battles are contentious. Democrats and Republicans are fighting over what to cut and how much. Although Republicans have introduced a decent plan to cut over a trillion dollars,
Biggest whopper of 2011 so far. See below.
but after reading some of the proposed cuts (and noticing some of the things that aren't being cut), I'm have to say Republicans aren't serious about it.
Allow me to step in and offer some suggestions for areas to cut.
Department of Education - Since the inception of the Department of Education, America's educational standards have slipped significantly. Whether it's students who can barely read coming out of high school or watching our math and science scores slide further and further down the list of countries, it's clear the Department of Education is failing. Oh, and when you consider Department of Education funds were used to buy the National Education Association a new office building in DC...it's time to make some serious cuts in their budget.
Sounds like Ron Paul. "Education is not a right!"
Just because you talk about it in your conservative sewing circles, doesn't make it reality.
The Department of Education being eliminated is about as likely as winning the lottery while being attacked by a polar bear.
The Department of Education direct lending program has been doing it better and cheaper without the private enterprise middle man.
Funny, when Obama wanted to stop federal aid for diploma mills, the geniuses in the radical right were suddenly in favor of funding education.
Thank god the traitorous Pentagon disagrees with cutting education.
Keep cutting education, and businesses won't want to move to your state.
There is never a good reason to eliminate the Department of Education. You absolutely need national, not local, standards of education.
Superfund - The EPA set up this fund as a means to help clean-up efforts at pollution sites. A good idea in theory, but in practice? Not so much. Superfund has constantly been funded, but the number of pollution sites being cleaned is pitiful at best. The list of pollution sites has been growing, but the number of sites actually being cleaned is practically non-existent. Put the clean-up efforts in the hands of private industry and defund Superfund.
Private industry is what caused the spill in the first place. Naturally, Lindaman somehow tried and failed to blame the government for it. lol
Department of Defense - Cost overruns aren't unusual for defense spending, but the amounts are obscene. If you're a Republican House member reading this, you honestly don't see a single cent that could be cut in the defense budget? I do, and we need to get a serious grip on our defense spending so we can stop spending $350 on a hammer. That's mini bar prices, kids. Go to Ace Hardware and pick up a hammer for a fraction of that. Then, let's cut a lot more.
Though I agree we spend too much on defense, the hammer story is not really true. Just because the movie "Independence Day" said so doesn't mean it's true. lol
Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae - Does anyone really think the government needs any hand in the mortgage industry? After all, the government only caused the current mortgage crisis. Strip them of funding yesterday.
The mortgage crisis came from predatory lending, not Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. It was DEregulation that caused the mess, not government intervention. Yet again, Conservatives live in Bizarro World.
National Endowment for the Arts - I appreciate a good dramatic play, opera, or art exhibit as much as anyone. But given how Leftists are the ones who claim to appreciate them far more than a guy like me, maybe they should dip a little deeper into their pockets to support the arts. And why not cut out the middle man (i.e. government) and have them donate directly?
Picking on public funding for the arts is as classless as taunting a midget at an AA meeting. Leave it to Republicans to cut funds to museums (except Creationist ones, of course).
"After a certain high level of technical skill is achieved, science and art tend to coalesce in esthetics, plasticity, and form. The greatest scientists are artists as well."
"The value of an education in a liberal arts college is not the learning of many facts, but the training of the mind to think of something that cannot be learned from textbooks."
-Albert Einstein.
But hey, what does he know?
The FCC - What part of "Congress shall make no law...abridging the freedom of speech" is confusing to the FCC? The very fact it exists defies the Constitution, and the fact it keeps getting funded is absurd.
You have only yourselves to blame for the FCC.
The FCC's entire existence is due to televangelists refusing to stay on their assigned frequencies, deliberately interfering with other broadcasters, and the FCC's predecessor having no enforcement power to deal with the televangelists' shitting all over the airwaves.
See? I've already shaved off billions with only a few suggestions. Come back when you have a serious budget cutting plan, Republicans.
The Republicans aren't going to cut jack shit.
The House Republican budget adds $6 trillion to the debt.
How was that going to cut a trillion dollars again?
Way to go, Party of Fiscal Responsibility(tm).
With the budget battles in Wisconsin garnering a lot of attention, it's easy to overlook the budget battle going on in Washington, DC, right now. And much like in Wisconsin, the battles are contentious. Democrats and Republicans are fighting over what to cut and how much. Although Republicans have introduced a decent plan to cut over a trillion dollars,
Biggest whopper of 2011 so far. See below.
but after reading some of the proposed cuts (and noticing some of the things that aren't being cut), I'm have to say Republicans aren't serious about it.
Allow me to step in and offer some suggestions for areas to cut.
Department of Education - Since the inception of the Department of Education, America's educational standards have slipped significantly. Whether it's students who can barely read coming out of high school or watching our math and science scores slide further and further down the list of countries, it's clear the Department of Education is failing. Oh, and when you consider Department of Education funds were used to buy the National Education Association a new office building in DC...it's time to make some serious cuts in their budget.
Sounds like Ron Paul. "Education is not a right!"
Just because you talk about it in your conservative sewing circles, doesn't make it reality.
The Department of Education being eliminated is about as likely as winning the lottery while being attacked by a polar bear.
The Department of Education direct lending program has been doing it better and cheaper without the private enterprise middle man.
Funny, when Obama wanted to stop federal aid for diploma mills, the geniuses in the radical right were suddenly in favor of funding education.
Thank god the traitorous Pentagon disagrees with cutting education.
Keep cutting education, and businesses won't want to move to your state.
There is never a good reason to eliminate the Department of Education. You absolutely need national, not local, standards of education.
Superfund - The EPA set up this fund as a means to help clean-up efforts at pollution sites. A good idea in theory, but in practice? Not so much. Superfund has constantly been funded, but the number of pollution sites being cleaned is pitiful at best. The list of pollution sites has been growing, but the number of sites actually being cleaned is practically non-existent. Put the clean-up efforts in the hands of private industry and defund Superfund.
Private industry is what caused the spill in the first place. Naturally, Lindaman somehow tried and failed to blame the government for it. lol
Department of Defense - Cost overruns aren't unusual for defense spending, but the amounts are obscene. If you're a Republican House member reading this, you honestly don't see a single cent that could be cut in the defense budget? I do, and we need to get a serious grip on our defense spending so we can stop spending $350 on a hammer. That's mini bar prices, kids. Go to Ace Hardware and pick up a hammer for a fraction of that. Then, let's cut a lot more.
Though I agree we spend too much on defense, the hammer story is not really true. Just because the movie "Independence Day" said so doesn't mean it's true. lol
Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae - Does anyone really think the government needs any hand in the mortgage industry? After all, the government only caused the current mortgage crisis. Strip them of funding yesterday.
The mortgage crisis came from predatory lending, not Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. It was DEregulation that caused the mess, not government intervention. Yet again, Conservatives live in Bizarro World.
National Endowment for the Arts - I appreciate a good dramatic play, opera, or art exhibit as much as anyone. But given how Leftists are the ones who claim to appreciate them far more than a guy like me, maybe they should dip a little deeper into their pockets to support the arts. And why not cut out the middle man (i.e. government) and have them donate directly?
Picking on public funding for the arts is as classless as taunting a midget at an AA meeting. Leave it to Republicans to cut funds to museums (except Creationist ones, of course).
"After a certain high level of technical skill is achieved, science and art tend to coalesce in esthetics, plasticity, and form. The greatest scientists are artists as well."
"The value of an education in a liberal arts college is not the learning of many facts, but the training of the mind to think of something that cannot be learned from textbooks."
-Albert Einstein.
But hey, what does he know?
The FCC - What part of "Congress shall make no law...abridging the freedom of speech" is confusing to the FCC? The very fact it exists defies the Constitution, and the fact it keeps getting funded is absurd.
You have only yourselves to blame for the FCC.
The FCC's entire existence is due to televangelists refusing to stay on their assigned frequencies, deliberately interfering with other broadcasters, and the FCC's predecessor having no enforcement power to deal with the televangelists' shitting all over the airwaves.
See? I've already shaved off billions with only a few suggestions. Come back when you have a serious budget cutting plan, Republicans.
The Republicans aren't going to cut jack shit.
The House Republican budget adds $6 trillion to the debt.
How was that going to cut a trillion dollars again?
Way to go, Party of Fiscal Responsibility(tm).