What Does It Take To Cut $2 Trillion of Fat, Muscle and Bone From the Federal Budget?
Posted by freedomforall 2 days, 2 hours ago to Politics
Excerpt:
"A goal of $2 trillion of budget savings is crucial to the very future of constitutional democracy and capitalist prosperity in America. In fact, the soaring public debt is now so out-of-control that the Federal budget threatens to become a self-fueling financial doomsday machine. So more power to the DOGE of Musk & Ramaswamy. In spades!
For want of doubt, just recall this sequence. When Ronald Reagan was elected in 1980 on a call to bring the nation’s inflationary budget under control, the public debt was $1 trillion.
By the time Donald Trump was elected the first time it had erupted to $20 trillion, which has now become $36 trillion. And under current built-in spending and tax policies it will hit $60 trillion by the end of the current 10-year budget window.
Thereafter, however, soaring interest expense will ignite a veritable fiscal wildfire."
"A goal of $2 trillion of budget savings is crucial to the very future of constitutional democracy and capitalist prosperity in America. In fact, the soaring public debt is now so out-of-control that the Federal budget threatens to become a self-fueling financial doomsday machine. So more power to the DOGE of Musk & Ramaswamy. In spades!
For want of doubt, just recall this sequence. When Ronald Reagan was elected in 1980 on a call to bring the nation’s inflationary budget under control, the public debt was $1 trillion.
By the time Donald Trump was elected the first time it had erupted to $20 trillion, which has now become $36 trillion. And under current built-in spending and tax policies it will hit $60 trillion by the end of the current 10-year budget window.
Thereafter, however, soaring interest expense will ignite a veritable fiscal wildfire."
In the federal government, we couldn't make capital expenditures that exceeded our allotted portion of our yearly budget because we were not allowed to carry funds forward between years. As such, making a large purchase for a Storage Area Network device (would last 5-7 years) is impossible and needed so they would wast money on crap they didn’t need to get rid on the money.
I would immediately suspend all budgets, institute a simple feedback loop giving an incentive for returning unspent funds. This alone would cut a massive amount of wast.
The target of the cutting is the 2 trillion of CANCEROUS tissues & the pork fat it has infested.
Energy.
I sent in a plan to absorb the EPA into the DoE, and do some horse trading with the Dept of the Interior, to clean up a few Superfund sites in exchange for them ceding control of ALL offshore energy pies they've stuck their dirty thumbs into.
Alas, the President gave it to Chris Wright, who is ostensibly another oilman. I'd've thought he learned his lesson with Rick Perry. But at least he's not a former politician. Let's hope he's not the wrong man for the job.
I had planned to axe 25% of the combined DOE & EPA workforce on day one. Seriously, fresh pink slips for one out of every four people, on the first day. And then cut ~$20 billion of waste in the first 30 days. No contingencies, just identify the spending that isn't producing results and mark the projects TERMINATED.
That would be the entire EPA.
Actually they do have results, but they results are the opposite of what a freedom loving person would want.
So they are negative results.
Fire them all and let us have inexpensive vehicles again if that is what the free market desires.
Bring back the diesel engine in private cars
(that the EPA wiped out because VW didn't follow the EPA's stupid counterproductive moronic rules.)
I would task the DoE with keeping the environment very CLEAN* by applying a series of very simple yet very effective rules that would apply to the polluters.
Remember that scene from Erin Brockovitch when Erin tells the executives "We had that water brought in special for you from Hinkley." and they suddenly lost their thirst... Yeah, that's pretty much exactly how I'd run the EPA under the DOE.
Fire all government workers, they don’t work. Go to contract for anything required...
I love it. very intelligent approach!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iCPaI...
Abolish:
Department of Agriculture
Department of commerce
Department of Education
Department of Energy (accept nuclear, move to Department of Defense)
½ of the Department of Health and Human services
Department of Housing and Urban development – sell the properties to the current owner
Department of the Interior – sell of all of the land
Department of Labor
Department of Transportation
Department of Veteran Affairs – lump sums and be done with it
Keep:
Department of Defense
½ of the Department of Health and Human services
Department of Justice
Department of State
Department of the Treasury – keep it to collect taxes
Giving the outstanding job our government did with COVID, I'd ax the Department of Health and Human services. I’d also implement a flat tax (or none at all) and do away with the Department of the Treasury. I’d also shrink Defense, Justice and State to next to nothing.
Second, the bottom 10% of employees MUST BE FIRED, and CANNOT replace more than 1/2 of them.
Third, their budget is designed to keep decreasing over time. If they fail to live within their budget, the money comes from the RETIREMENT program of their Agency. Furthermore, it is structured so the largest percentage comes from those at the TOP of the food chain, INCLUDING those recently retired.
Fourth, every agency has to have a marker of when they achieved their goal. When accomplished, it is shut down completely, and that is the ONLY THING that can guarantee a retirement is paid out.
Fifth, absolute financial caps are in place, so retirements cannot exceed some calculation (Looking at you Fauci).
Finally, taking bribes in a federal position is declared to be Treason, and when convicted, execution is required. This includes their children and spouses getting special jobs, etc. with the companies they regulate, using the IRS "Arms Length" transaction rule.
You must build a legal framework that prevents as much rot from growing, for as long as possible!
They are all parasites.
If social security still exists, then there should never be ANY additional retirement for ANY government employee.
As Gene Wilder as Willie Wonka said, "You get NOTHING!"
Memo to all federal employees: 'You are fired, but may be considered for future employment based solely on merit along with other applicants.'
$X exp N and that is GUTS.... something Congress doesn't have.
I am not saying that to denigrate his great contribution to the monetary theory of macroeconomics; I studied his work---with Anna Schwarz---on the "Great Contraction", and it is why I am a monetarist, in most respects at least, today.