One of America’s newest senators, Rand Paul, from the state of Kentucky, son of Texas congressman Ron Paul, both of whom are physicians, has just issued a very specific proposal to substantially reduce the spending of the US federal government. Here are some highlights (comments from TheFundamentals are italicized):
• Legislative branch spending cut 23% or $1.3 billion in FY2011. Government Printing Office closed.
• Judicial branch cut 32% or $2.4 billion; back to FY2008 levels.
• Department of Agriculture cut 30%; food stamp program back to FY2008 levels
• Department of Commerce cut 54%.
• Department of Defense cut 6.5%; savings of $48 billion. It’s a start. Did you know that the DOD has over 700,000 civilian employees???
• Department of Education cut 83%. Nothing to add; we recommend that it be eliminated. The performance of public schools under the direction of this department is America’s shame.
• Department of Energy eliminated. 100%. Long overdue step to sanity.
• Health and Human Services cut 26% but that disregards most of their expenditures in the social security and Medicare programs which they oversee.
• Homeland Security cut 43%. TSA should be privatized immediately. It is an outrageous example of the inability of the federal government to get a job done efficiently and effectively.
• Housing and Urban Development eliminated. 100%. Hallelujah!
• Interior cut 78%. We quote from the document: “The management of public lands and resources is best left up to the states.”
• Justice cut 28% or $9 billion. But what’s going to happen to those poor unemployed lawyers?
• Labor 2%. The extension of unemployment benefits is not addressed and it desperately needs to be cut.
• State cut 71%. It is time for Bill Gates and Warren Buffet to fund and manage America’s foreign aid programs. They are enamored with these “worthwhile” activities. The State Department does not need to replicate their programs.
• Transportation 49%. If Barack Obama or any other private citizens want to build a high speed rail network in the United States it is time to let them put their private funds where their public utterances are. We are anxious to see how much of their private funds will end up in these “investments.”
• EPA cut 29%.
• General Services Administration cut 85%.
• NASA cut 25%. We would recommend that it be suspended until Americas debt is repaid in full.
• Did you know that the federal government owns (which means it also must maintain) about 650,000 cars and trucks?
Read the entire proposed legislation at: http://www.randpaul2010.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/500Bcutsbill.pdf
Dr. Paul, the son, is to be commended for making this proposal. It will be interesting to see what his fellow party members do with it. Or his father for that matter. Do not be surprised if they run away from it. But here is a suggestion that might appeal to several of them; the ones who know they will need to seek real employment come November 2012 if they don’t stand up for some cessation of the promiscuous Washington spending. Go along with Obama’s proposal to raise the debt ceiling on the following terms:
1. The increase can not exceed $1 trillion, and
2. The increase is temporary; it expires on November 1, 2012, which means it is very much an issue in the 2012 congressional and presidential election, and
3. 50% of Senator Rand Paul’s cuts must be implemented immediately and realized during fiscal year 2011 and the remaining 50% must be implemented and realized during fiscal year 2012
One closing comment. We doubt that you will see much coverage given to this legislation from the so-called mainstream media. Will PBS cover it? Dr. Paul’s legislation eliminates all funding for PBS and its so-called parent, Corporation for Public Broadcasting!
Dr. Paul, TheFundamentals commends you for this bold and long overdue action.
1 comment:
Tommy from Chicago:
I recently received a Tea-Party e-mail in my inbox. I think they may of copy and pasted this information from you because it is identical as your blog?
While I think the DOD could handle a 6.5% cut, I wouldn't be bragging about trying to get rid of 700,000 DOD Contractors. Contractors are PRIVATIZED!! That means they do the same job, are much more motivated and efficient because they are competing for profit and contracts, and the taxpayer doesn't have to pay for bloated Government/Military healthcare and retirements. The military has been drastically reduced in the number of people. However, what is not mentioned is that none of those jobs went away, they just got picked up by contractors who are doing it for much cheaper. While I agree with the vast majority of Libertarian objectives, be VERY careful about agreeing with everything they say.
I'll give you an example of a very large portion of those contractors: Which would you rather have? A whole squadron of military "Services Specialists" and Officers making from $30K to $110K with VA Healthcare and full retirement benefits after 20 years... OR, A bunch of part-time contractors cooking and cleaning making $15K - $30K with no benefits?
Part of the Libertarian goals is "Isolationism", (look it up), which means pull our military out of every country everywhere. While that sounds like a smart idea, Thomas Jefferson who had similar ideas originally, quickly changed his tune. Jefferson found Isolationism is impossible. We have global trade, global presence, and global allies so we have no choice but to help defend all of them or else submit to the whims of tyrannical despots and religious ideologues. That is the reason why Jefferson beefed up the Navy to create an expeditionary fighting force and put the smack down on the Barbary (Somali) Pirates on "the shores of Tripoli" who were holding our people hostage and castrating them!! Ron and Rand Paul are incredibly smart people, and their ideas for economic conservatism are amazing. However, their foreign policy is Isolationism, which is ignorant and dangerous. By singling out private contractors as part of the problem with the DOD, you are in essence asking for the Government to take over all of these positions, thus EXPANDING the role of government, not decreasing it. Be careful what you wish for.
- NASA: While suspending NASA for the most part sounds good to me as well, there is one fatal flaw by doing so. NASA is the only way we are able to launch our much needed ISR "spy" satellites. By completely getting rid of them, we must rely on FOREIGN countries to launch our own equipment!! Our constellation of Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance satellites are quickly aging and must be replaced as well as enhanced to provide the much needed Intel that our military now focuses on. By getting rid of NASA, you would put the responsibility of launches in the hands of the French and Russians who charge us 5-7 times as much than we can do it ourselves while also giving them closely guarded secret technology. It is imperative this does not happen.
- Tommy
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