With all of the attention on the BP oil spill, the European debt crisis and even financial regulatory reform, the fact that Congress hasn’t passed (and will likely not pass) a federal budget for fiscal year 2011 is flying under the radar.
To quote the words of the House Majority Leader, “The most basic responsibility of governing — enacting a budget.”
So what has Congress been so busy doing that they can’t find the time to pass a budget?
Courtesy of Bankrupting America.
Wisconsin Representative Paul Ryan explains his budget policy ideas…
“We will cut spending.”
-By Warner Todd Huston
For decades I have been sick and tired unto death of the massive overspending, arrogance, and outright graft of Congress. Like many of you I felt the Tea Party movement was a bolt out of the blue, but a welcome one. I was also jazzed when the 2010 Republican wave overtook Washington and installed so many freshmen congressmen pledging to cut the federal budget. Also like many of you I am frustrated with the slow pace of cuts and would love to see them come faster.
One of the loudest voices decrying the slow pace of the cuts often comes from the radio talkers. Folks like Limbaugh and Levin, for instance, are heard to lament that the GOP is not being proactive enough with the budget cuts. They say the $10 billion that the House Republicans have been successful in cutting so far with the pair of short-term continuing budgets is a drop in the bucket, that it is almost a joke.
It’s easy to make the case, too, that saving $10 billion is the least of efforts especially when Obama has run us up to $2.5 trillion in debt… and here is where the “but” comes in (not to mention where I get hardcore conservatives mad at me).
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Let’s Have Some Patience on the Budget Cuts”
Do you need a visual representation to help you understand the budget mess and the inadequate cuts being discussed? Well here it is. And you can couple it with a drinking game, too, apparently…
You can see other great videos like this at the 1,000 Pennies YouTube page.
-By Warner Todd Huston
Senator Tom Coburn (R, OK), a medical doctor by trade, has put out a report that details some of the worst government waste of 2010. His “Wastebook 2010: A Guide to Some of the Most Wasteful Government Spending of 2010” was released on his website on Dec. 20.
Coburn’s released statement laments the waste.
“As 2010 ends, millions of Americans are still struggling to find work. Even those lucky enough to have jobs have had to tighten their belts. Yet, Congress continues to find new and extravagant ways to waste tax dollars. In today’s economy, we can’t afford to spend nearly $2 million to showcase neon signs no longer in use at Las Vegas Casinos, nor can Congress and federal agencies afford to spend nearly $1 billion a year on unnecessary printing costs.”
“Our national debt is the greatest threat to our national security according to our own military leaders. Well-intentioned people across the political spectrum will argue about the best way to get us back on track. But we can all agree that cutting wasteful and low priority spending from the budget is not only sensible, but essential.”
“I hope this report will give taxpayers and concerned citizens the information they need to hold Washington accountable. As dysfunctional as our politics can seem, our system still works when ordinary citizens get informed and engaged.”
The Most Wasteful Government Spending of 2010″
-By Warner Todd Huston
Pork, pork, pork. It’s enough pork to make a Southside Chicago BBQ joint greasy with envy. Yes, it’s a bacchanalia of pork spending and earmarks in the Omnibus spending bill, for sure, and we now have the database to prove it.
Senator Tom Coburn has posted a Google Spreadsheet data base document on line and there you can see how much the earmark costs us, where it is going, and which of our congressmen asked for the earmark.
There’s One million, five hundred eighteen thousand dollars for animal vaccines in Greenport, New York. There’s three hundred grand for the study of phytoplankton in Boothbay, Maine. Millions going to various drug enforcement programs across the country. Ten mil is being shelled out to the “John P. Murtha Foundation” for… well, just because John was such a prince of a guy. There’s a mil six hundred thou for the “Brain Safety Net,” so that brains can be safe… and stuff. Lots of cash for the study of renewable energy, various road and bridge projects, and educational efforts. Even more cash to the Department of Energy for the “Office of Science” because, well, only government can do science, ya know?
So far there have been 6,715 earmarks attached to the Fiscal 2011 Omnibus Spending bill that Congress is now considering.
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A Detailed List of Earmarks in The Omnibus Spending Bill”
-By Warner Todd Huston
All day the Democrats and Republicans have been trying to reach an agreement on extending the Bush tax cuts. They may be close to an agreement. GOP Senate minority leader McConnell issued a statement today on the issue:
A Framework of a Bipartisan Agreement to Prevent Tax Hikes
“Members of the Senate and House will review this bipartisan agreement, but I am cautiously optimistic that our Democratic friends will have the same openness to preventing tax hikes that the administration has already shown.”
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell made the following statement Monday regarding a framework of a bipartisan agreement to prevent tax hikes on every American taxpayer :
“I appreciate the determined efforts of the President and Vice President in working with Republicans on a bipartisan plan to prevent a tax hike on any American and in creating incentives for economic growth. Their efforts reflect a growing bipartisan belief that a new direction is needed if we are to revive the economy and help put millions of Americans back to work. Members of the Senate and House will review this bipartisan agreement, but I am optimistic that Democrats in Congress will show the same openness to preventing tax hikes the administration has already shown.”
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Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell on Tax Hike Agreement”
-By Warner Todd Huston
Well, after Senate GOP minority leader Mitch McConnell agreed to go along with the anti-earmark policy that the Tea Party voters were urging, the Senate voted to ban earmarked spending.
Earmarks are those little spending clauses added to bills that otherwise have nothing at all to do with the earmark and are emblematic of the wasteful spending indulged by Congress.
According to Roll Call:
Senate Republicans threw down the earmark gauntlet Tuesday by adopting a resolution calling on Democrats to adopt a voluntary ban moments after they adopted an identical ban of their own.
The challenge, authored by Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.), calls for Democrats to swear off requests for “a congressionally directed spending item, limited tax benefit or limited tariff benefit” during the 112th Congress.
Adopted by voice vote by the Republican Conference, the challenge came shortly after GOP Senators agreed to an identical ban proposed by Sen. Jim DeMint (S.C.). Although Sen. James Inhofe (Okla.) objected to the ban — and expressed his strong opposition to it during the GOP’s closed-door meeting — he did not block a voice vote on the measure.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has repeatedly dismissed demands for a moratorium on earmarks over the last several days.
Notice, folks, that the Democrats want to continue unabated the wasteful spending by our representatives in both the House and the Senate. Democrats live to waste our tax dollars.
It is heartening that the Republicans have heard the voters and are willing to follow that directive to begin the long, hard road to end wasteful spending. Certainly eliminating earmarks are a tiny step in the right direction, but it is a step and a welcome one, indeed.
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Senate Republicans Vote to Ban Earmarks”
-By Warner Todd Huston
You know when a liberal has lost any capability to understand the common American when they completely miss the pain that liberal tax hikers cause the average citizen in this country. Charlie Cook recently showed this elitist attitude in a National Journal column on the outrageous costs of the Cap and Trade bill – better called the Cap and Tax bill. Of course, to him, the tax hike on the average American is not a big deal and he doesn’t understand how anyone could be upset over it all.
Cook is perplexed why Washington pols were “getting an earful” from constituents over the energy tax hikes that the Cap and Trade bill will force on the nation. He just couldn’t figure why adding “only” an additional $175 a year to the average citizen’s electric bill was such a big deal.
Charlie Cook: Another Out of Touch Liberal”
-By Warner Todd Huston
Want to see a full list of the earmarks in the Energy and Water Bill that the House is about to begin debating? Well, I hope you have some stamina because there are 1,866 of them to read.
You’ll notice that many of them are being requested by “the President.” That would be the Barack Obama 2012 re-election campaign project you are seeing there.
For some reason, my list is causing trouble with the code here, so the full list was posted by Jamie Dupree.
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1,866 earmarks in Energy and Water Bill”