Republican Plan for Reducing the Deficit
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FY 2011 CR Amendment: Replace the spending levels in the FY 2011 continuing resolution (CR) 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.
And that's just for starters....read the whole article.
So a couple of questions....what else can we add to the list, NBers, and who on the other side of the aisle will be shrieking the loudest, and about what?
Sweet!
We have to start chopping by looking to our Constitution. It is true the Executive has authority to form his/her cabinet. However, this does not mean those entities have authority to make or enforce "rules". Law must still be made within the legislature. Period.
If the various departments, agencies and bureaus are not to be dissolved (which is what I favor for most of the alphabet groups) then at the very least their budgets must be limited to only salaries of employees and materials required to "promote". All rule making and enforcement arms must be defunded and dissolved.
The BATFE. It is corrupt and useless. The EPA is too beyond recommendations. Both DOEs, DOI, DEA and even a great amount of DHS. Need enforcement of federal law? Fine, that is what U.S. Marshals are for.
I will say this. I am deeply disappointed in the Republicans' "plan". It continues this notion that "cuts in growth in spending" is an actual cut. And I recall that a Citation of Constitutional Authority had to accompany each and every bill in order to be filed. I have yet to see even one shown to the people regarding the CR's.
I had hoped one would be for Ryan's "plan". Maybe that is forthcoming but I am not holding my breath. I call hoodwink on that point and say that it supports the claims made that the reading of the Constitution by the Republicans on the House floor was a dog and Pony show.
I particularly like your last para (not your tag).
Perhaps we need to send letters to our Representatives, and include that as our conclusion.
We want action, not lip service.
I had to post this.
CBO: Obama understates deficits by $2.3 trillion
Mar 18, 5:21 PM (ET)
WASHINGTON (AP) - A new assessment of President Barack Obama's budget released Friday says the White House underestimates future budget deficits by more than $2 trillion over the upcoming decade
The estimate from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office says that if Obama's February budget submission is enacted into law it would produce deficits totaling $9.5 trillion over 10 years - an average of almost $1 trillion a year.
Obama's budget saw deficits totaling $7.2 trillion over the same period.
The difference is chiefly because CBO has a less optimistic estimate of how much the government will collect in tax revenues, partly because the administration has rosier economic projections.
But the agency also rejects the administration's claims of more than $300 billion of that savings - to pay for preventing a cut in Medicare payments to doctors - because it doesn't specify where it would come from. Likewise, CBO fails to credit the White House with an additional $328 billion that would come from unspecified "bipartisan financing" to pay for transportation infrastructure projects such as high speed rail lines and road and bridge construction.
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The White House's goal is to reach a point where the budget is balanced except for interest payments on the $14 trillion national debt. Such "primary balance" occurs when the deficit is about 3 percent of the size of the economy, and economists say deficits of that magnitude are generally sustainable.
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"The President's budget never reaches 'primary balance,' meaning that it fails to clear even the low bar the administration set for itself in justifying its claims of sustainability," said House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Wis.
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So, when is Obama going to throw Elmendorf under the bus?
Sen. Paul Unveils 5-Year Budget Plan: Eliminates Four Federal Agencies
March 17, 2011 4:12 PM
Senator Rand Paul, R-Ky., unveiled today his five-year path to a balanced budget, leaving several federal agencies behind. Among the items on the cutting room floor are the Departments of Education, Energy, Commerce and Housing and Urban Development.
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The proposal also calls for the repeal of “Obamacare,” but leaves entitlements untouched.
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According to Paul, a Tea Party conservative, the proposal will bring spending to the “historic average since World War II” in just one year. He further claims the budget achieves a $19 billion surplus by FY2016 and will bring all non-military discretionary spending back to FY2008 levels.
Paul’s proposal gained support from freshman Senator Mike Lee, R-Utah, who today challenged anyone who opposes the plan to come up with a better option.
[...]
Shouldn't Congress be debating plans like this, rather than dither on a CR cut of just 6 Billion.
Unfortunately, the "old guard" in the Republican party are trying to marginalize Rand Paul and the young guns.
I really hope he keeps the pressure on. I know Marco Rubio is fed up with the dribs and drabs. Boehner and McConnell better put the hammer down this time around. The democrats are trying to kill us with a death by a thousand (little budget) cuts.
Perhaps you might have to pay for it yourself. I am not speaking for or against abortion, but it is nice to save the money.
That is a State issue not a Federal issue. We are talking about reducing the Federal deficit.
Bammy could save $1/4 billion dollars by NOT CLOSING GITMO!
What on earth do we need to build a new prison for, when we have a perfectly adequate facility in Cuba? To appease the idealogical leftists? Because that's the only reason I can possibly come up with to close Gitmo.
We could also get rid of the country club pens for the congress critters...send them to Gitmo, too.
I like that Blonde, no more Club Feds. You commit a crime you do TIME.
Homeland security, kill it and the 1billion dollar building they are proposing to stuff it into
Dept of Education, schools get taken over by the locals and privet educators.
FCC needs to go away
Dept of Energy, because it doesn't provide any, just stifles it.
All farm subsidies.
Most Health related subsidies
Most foreign aid
Dept of Defence needs a good thorough audit
IRS,
There are countless single focus departments that need to go away.
Tons of the welfare programs need to be restructured to reduce dependence.
I agree with defunding NPR.
I saw a defense of NPR at the Hill's Congress Blog today:
Public broadcasting is critical to our democracy (Rep. Earl Blumenauer)
By Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.) - 01/20/11 08:36 AM ET
[...]
National public broadcasting is very cost effective and an excellent example of a public-private partnership maximizing value for the taxpayer. The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) annually receives around .0001% of the federal budget. Cutting CPBs funding would save Americans less than half a cent a day and would result in the loss of the Public Broadcasting System (PBS), considered by the public to be the second-best use of taxpayer dollars, outranked only by defense spending.
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If National public broadcasting is very cost effective, it should be able to survive on its own, without taxpayer dollars.
You have me "law-ling" with that cite.
Blumenaur is about a whisker to the right of Nanny Pelosi. IOW, an uber lib.
Of COURSE he wants NPR to continue to be funded....indoctrinate the children of the lunatic left.
I am quite pleased with the beginnings of this "definding list".
You get the prize, however, because my question is who starts bleating first!!!
:)
Carry on.
Start dismantling the Dept of Education and the EPA. Repeal the "Financial Reform Bill"; it does NOTHING about FNMA or FHLMC.
I particularly like the reduction of the Federal Workforce, blowing away the Davis-Bacon Act (up yours, Union Wages)....and cutting many of the Congressional perks.
Let's cut this baby through the bone.
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....what else can we add to the list
How about not funding research into developing carbon credit schemes .... from the USDA no less:
USDA Funds Projects to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions in 24 States
WASHINGTON, June 8, 2011— Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today approved about $7.4 million to fund nine large-scale greenhouse gas mitigation projects in 24 states through U.S. Department of Agriculture's Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG).
"We want to help farmers and ranchers make important and innovative contributions to reducing greenhouse gas emissions," Vilsack said. "These grants are designed to test and verify exciting new approaches to greenhouse gas reduction that other conservation-minded producers will want to put to work on their operations."
In addition to the $7.4 million, USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), which administers CIG, will provide $10 million through its regular Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) to eligible producers to implement conservation practices that reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
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Adaptation of a Forest Carbon Protocol to Include Tribal Lands (Washington) – $1.226 million to the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Indian Reservation to adapt and implement forest carbon sequestering practices and to develop protocols that overcome the legal and technical barriers faced by tribes in entering carbon credit trading markets.
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Piloting Innovative Beef and Dairy Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction Strategies in U.S. Feedlots and Dairies (Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, Nebraska, New Mexico, Ohio, Texas, Wisconsin) – $1.056 million to Unison Resource Co. to pilot test methodologies that qualify carbon offsets and that stimulate feed use efficiency, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, monetize carbon credits, and enhance economic viability in the beef and dairy industries.
Smart Nitrogen Application Program Demonstration Program Project (Iowa, Illinois) – $1.429 million with The Fertilizer Institute to develop a framework for delivering marketable carbon credits associated with Nitrous Oxide emission reduction when producers implement nutrient stewardship management practices on approximately 50,000 acres.