The Republicans have a savings plan. Gut the Nation’s Personality
by: Daniel Becker
Well, the repubs finally have put up. They have a $2.5 trillion, ten year savings plan. No, don’t worry. You will be kept safe as all national security is untouched. However, you can expect to wake up the next day from passage in a nation with an completely different personality. As in 180 degree different.
Here is the overview provided by the Republican Study Committee:
FY 2011 CR Amendment: Replace the spending levels in the FY 2011 continuing resolution (NYSE: CR – News) with non-defense, non-homeland security, non-veterans spending at FY 2008 levels. The legislation will further prohibit any FY 2011 funding from being used to carry out any provision of the Democrat government takeover of health care, or to defend the health care law against any lawsuit challenging any provision of the act. $80 billion savings.
Discretionary Spending Limit, FY 2012-2021: Eliminate automatic increases for inflation from CBO baseline projections for future discretionary appropriations. Further, impose discretionary spending limits through 2021 at 2006 levels on the non-defense portion of the discretionary budget. $2.29 trillion savings over ten years.
Federal Workforce Reforms: Eliminate automatic pay increases for civilian federal workers for five years. Additionally, cut the civilian workforce by a total of 15 percent through attrition. Allow the hiring of only one new worker for every two workers who leave federal employment until the reduction target has been met. (Savings included in above discretionary savings figure).
“Stimulus” Repeal: Eliminate all remaining “stimulus” funding. $45 billion total savings.
Eliminate federal control of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. $30 billion total savings.
Repeal the Medicaid FMAP increase in the “State Bailout” (Senate amendments to S. 1586). $16.1 billion total savings.
The 100 item list is below
Some of the items, cutting them, you just have to ask: How are they going to get the job done? Like cutting by 20% the federal vehicle budget or cut in half the congressional printing and binding budget? What, we’re going to suddenly seen legislation that is only 1/2 the size of pages? I’m sorry folks, but this list is nothing but an ideological hit list. There is not thought at all regarding intergration as it relates to investing in this country or even governing. Can you say: New York snow storm clearing disaster?
Here is the full list of cuts:
Additional Program Eliminations/Spending Reforms
Corporation for Public Broadcasting Subsidy. $445 million annual savings.
Save America’s Treasures Program. $25 million annual savings.
International Fund for Ireland. $17 million annual savings.
Legal Services Corporation. $420 million annual savings.
National Endowment for the Arts. $167.5 million annual savings.
National Endowment for the Humanities. $167.5 million annual savings.
Hope VI Program. $250 million annual savings.
Amtrak Subsidies. $1.565 billion annual savings.
Eliminate duplicative education programs. H.R. 2274 (in last Congress), authored by Rep. McKeon, eliminates 68 at a savings of $1.3 billion annually.
U.S. Trade Development Agency. $55 million annual savings.
Woodrow Wilson Center Subsidy. $20 million annual savings.
Cut in half funding for congressional printing and binding. $47 million annual savings.
John C. Stennis Center Subsidy. $430,000 annual savings.
Community Development Fund. $4.5 billion annual savings.
Heritage Area Grants and Statutory Aid. $24 million annual savings.
Cut Federal Travel Budget in Half. $7.5 billion annual savings.
Trim Federal Vehicle Budget by 20%. $600 million annual savings.
Essential Air Service. $150 million annual savings.
Technology Innovation Program. $70 million annual savings.
Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) Program. $125 million annual savings.
Department of Energy Grants to States for Weatherization. $530 million annual savings.
Beach Replenishment. $95 million annual savings.
New Starts Transit. $2 billion annual savings.
Exchange Programs for Alaska, Natives Native Hawaiians, and Their Historical Trading Partners in Massachusetts. $9 million annual savings.
Intercity and High Speed Rail Grants. $2.5 billion annual savings.
Title X Family Planning. $318 million annual savings.
Appalachian Regional Commission. $76 million annual savings.
Economic Development Administration. $293 million annual savings.
Programs under the National and Community Services Act. $1.15 billion annual savings.
Applied Research at Department of Energy. $1.27 billion annual savings.
FreedomCAR and Fuel Partnership. $200 million annual savings.
Energy Star Program. $52 million annual savings.
Economic Assistance to Egypt. $250 million annually.
U.S. Agency for International Development. $1.39 billion annual savings.
General Assistance to District of Columbia. $210 million annual savings.
Subsidy for Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority. $150 million annual savings.
Presidential Campaign Fund. $775 million savings over ten years.
No funding for federal office space acquisition. $864 million annual savings.
End prohibitions on competitive sourcing of government services.
Repeal the Davis-Bacon Act. More than $1 billion annually.
IRS Direct Deposit: Require the IRS to deposit fees for some services it offers (such as processing payment plans for taxpayers) to the Treasury, instead of allowing it to remain as part of its budget. $1.8 billion savings over ten years.
Require collection of unpaid taxes by federal employees. $1 billion total savings.
Prohibit taxpayer funded union activities by federal employees. $1.2 billion savings over ten years.
Sell excess federal properties the government does not make use of. $15 billion total savings.
Eliminate death gratuity for Members of Congress.
Eliminate Mohair Subsidies. $1 million annual savings.
Eliminate taxpayer subsidies to the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. $12.5 million annual savings.
Eliminate Market Access Program. $200 million annual savings.
USDA Sugar Program. $14 million annual savings.
Subsidy to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). $93 million annual savings.
Eliminate the National Organic Certification Cost-Share Program. $56.2 million annual savings.
Eliminate fund for Obamacare administrative costs. $900 million savings.
Ready to Learn TV Program. $27 million savings.
HUD Ph.D. Program.
Deficit Reduction Check-Off Act.
TOTAL SAVINGS: $2.5 Trillion over Ten Years
Yeah, eliminate beach replenishment. Never get a vote in NC, VA, or NJ again. Chris Christie is rolling over in his grave.
I also like the “defund the IRS” option; if that passes before 15 April, my taxes will look much different.
Can we just eliminate the Stennis Center and Congressional Death Benefits and call it a day?
It’s clearly not intended to actually happen. They’re just manufacturing evidence that “liberal spending is out of control, look at this list!” so they can get re-elected under the guise of stopping wasteful spending.
This list is really unique in that it lets the GOP get all the political benefit of campaigning on lower taxes without getting any political backlash from cutting people’s services. It’s kinda genius.
This reminds me of McCarthy’s “list” of “known communists”. Every pitch needs a prop 🙂
The other day Taiwan shot off 15 US supplied missiles.
5 failed miserably.
It was not because: Taiwan don’t know how to shoot them, nor that Taiwan ain’t paying well to keep them up.
It is that there is a lot of trash getting sold to the US taxpayer and the “allies”.
If the DoD said: “no verruns” or the “failed test is a failure and the stuff is cancelled”.
The US would save $40B a year in R&D and $50B a year in production spending. Add to that $100B a year in sustainemt costs as the unreliable stuff is not pushed off to the field to try and make it work.
Then cut 50% of the Army and Marine Combat Bridgades and supports. Reduce the carrier navy by 6 carriers and the fighter Air Force by 6 wings.
All told about $500B a year, and only about a million workers laid off.
And the US still spends more than 25% of the worlds’ outlays for weapons and formation.
“No prince prospered by long war”
And Bastait said there are always better things to do with workers laid off from building stuff to fight the Prussians.
He was proved right in 1870, 1914 and 1940.
While the US plans to give $11B this year for police in Afghanistan, forefighter, police and other municiple serviants are being laid off!!
See Tom’s Dispatch: http://www.tomdispatch.com/
So much for the US.
What an excellent start!
Conspicuous in it’s absence: Social Security
The line items eliminated won’t be missed, and as far as the rest of the budget
“…..the “Spending Reduction Act of 2011” ……would reduce current spending for non-defense, non-homeland security and non-veterans programs to 2008 levels”
I don’t remember 2008 as particularly Dickens-like.
Aee Sammy, you had to destroy the fun fest. As far as that goes, I don’t remember 2006 being all that bad either.
Aww, Sammy, you had to destroy the fun fest. As far as that goes, I don’t remember 2006 being all that bad either.
Misplaced investments disguised as austerity.
$11B for hiring police in Afghanistan, paid in part with $16B reduction in Medicaid, there go a few dozen inner city hospitals.
How many of them newly trained police in Afghanistan will turn on US soldiers?
No problem with poor Americans, Blackwater needs the skim.
$25B for the lead ship in the next class of aircraft carrier. Who gives what for that little piece of welfare for the private shipyards? Several thousand miles of interstate in ruin?
Marines need a skip jet so they can have them launch from any of their dozen amphib ships, just like the Brits’ one skip carrier going to repairs and then the brits have none for 2 years.
How much is sacrificed for redoing Iwo Jima? So much pillaging from one John Wayne movie…….
All these bad decisions, and the republicans claim to be Austrian, while if they understood the Austrians they would know they are causing the malinvestments in the US which will drive the next cycle even deeper.
Perpetual war is not so Austrian!
Sammy,
Going back to 2008?
Hummmmmmmm.
The republican have a larger warfare welfare tab in 2011 than in 2008. More stimulus for war moinger than then.
SS revenues are down due to slowed economic lower payrolls and the 2% rebated this year.
In 2008, the deficit was lowered by the SS surplus which won’t come back in the next year or two.
So………….
The republican are blowing smoke, if they can get the cuts through.
Nothing serious about deficit reduction as long as the militarists are getting 20% of outlays.
CONservative governMENt……….
They are CON MEN!
CoRev,
Very cute.
Going back to 2006?
Hummmmmmmm.
The republican have a significantly larger warfare welfare tab in 2011 than in 2006. More stimulus for war mongering than way back then, when Skeptical Optimist was saying the party would never end.
SS revenues are down due to slowed economic lower payrolls and the 2% rebated this year.
In 2006, the deficit was lowered by the SS surplus which won’t come back in the next year or two.
So………….
The republican are blowing smoke, if they can get the cuts through.
Nothing serious about deficit reduction as long as the militarists are getting 20% of outlays.
CONservative governMENt……….
CON MEN!
In the current economy, perhaps the Dems should require every proposed legislation to require an estimate of how many jobs the bill will directly create or eliminate. (The GOP requires legislation to be defended as permitted under the Constitution, so why not add this requirement?) I believe there are about 2.6 million civil servants and, estimated by Prof Paul Light for 2005, over 7.5 million federal contractors. Add maybe 3 million who are paid by grants. A few million state/local jobs are federally funded. Part-timers–unknown. The numbers grew after 2005, of course. Of the millions of contractors, btw, many are small businesses, including independent contractors.
Most of the GOP proposed budget-cutting is, ahem, job-killing and hostile to small business, and might be so-labeled. If economic conditions were a bit different, I might desire a lot of cuts in contracting, including at DoD, but they’re not.
yeah~i think i agree with you~
yes~you said was right~
http://www.jewelry-trading.com
PJR, you are making a very good point with which I agree. Govt budget cuts cost Govt and Govt funded jobs, and they actually lower the GDP.
I at the same time have a problem with a growing reliance on Govt/Govt funded jobs and Govt spending for GDP growth when they are occurring due to dangerously high borrowing. Interst on that borrowing can easilly double or even quadruble, making paying annual interest nearly the largest single annual expenditure. Yes, even larger than the defense portion!
So, I see one party trying to attack this potentially devastating problem (not without some negative impacts) and the other party with its head in the sand sniping at the responsible party.
As always YMMV.
War profiteers’ job programs are okay!
Hire another 70,000 Afghans to guard Karzai’s dope ring.
Lay off how many health care workers, school teachers, firefighters, and police in the US.
How many roads and bridges decay while the war machine is geared to storm ashore at Iwo Jima and take Suribachi…………..
I am dense this AM what is YMMV?
ilsm will not change.
CoRev,
Beware ‘standing armies and banks’, at least they seem to want to cut a few billion from TARP, that will mean the fed does it for the banks.
But they love the standing armies that give out so much money to wasters.
70,000 more Afghan police paid, trained and maintained by the US taxpayer and bond buyer.
“I at the same time have a problem with a growing reliance on Govt/Govt funded jobs and Govt spending for GDP growth when they are occurring due to dangerously high borrowing.”
No problem if the US G funded jobs are in the socialized ,monopsonist (where the sellers own the buyers), war machine industry profits complex, or Afghanistan, Iraq, Israel, and 600 sites around the world. Not including the 180 largest naval vessels in the world., the US Navy could not live without.
All securing the empire for whomever has the PAC bagment………..
While all this US G funded employment is a probelem the US is propping whole distatorial cabals in Iraq and Afghanistan, to name the most blatant. How many other dictatorships are actually US jobs programs?
How many firefighters, police, teachers, health care are being laid off or needed effort not done because of the overseas and military industrial complex jobs programs?
What is “YMMV”?
ilsm will not change
ILSM, Your Milleage May Vary (YMMV) is much more variable than most others on the “one trick” pony you ride.
Otherwise, why not comment on the resposnsible versus less rep[sonsible approach?
BTW, the no change to defense spending will not survive the cuts whn implemented. So, even I get some mileage out of the “one trick” pony of yours. I actually would cut defense spending by 30%, ~6% of the overall budget.
ILSM, Your Milleage May Vary (YMMV) is much more variable than most others on the “one trick” pony you ride.
Otherwise, why not comment on the resposnsible versus less respsonsible approach? Do not still understand the potential danger our budget is in?
BTW, the no change to defense spending will not survive the cuts whn implemented. So, even I get some mileage out of the “one trick” pony of yours. I actually would cut defense spending by 30%, ~6% of the overall budget. I haven’t done the math, but that would only get us to at least the 2008 defense spending.
Thanks,
You start at 13% of expenditures and I will start at 7% and we can discuss.
There is so much to write about my broke down pony.
Start with the Austrians and Frederic Bastiat in the 1850’s. The paradox of the broken glass etc.
Check above I do talk public goods etc.
I was an undergrad when……………
YMMV!!!
ILSM, “There is so much to write about my broke down pony.”, but why do we have to hear it on every subject? You’ve siad what you want, made every point, many, many time over. It is getting tiresome to the point I seldom read nor respond to them, unless they are directly relevant to the subject. In this case, relevant to budget cuts.
ILSM, “There is so much to write about my broke down pony.”, but why do we have to hear it on every subject? You’ve said what you want, made every point, many, many times over. It is getting tiresome to the point I seldom read nor respond to them, unless they are directly relevant to the subject. In this case, relevant to budget cuts.
“Eliminate Mohair Subsidies. $1 million annual savings.”
90% of Mohair wool is produced in Texas. And 99% of that is in (R) districts. It might only be $1 mil, but it’s never going to happen.
CoRev–Ilsm’s pony ain’t broke because he’s right. I want to hear what he has to say because there’s a lot to know about the way DOD works. He’s teaching me about what appears to be intentional, institutionalized fraud on a massive scale. The R’s in Congress are not talking about any DOD/HSA expenditure reductions. As a result, I know that they’re blowing smoke about cutting spending and don’t really care about it.
Fact is that the federal government is a massive money machine. Politicians and their industrial and business supporters want it to spend lots of money–but only on the Right People. So, spending is not the problem. If the new guys don’t know that now, they better learn quick. Rev, look at it this way. Have you ever had a government contract that was a waste of the taxpayers’ money? And, did you turn it down? Jus’ funnin’–no answer required. NancyO
Sam Donaldson has a ranch where he raises mohair goats. Another blow against the Liberal Media! NancyO
CoRev
no offense, but your one trick pony is not only as “one trick” as ilsm’s, this observer, at least, can’t figure out what the substance of your argument is. a general desire to cut government and government spending doesn’t really get us into the mechanics of how to do it.
at least ilsm has an plan with a relatively obvious method of application.
ilsm
speaking of ymmv, i have forgot what ilsm stands for.
NO, in reality I agree with you about no DOD fund cuts. OTH, ILSM’s views are just a tad biased when it comes to how good/bad defense spending is when compared to other Fed agencies, Ag. for example.
Dale, no offense, but your response is again useless or at best not understandable. Care to explain what my “one trick” pony might be? CAGW, Fed deficits, Fed budget procresses, election politics, Democratic legislation, conservative view points, etc. I have commented, sometimes passionately, about all of them here.
Donaldson’s ranch is in New Mexico, they wouldn’t let him in Texas!
Rev–Sorry for late response. I went to the store to buy a nice beef roast to make Italian pot roast for tomorrow. In regard to the type of spending usual in DOD versus that of other agencies, all I can speak to is my experience. I can tell you that money is always tight in SSA for staffing, overtime, employee relocations caused by promotions, and even promotions–lateral reassignments are usually preferred to fill my kind of supervisory/administrative job. Not a lot of perks go with those jobs unless you call bathroom overflow cleanups a perk.
The size of the spending for weapons systems make DOD’s budget especially prone to huge expenses which don’t result in usable weapons. A huge overrun in a local SS office is a 50 cent error on the monthly spending report. Hey, the top guys in SSA really care about sloppy reporting like that. No lie!!
In DOD, however, you are sure to find a lot of poor record-keeping and reporting because of the number of contracts/contractors to keep track of. We agree it’s a mistake to exempt DOD from cuts. But, how to do it is always the hangup. From the standpoint of other federal agencies, DOD is the Golden Mountain. Obviously, this Congress regards it as the True Sacred Cow, as well. NancyO
NO, the only issue I have with your latest is the impression that the other agencies do not live with similar budget constraints. DOD, SSA, AG, etc all have similar annual administrative budget constraints.
If you really want to see tight budgets go to work for cities and counties. Woohee! Counting pencils, copy paper and paper clips is actually done.
Does anyone know why the Hawaiian exchange program is there? It seems a good candidate to kill. If its just for talking put the folks on facebook, no need for face to face, if need be a few teleconferences as well. 9 Million will buy a lot of teleconferences. It sounds like a way for folks from cold Ma to get to Hawaii in the winter on the governments dime.
Does it add up ? After a quick add, it seems the cuts are less than $60Bn/yr, am I right ?
CoRev
fair enough. you also comment about global warming. but it always seems to me that what you are saying is we need less government, except military spending.
i am willing to hear ilsm on defense spending over and over because there may be people who haven’t heard it, and sure as hell we haven’t done anything about it.
i hope you don’t mind hearing from me about SS for about the same reasons.
and I wouldn’t even mind hearing from you about GW… except you get so mad at me when i try to point out the science failures in your passion.
Orlando, not included in the list is the cut back to 2008 and then 2006 levels of spending.
Yo, Rev–I once got into big trouble when arguing with someone in a (much) higher pay grade. After the person finally understood my point, I said, “No ***t, Sherlock!” Had to do another month in the stockade after that lttle outburst.
So, at the risk of going right back to jail, allow me to say that I once asked the people in my shop to bring back all the pens and pencils they had in their purses, desks at home, and kitchen drawers. We reused photcopy paper by turning it over and copying on the other side. The paper jams cost SS a fortune in repairs, but hey–we did what they told us to do.
This was the Bush I administration–no overtime and Amnesty. One of my service reps passed out while working at the front counter. She couldn’t go to lunch on time for because of the people who remained to be interviewed and stayed at the front counter until she passed out from low blood sugar.
We couldn’t order the special computer paper we used. Custom-made for SS, the contractor didn’t get paid and wouldn’t ship on promises. The shortages were so bad that several friends of mine who ran big shops actually quit over it. They got jobs in private industry and the DOD where they could actually order paper clips. I stayed of course. I just love to suffer. But, Rev ole buddy, don’t try to out poor me. Been there, done that–scraped my intials on the wall with a sharpened spoon. 😎 NancyO
Yeah, buddy. But, he’s from Texas and I didn’t say nothin’ about where his ranch is. He himself IS from Texas. Here’s the Googs–http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_Donaldson
Ain’t mad, jus’ sayin’. NancyO
Orlando for a meeting, I take it. OooooWhee. Whut a sacrifice. Po’ thangs. I can go on like this forever, y’all, But, outta here. NancyO
NO, remember the first email system SSA put up? It was at its time the largest in the world. Betcha didn’t know that. Know what that system saved in long distance phone charges in the remaining part of its first year? Five times its original cost.
All Govt agencies can be foolish penny pinchers at times. Field offices are usually the recipient of the down sloping of these policies.
Just curious – does the proposed 15% reduction in the federal workforce (mainly through attrition) include Congressmen and Senators?