Posted on 04/13/2011 2:46:41 PM PDT by Praxeologue
Yesterday the media had a field day when it was uncovered that the hard fought $38 billion in budget "cuts" which almost caused America to shut down were in reality $14 billion. We, thus, can't wait to find out what the response will be when it is uncovered that the actual cuts were... $353 million. Yes: the ongoing functioning of the government was a pawn in a soap opera whose benefit to the US debt is $353 million, or about what Goldman's trading desk makes in less than one day.
From Washington Post [1]:
A new budget estimate released Wednesday says that the spending bill negotiated between President Barack Obama and House Speaker John Boehner would produce less than 1 percent of the $38 billion in claimed savings by the end of this budget year.
The Congressional Budget Office estimate shows that the spending bill due for a House vote Thursday would pare just $352 million from the deficit through Sept. 30. About $8 billion in cuts to domestic programs and foreign aid are offset by nearly equal increases in defense spending.
The House began debate on the measure Wednesday with a test vote slated for the early afternoon. The measure appears on track to pass the House and Senate this week before a stopgap spending measure expires Friday at midnight despite opposition from some of the GOP’s most ardent budget cutters.
The budget deficit is projected at $1.6 trillion this year.
The CBO study confirms that the measure trims $38 billion in new spending authority, but says many of the cuts come in slow-spending accounts like water-and-sewer grants that don’t have an immediate deficit impact.
...
Republicans say they wish the measure would cut more but that the cuts negotiated by Boehner are about as good as can be expected giver that Democrats hold the Senate and the White House. In his February budget, Obama pressed a freeze on domestic agency accounts.
“We continue to push this president to places he never said he would go,” said House GOP Whip Kevin McCarthy of California. “The president said he would freeze spending. Our Speaker negotiated, outnumbered 3-1. We have cut spending.”
Speechless yet? You should be. And for those confused how B.H.O. picked the arbitrary number of $4 trillion in "cuts", John Lohman summarizes it best.
How Washington Cuts $38 Billion in 5 Simple Steps:
1. Announce spending bill that claims $38 billion in cuts
2. Wait for CBO to announce it only cuts $353 million
3. Realize you only do 0.0093% of what you say
4. Divide $38 billion by 0.0093% to get necessary target3
5. Round to the nearest trillion and announce result
1 : Source: Washington Post [1], April 13, 2011 2 : $353 million divided by $38 billion 3 : $38 billion divided by 0.0093 = 4.1 trillion
If these cuts really turn out to be none at all, we have to force a no confidence in Boehner. I have always liked him, and willing to give him every chance to prove himself, but that would be a complete dereliction of duty. Somehow when the Dems took over in ‘06 they ran ramshackle over the GOP, but we are seemingly a powerless majority.
And the bipartisan political class is calling Trump a clown. ...hideous.
I’d take a Trump over a lying Bo[eh]ner any day.
If you cut a budget and it ends up being larger than last years budget, then you know you are in Washington DC
I think Rush said they don’t mean anything. It’s time to rid ourselves of 99.9% of our Congress.
“I would not allow this to go. Every (R) that votes for this should be challenged next election.”
Exactly.
I mean, I don’t know how much easier the decision to vote “No” could be after this. I would have more fear about a primary than getting blamed for a shutdown at this point. (At least with a shutdown, they’ll have our full support).
I wondered last week when Boehner got teary again in one of those meetings and later came out saying the GOP would never shut down the gov't.
What "pressures" are there brought to bear on him alone, or him in the room with BO and Dingy Harry? Soros? Other foreigners? Are they (our government; us) being blackmailed?
The newly elected Tea Party conservatives have been complaining about the "establishment Republicans" almost from the first day of the new Congress. Now we know why.
Boehner and the establishment 'Pubbies have caved on too many budget deals and they remain terrified to actually follow through with threats such as closing the government. For some time, I have warned that the 'Pubbies were not the good guys in the white hats coming to rescue us, hoping that they would prove me wrong.
Unfortunately, they keep proving me right!! It appears that, in 2012, not only do we have a bunch more leftists to unload from the Senate and the WH, we also have a bunch of 'Pubbies (RINOS) to get rid of in the House. Until these political elites get the message that we aren't happy with the way they are unable to close America's checkbook and keep writing checks we can't cover, we will have to keep cleaning house with every election cycle until we get people who can understand what "NO!" means. Boehner is probably a nice guy but, like most of the establishment 'Pubbies, he lacks the spine to bring the substantive changes we need to keep America afloat. If he can't do the job, we'll keep looking until we find someone who can!!
The ole shell game continues.
Capitol Hill needs another flushing in 2012. Maybe then, they will get the message.
Boner is a Rockefeller republican. All the leadership is. Continueing to support the GOP is getting us nowhere.
That’s the problem with this debate. The People cannot depend on the numbers fed to us by the politicos or the press.
Thank you John Bob Boehner-Dole
Republicans who insist on reaching across the isle and making concessions to the Socialists will have a lovely “clean out your desk day” in November 2012!
I call him Boo-Hoo Boner.
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