-
Immigration and the ‘Best and Brightest’
June 10, 2013 | 94 comments
-
Ken Cuccinelli Gets in the Game
June 3, 2013 | 11 comments
-
Memorial Day in Richmond
May 28, 2013 | 31 comments
-
Catholic Culture In America
May 23, 2013 | 35 comments
-
Earth Day 2013: The Papal Edition
April 22, 2013 | 22 comments
A Further Perspective
The Insanity of Washington Spending
Can the Marines lead the way back?
When even a centrist Democrat such as Mort Zuckerman calls the Obama administration “The Most Fiscally Irresponsible Government in U.S. History,” you know the nation is in peril.
They just don’t seem to get it in Washington.
Fortunately, the U.S. Marines may, once again, be leading the way back to sanity.
I love the Marines, their expeditionary culture, their sound views on unconventional warfare, their bravery, and their Toys for Tots program. (Donations accepted here.) I visit the Iwo Jima Memorial and still get goose bumps.
But do the Marines really need to spend $12 billion on upgrading an amphibious Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle (EFV) when, as reported by the Wall Street Journal, the Marines have not had to undertake a major landing since the Korean War?
Following the prudent and wise leadership of Secretary of Defense Robert Gates on budgetary matters, retiring Marine Corps Commandant James Conway, generally considered an advocate for the EFV, recently announced a review of the affordability of purchasing 573 of the vehicles from General Dynamics. The Marines have already spent $2.8 billion on this project, relying on a “requirements document” that is 20 years old, according to Dakota Wood, a fellow at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments.
True, the EFV is a drop in that monstrous bucket which is the federal budget; and defense spending, as a percentage of GDP is low in historic terms. Nevertheless, Secretary Gates, in commencing a review of the entire budget of the Department of Defense, and Commandant Conway should be applauded for taking the lead in light of the country’s current budget crisis. After all, our military strength is predicated on our economic strength, not the other way around. And the level of spending, deficits, and national debt represent a mortal threat to our strength in both areas. Now we need to see similar movement at HHS, HUD, Commerce, and, most notably, the Department of Agriculture. The more the merrier.
“If ever there was a time when ‘we can’t afford it’ actually means something, this is that time,” says syndicated columnist Cal Thomas.
“Our massive debt has produced an unease that America may be at greater risk from economic collapse than from terrorists,” warns Thomas. “Excessive debt is terror by other means.”
Exhibit A in Thomas’s case is a recent report by the indispensable Brian Riedl, an astute budget analyst at the Heritage Foundation.
Charles de Gaulle may have said that the graveyards are full of indispensable men, but we should all pray for long life for Riedl who is always instructive on the mysteries and outrages of the federal budget process.
Basically, Riedl challenges the already disturbing budget projections of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) because they are based on unrealistic assumptions foisted on it by Congress. For instance, CBO must assume that the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts, and other temporary tax cuts will expire; the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) will not be adjusted, annually, for inflation; and non-war discretionary spending will grow no faster than inflation through 2020.
Riedl, on the other hand, assumes that Congress will extend certain tax cuts and the AMT will be annually adjusted for inflation as it always has. Moreover, the Medicare “doc fix” will be enacted annually, thereby preventing a cut in physicians’ payments.
Using these assumptions, “the annual budget deficit never drops below $1 trillion,” writes Riedl. “Rather, it ends at $1.3 trillion in 2010, drops to $1.0 trillion by 2014, and rises back to $1.9 trillion by 2020.”
Thus, the national debt held by the public is set to surpass 100 percent of GDP by 2020, and half of all income tax revenues will go toward paying interest on a $23 trillion national debt.
About the Author
G. Tracy Mehan, III served at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in the administrations of both Presidents Bush. He is a consultant in Arlington, Virginia, and an adjunct professor at George Mason University School of Law.
Letter to the Editor View all comments (37) | Leave a comment
More Articles by G. Tracy Mehan, III
More Articles From A Further Perspective
http://spectator.org/archives/2010/08/30/the-insanity-of-washington-spe
Follow us:
ADVERTISEMENT
Current Issue
- Gabby Giffords Poisons the Well
- How Not To Buy a Fighter
- Sweet Home, Alabama
The Spectacle Blog
Democrat Dan Maffei Blames Budget Cuts for Girl’s Rape, Mother’s Murder
Robert Stacy McCain | 4:12PM
SPONSORED LINKS
FLASHBACK TO: 1995
-
Pope Culture
A man of faith in a godless age is hitting Americans where it hurts.
-
Why the GOP Does Not, Like, Totally Suck
Mr. and Mrs. American Spectator Reader, let P.J. O’Rourke talk sense to your kids.
-
Dames at Sea
-
In the Absence of Guns
In Britain, defending your property can get you life.
-
The Metaphysical Martini
-
Counting the Costs of Clintonism
The debacle of this president’s administration is both a cause and a symptom of the decline of American values. Unless Congress impeaches him, that decline will go on unchecked. An eminent jurist surveys the damage and assesses the chances for the recovery of our culture.
-
Chuck McHagel
It won’t take long for conservatives to scratch this presidential wannabe off their 2008 scorecard.
-
The Legacy of Old John and Mother Fresh-Roasted
-
It’s the Best Time of the Year
The American Christmas, like the songs that celebrate it, makes room for everybody under the rainbow. Is that why so many people seem to be hostile to it?
-
The Bush Crack-Up
Was the President done in by the economy, or by the politics of the economy?
Clip of the Day
ADVERTISEMENT
Average Infidel| 8.30.10 @ 6:52AM
The first "strong medicine" that needs to be dumped is the intentions of the "cloward-piven" strategy in place by the so-called representatives of the little people, the demonrat party. They need to be fired, one and all. The next on this list is the Republican in Name Only representatives (RINO) and after this is accomplished, I suspect the We the People, those of us who are footing the bills around this country, crowd will have to have a sit-down as adults and explaine to the uneducated in economics, life and morality, that NO means just that NO. You can't have it because WE CANNOT AFFORD IT. This place these political whores have brought us to cannot be allowed to continue. Not only is it a National Security threat, it is also a moral threat.
By and large, the defense budget is low by comparrison, look see the Education fund, the Medicade/medicare, EPA, HUD, Fanny Mae/Freddie mac, obamascamcare, etc.. The entitlement society has given us no benefit other than debt, this is hardly any benefit only to those who rely upon others for their comforts.
This mid-term election will be the time and place that will determine the outlook for this Country and it's Patriots. If this is not reconciled with, all hell will break loose. There are a great many of patriots that are chompn' at the bit for some payback. Spiritual comeback is upon us, we must not only pray for the healing process to begin, we must stay the course to see it through. Charity begins at home, (not OPM), other peoples money. Hope comes to us when we begin to see the light at the end of this tunnel they have dug upon us, faith is the answer to the demise of a weakened peoples. Let's get it on. Demand the best and brightest, settle for nothing less. For all the teet suckers, liars, cheats, murderers, and theives, your days are numbered. Are you listening Washington, the district of corruption is about to "feel" the wrath of a very pissed off public. The deception has been exposed.
Louis Jenkins| 8.30.10 @ 8:19AM
Great rebuttal Average Infidel. I'm like Old Texican. Put some space between your paragraphs.
"If this is not reconciled with, all hell will break loose. There are a great many of patriots that are chompn' at the bit for some payback."
A double edged sword. I'm ready for a bit of payback.
Mr. Rolf| 8.30.10 @ 12:25PM
What sort of "payback"? Just curious.
Ken (Old Texican)| 8.30.10 @ 7:47AM
Average Infidel,
You are not "average" by any means. Splendidly written.
...except please help my old eyes and do spaces between paragraphs.
Ken
Spoonman| 8.30.10 @ 8:01AM
Add these additional comments - we the people must enact term limits for federal officeholders and eliminate their cushy retirements and travel abroad should be limited to no more than one trip every two years. Its time to put an end to their luxurious lifestyle of the rich and famous paid for by hard working taxpayers. Make them work, not play!
Sotarr The Wizard| 8.30.10 @ 1:17PM
AND, when our Congresscritters travel, they may only travel in the same fashion and level, and be accomidated as, troops stationed in or near their destination. That means flying in coach if commercial, or in the back of an airlifter.
It means staying at the BOQ, or in a Tent, and eating at the chow hall.
After all, if they want to understand the conditions, they're not going to learn much in a de-facto private jet, staying at 4-star hotels, and eating at gourmet restaurants. . . .
Rust Belt Tony| 8.30.10 @ 8:13AM
It is interesting that this article features the spending by the US Marines when rumors have been floating around that Gates may want to disband them.
Here, in the 10th Congressional District of Pennsylvania, Congressman Paul Kanjorski, Democrat, has stated that the Administration has plans for a new facility to train 10,000 Agents a year for the protection of Embassy personnel, which is currently the responsibility of the Marines. This facility will have 1000 permanent employees. It will be under the control of the Secretary of State.
Congressman Kanjorski is trying to get it located in his district next door to his home town. His Republican opponent, Mayor Lou Barletta of Hazleton, Pa. has raised some questions about it and it has become a campaign issue. You can get more information about this by googling the newspapers in Wilkes Barre, Pa.
Tom| 8.30.10 @ 9:58AM
I doubt this is true. The number is ridiculous. There are about 1000 Marine Security Guards providing embassy protection. There would be no need to train 10,000 security agents in total let alone per year.
Rust Belt Tony| 8.30.10 @ 12:08PM
Would our congressman make this up? In an election year? Would our 3 Newspapers print it? In an election year?
Remember Dudley DoRight's maxim in the "Rocky and Bullwinkle"show: "If it's in the newspaper it MUST be true!"
How would you like Hilary Clinton in charge of 10,000 newly trained agents every year?
bull-gator| 8.30.10 @ 10:50AM
The US Marine Corps will never be disbanded as they are loved and revered by the average US citizen. We need our Marines for more than just defense. We need them to remind us of who we are and what we can accomplish against all odds. I think Truman tried this disbanding b.s. before. It didn't cut it then and it won't cut it now.
Semper Fi, USMC 1965-1971.
Ken (Old Texican)| 8.30.10 @ 12:39PM
Bullgator,
God bless you guys!
God bless your service.
Youall have always been faithful.
...pretty good at your jobs too.
Pineapple Cowgirl | 12.30.10 @ 2:10AM
SEMPER FI : short for Semper Fidelis, which translates to Always Faithful. We the People must also be Semper Fi because we rely on the commitment of each Patriot to stand up and defend the honor of all those who have given whatever was required to insure our right to do so at the appropriate time. Now is the time that each man must choose his master. Will you defend Liberty or submit to Slavery?
The only thing that evil requires of good men is for them to do nothing. Trust God and know that He will honor our faithfulness because He is SEMPER FI!
Billy Boy| 8.30.10 @ 8:23AM
According to the Treasury Department, when George W. Bush took office in 2001 the national debt was $5.73 trillion and when Bush left office in 2009, the national debt had increased to $10.63 trillion. That’s an 85% increase of $4.9 trillion.
Now, please explain to me who is responsible for our staggering national debt?
David Kleindienst| 8.30.10 @ 8:54AM
The fault lies not with any one regime, but lies in the actions of those 545 individuals elected to office. Of course the Extreme court is not elected, but are included in those 545.
These people make the laws, decide the budget, and create the deficit. I am not a Hussein Obama supporter by any means, but the fault lies in the House, where the decision is made to spend us into record deficits. The fault lies in the Senate, where the laws are passed that require the money.
The Lobbyists are not the problem, it is the elected who, despite pressure by the lobbyist, must say NO!!
We need naysayers....
Billy Boy| 8.30.10 @ 9:33AM
Drastic cuts in government spending must be made now.
Someone, please answer this question for me:
If you could, where specifically would you make cuts? Name at least five areas of government spending that are most wasteful and in need of curtailing.
Tom| 8.30.10 @ 10:04AM
Education, healthcare, transportation, commerce, and farm subsidies. There 5. Throw in no more bank bailouts and ending of TARP for icing.
Saying there is no room to cut is silly. Lets roll back to 2000 levels of spending - adjusted for population growth and inflation - and poof! instant surplus. Was the republic about to fall because we did not spend enough in 2000? Of course not, the problem is new spending increases baseline budget expectations; the Feds think that because they were flush with money they could increase spending without budging the deficit too far. And then when the recession comes we of course need to spend more. It becomes a death spiral eventually.
Dan Hirsch| 8.30.10 @ 10:17AM
EPA, EPA, EPA, EPA, EPA;
DOE, DOE, DOE, DOE, DOE
Steve A| 8.30.10 @ 10:10AM
Billy, I say cut it ALL 15%. including Military budget. I realize people are going to flip out here but, you do it this way & no government agency will be entitled to bitch & moan more than the next. Leave troop pay alone & cut it from other inefficiencies in the system. You can't tell me there is not at least 15% fluff in all of these government operations.
Billy Boy| 8.30.10 @ 10:32AM
David, Tom, Dan, Steve,
Thank you for your thoughtful input.
Cutting spending seems such an impossible task, but it must be done pronto, or our country's economy is ruined. And the social repercussions of such an event are frightening to ponder. We would not be safe in our own homes.
Any more suggestions on where to make cuts from readers?
George S| 8.30.10 @ 12:13PM
Instead of justifying where or what to cut, why not justify the current level of spending and where that money is spent. For example, why do we need ethanol when the market refuses to voluntarily buy it? Why do we need Medicare for those who can afford medical insurance? Why do we need social security for those who have money in their retirement portfolios?
While they are chewing on that, the next question I would ask is just where did that extra five trillion go? Unfunded liabilities? Let me translate: the cost of pensions and benefits to federal retirees, the money needed to be put aside for new hirees, the future cost of that debt. That does not include Medicare and social security -- those unfunded liabilities are closer to 50 trillion and counting.
Dixie Pixie| 8.30.10 @ 9:13AM
To bring spending in balance with income, spending will have to be cut 40%. To begin paying off the debt, spending will have to be cut 50% or more.
No one is proposing cuts that deep.
Tom| 8.30.10 @ 10:09AM
They should. Outlays have doubled since 1999. Even taking inflation into account - it was nominal during those years - it is apparent there is enormous room to cut spending.
What is lacking is not areas to cut but the political will to do so.
Dan Hirsch| 8.30.10 @ 10:18AM
Tom,
You might want to hunt around and connect with your local Tea Party. That's what they're talking about.
Nolite me conculcare.
J.C.Eaton| 8.30.10 @ 10:26AM
Does it not seem ironic, that the military, in this case the Marines[best uniforms, best spirit, best song] can see a program that arguably, in a perfect fiscal world, would facilitate their Mission, perhaps save some of their lives, and is at least arguably justifiable, willing to cut it in favor of more germane and useful expenditures? Whereas we have utterly witless programs, i.e. national endowment for the arts[I refuse to even credit the pusbucket by the use of capital letters], pbs, the dept. of education: 40000 nimrods sucking billions in salary without contributing ziffle to the local school boards except mandates. A commerce dept. that spends billions on nothing that materially benefits the nation at large. An ag dept. that pays ADM to be wealthy and producers not to produce. I'd agree with the writer about the culpability of the House in creating these monsters but the president is naturally complicit because he is either a cheerleader for those carbuncles, or a chicke------t. for not vetoing them. We don't need politicians with scalpels; we need political lumberjacks with chainsaws. [Sorry for the close type Ken]. Best,
Dai Alanye | 8.30.10 @ 3:19PM
During the invasion of Iraq the Marines set off in ancient rattletrap amphibious vehicles that frequently broke down. Many of us wondered why until they were used to cross the Tigris twice---first to avoid an Iraqi blocking force in the south, then to attack Baghdad via the back door.
Does that upgrade seem a bit more justifiable now?
Petronius| 8.30.10 @ 11:36AM
As Dr. Price said, "there are no adults in the room and all the overgrown children are running around committing mayhem and peeing in the sandbox. Then the people will call for Oliver Cromwell and the Roundheads," Not only are the Marines not up to what would be required to make this country civilized and mature again, the situation is too far gone. We are saddled with 4 lost generations of superannuated adolescents who believe that government is a substitute for mommy, have no concept of value, and refuse to compete. And these ambulatory road kills would rather be dead than be forced by economic necessity to become competent adults. I had this argument with a Navy vet who voted for Obama simply because he is afraid some "fascist Republican" would try to tell him what to do. The word Discipline is viewed as Torture by most voters. And for that reason alone, the liberals will maintain power and this country is finished! And when President Obama orders the Secretary of Appeasement to disband the Corps, they will have to walk home.
Ken (Old Texican)| 8.30.10 @ 1:22PM
Petronius,
The hell you say. The Texas Rangers will give them a ride! ...along with we Texans.
Hmmmmm, pretty good State Militia when one stops and thinks about it.
Petronius| 8.30.10 @ 3:39PM
Then I take it secession is in the wind. I would check property values in the Hill country if I thought my money would buy any.
Tim*| 8.30.10 @ 12:34PM
"Undoubtedly, one factor encouraging politicians to talk about specific spending cuts is the rise of the Tea Party movement.
"The Tea Party movement was born out of fiscal outrage," said Mark Meckler, national coordinator for the Tea Party Patriots. "People are asking their members of Congress what would they cut and where would they cut. ... What these politicians are doing is an implicit admission that they can no longer run on platitudes."
Time To Walk The Talk .
Out Of Control Big Government Spending Is Gravediggin' The Country and The Economy . .
The Tea Party Rebellion Escalates .
Michele San Pietro| 8.30.10 @ 5:41PM
The Obama administration is definitely irresponsible, not only fiscally.