Obama demands 0.0029% budget cut after running up spending

HOTAIR.COM ^ | 4/202/009 | Ed Morrissey

[SeekAndFind]

How can Barack Obama demonstrate his fiscal-responsibility creds after pushing through Porkulus, a pork-filled omnibus spending plan, and a $3.5 trillion budget that far outstrips even the last spending plan from the Democratic-controlled Congress? Demand a big reduction in spending through budget cuts at federal agencies. Obama has done just that — with cuts that amount to a whopping 0.0029% of the budget Obama just pushed Congress to provide him:

President Obama plans to convene his Cabinet for the first time today, where he will order members to identify a combined $100 million in budget cuts over the next 90 days, according to a senior administration official.

The budget cuts, while they would account to a minuscule portion of federal spending, are intended to signal the president’s determination to cut spending and reform government, the official said.

Obama’s order comes as he is under increasing pressure to show momentum toward his goal of eventually reducing the federal deficit, even as he goes about increasing spending in the short run to prop up the economy and support his priorities.

Earlier this month, both chambers of Congress passed Obama’s $3.5 trillion budget outline for 2010, which includes unprecedented new investments in health care, education and energy. But the huge budget, which contemplates a $1.2 trillion deficit, has drawn the ire of small-government conservatives who say that the deficits jeopardize the nation’s economic future.

Obama apparently wants to answer the Tea Parties by showing that he’s capable of limiting the growth of government, but $100 million barely registers in Washington these days — and certainly does nothing to slow down the Obama spending juggernaut. Compare this pittance to some of the other numbers that Obama has produced:

* $100 million from a $3.5 trillion budget for FY2010: 0.0029% * $100 million from the $1.2 trillion White House deficit projection for their FY2010 budget: 0.008%

* $100 million from the $700 billion Porkulus stimulus bill Obama demanded: 0.013%

* $100 million from the $634 billion “down payment” on nationalized health care: 0.016%

* $100 million from the $555 billion omnibus spending plan completing the 2009 budget: 0.018%

* $100 million from the $13 billion in pork from the omnibus spending plan: 0.77%

The cuts that Obama proposes don’t even amount to 1% of the pork Obama signed into law last month in the omnibus spending bill. It’s the equivalent of having Mr. Creosote from Monty Python’s Meaning of Life ask for a Diet Coke instead of the wafer-thin mint at the end of is meal (definitely Not Safe for Work):

This is an insult to the intelligence of fiscal conservatives. If Obama wanted to demonstrate some fiscal responsibility, he could enforce the George Bush executive order instructing federal agencies to ignore pork line items in their budgets. Better yet, he could have honored his campaign promise by vetoing the pork-filled omnibus spending bill, let alone refrained from leaping into the discredited statist spending policies that have been the hallmark of his administration thus far.

[SeekAndFind]

Here is Harvard Economist, Greg Mankiw's take on this :

Fiscal Responsibility

The Washington Post reports:

President Obama plans to convene his Cabinet for the first time today, and he will order its members to identify a combined $100 million in budget cuts over the next 90 days, according to a senior administration official....Earlier this month, both chambers of Congress passed Obama's $3.5 trillion budget outline for 2010, which includes unprecedented new investments in health care, education and energy. But the huge budget, which contemplates a $1.2 trillion deficit, has drawn the ire of small-government conservatives, who say that such high deficits jeopardize the nation's economic future.

Just to be clear: $100 million represents .003 percent of $3.5 trillion.

To put those numbers in perspective, imagine that the head of a household with annual spending of $100,000 called everyone in the family together to deal with a $34,000 budget shortfall. How much would he or she announce that spending had be cut? By $3 over the course of the year--approximately the cost of one latte at Starbucks. The other $33,997? We can put that on the family credit card and worry about it next year.

[PghBaldy]

It gets better- he offered 100 million to Latin America two days ago- THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary
(Port of Spain, Trinidad
___________________________________________________________
For Immediate Release April 18, 2009
New $100 Million Microfinance Growth Fund for the Western Hemisphere ... http://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/New-100-Million-Microfinance-Growth-Fund-for-the-Western-Hemisphere/

[so_real]

Sure ... that’ll appease the tea party crowd. With every statement Obama’s incompetence becomes more evident. Does he not have a single capable financial adviser on his team?

[ryan71]

$100 million should shut us up, huh?

This guy needs to stop watching Austin Powers.

[ryan71]

The sick part is the M will applaud and he will get away with this.

[EGPWS]

Obama demands 0.0029% budget cut after running up spending

Now he can spew the "I cut taxes AND cut spending" BS for the next 4 years. That's the only reason for this worthless show of thriftiness.

[anniegetyourgun]

http://blog.heritage.org/2009/04/20/obamas-spending-vs-obamas-spending-cuts-in-pictures/

They think we’re stupid....and perhaps, the masses really are....

[Skid Marx]

That link shows it well. But I still cannot reconcile myself to referring to Americans as ‘the masses’. I guess I had better pray more often.

[cvq3842]

Obama is masterful at feeding propaganda to the friendly outlets of the MSM.

He throws them a headline they can run with.

If Bush had done something like this the MSM would have been laughing about it for a week.

[italianquaker]

I am starting to notice that this act is starting to grow old even with the presstitutes albeit SLOWLY AND RELUCTANTLY

[Carl LaFong]

This reminds me of the scene in Austin Powers where DR. Evil demands a ransom of “....One Millllion Dollars!”.

[cvq3842]

I hope so.

[CGTRWK]

To put those numbers in perspective, imagine that the head of a household with annual spending of $100,000 called everyone in the family together to deal with a $34,000 budget shortfall. How much would he or she announce that spending had be cut? By $3 over the course of the year--approximately the cost of one latte at Starbucks. The other $33,997? We can put that on the family credit card and worry about it next year.

That analogy is a good start but it leaves something out. For 2010 are a household with an annual income of $100,000, already $415,000 in debt on January 1st, and Obama intends to deal with this crisis by spending $149,097 instead of the $149,101 he intended to spend before.

It's over. We elected a ticket to Zimbabwe and all that's left is the ride.

[blueyon]

For those that missed my answer on another post, I feel it is worth repeating: “If he just shows us his birth certificate, he could save $100 million on legal fees alone!”

[CPT Clay]

sdNo Shite

[WilliamofCarmichael]

I am a President Obama patriot. He has called for a reduction of 100,000,000 dollars in the federal budget. Great!

I too intend to reduce my budget by the same amount over the near term.

Using rounding I had calculated 100 million is 0.0025 percent of four trillion.

I spend about four hundred dollars as monthly discretionary expenses.

So I am obligated to cut 0.0025 percent from my 400-dollar spending or one penny.

I can do that. What a patriot I am!

[1_Rain_Drop]

careful, you’ll be taxed on that penny.

[Swing_Thought]

For those who like fractions...

By my calculations, 100 million is to 3.5 trillion as $1 is to $35,000.

So zero is asking his cabinet to work hard to find a way to cut 1/35000th of the federal budget.

And as others have noted, the MSM eats it up.

Yea, I know, I’m a crazy racist right wing extremist for even pointing this out.