I’m not usually political and rarely get controversial and
endless arguing of pros and cons of politics is an anathema to me. That doesn't
mean I don’t have opinions, only that I don’t always choose to air them.
I will say this whole debacle of balancing the budget ticks
me off. The Joint Committee of the Office of Management and Budget seriously
ticks me off, as does congress.
I am not a financial expert. Common sense says to
balance any budge you have to first control and reduce the spending while still
paying off debt and looking for ways to invest or increase income. It means
taking a hard look at needs versus wants. It also means putting away your
credit line sources and not touching them and certainly not using them to make
up the difference lost income (aka robbing Peter to pay Paul).
When you take a hard look at income versus expenditures
aren't you reducing your charitable donations and taking a firm look at
finances before loaning money to anyone? It’s not that a matter of not caring
about others but a matter of first priorities, which should be the immediate
needs and health of your family (or on a governmental level the needs of your
citizens). The bottom line is if I’m spending more than I’m earning I’m going
to go bankrupt. And so is this government if it doesn't smarten up.
The last time the United States had a balanced budget and
reported a surplus was in 2001. The country has been running in the red since
and it’s jumped dramatically under this administration. From 1970-1997 this
country’s budget ran red. A new president was elected and in 1998 came a
balanced budget and a reported surplus and not just one year but 1999, 2000,
and 2001. A democratic president and republican controlled congress and yet not
only was the budget balanced, but there was a surplus.
I’m not saying
all of this was result of the Clinton Administration because it certainly
wasn't. Much of this was set up and in place during the prior
Administration. Clinton was just smart enough to go along with what had already
been set in motion. Each president inherits the good and bad from the prior
administration. And there was some good problem solving by people who actually
used the principles learned in school and applied it to the financial mess of
the government. It wasn't perfect but at least it was positive forward
movement. There was some pretty fancy dancing around turning deficits to
surpluses with substantial cutting of taxes (including capital gains) and discretionary
spending of the government as well as revamping of the welfare system (and
other government funded programs) and thus promoting an economic boom, which
led to a surplus. But these people were smart and looked for ways to make the
cuts in discretionary spending of government programs by setting other
financial resources in place to help defray those cuts and minimize the
hardships on the citizens impacted.
This administration has decided the answer is raising taxes,
including capital gains (from 15% to 20%). Thus insuring those businesses and
people with realized profits that could spend it here, at home, generating jobs
will be spend or invest elsewhere.
When the Joint Committee of the Office of Management and
Budget (OMB) couldn't agree and balance the National budget the Budget Control Act came into play and forced cuts
impartially, without thought to the needs of citizens, across the board.
According to Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, this is how it works:
“The Budget Control Act spells out the steps that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) must take because of the Joint Committee’s inability to agree…the law calls for $1.2 trillion in deficit reduction through 2021… Those cuts themselves are divided equally between the “national defense” budget function and all other budget functions: $54.7 billion per year in defense and $54.7 billion per year in non-defense programs.”
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is what brought about the
harebrained sequester cuts. There are over 2.1 million federal workers and more
than half will be forced into a mandatory furlough one day a week with without
pay and they cannot recoup that loss by using their earned
vacation pay or sick leave. If you want to know how that impacts a family? Do
the math. Take 20% off your weekly income and see what you’d be losing. The
sequester cuts will also force lay-offs of more than 8,000 (that figure is just
the Department of the Army and who knows what the total figures are from all 4
branches of the military) people who are contract or temporary workers for the
government or military. Oh, and your unemployment benefits? You had better
hope you can find another job within 6 months. 3.8 million people are
unemployed and now more with sequester cuts, and they will see a reduction of
benefits as much as 9.4% if jobless beyond 6 months.
The Budget Control Act cuts effect more than you think. It
will impact on defense, Homeland Security, food safety, health care (such as
Medicare reimbursement and Veteran services), transportation, National Parks,
Nuclear Security, tax collection, low-income housing and education. Education
is a biggie. To put it in perspective, 70,000 enrolled students in Head Start
programs could be cut and 14,000 teachers. Special needs children will lose
about 7,200 teachers and aides. Grants used to fund college tuition and
work-study programs for students will also be affected.
I understand and agree with the need for cuts in government
programs and discretionary spending but not like this.
What really burns my bacon?
This Administration is
cutting paychecks of United States citizens and laying off thousands of others, allegedly to save the government money, and yet this President is giving
over $300 million in humanitarian aid to Syria and surrounding countries?
WTF??
