Obama takes axe to bloated government spending

AFP on Yahoo ^ | 3/4/09 | AFP

[NormsRevenge]

WASHINGTON (AFP) – President Barack Obama on Wednesday promised to save American taxpayers 40 billion dollars a year by slashing waste in government contracting, with a special eye on bloated spending on defense.

"I reject the false choice between securing this nation and wasting billions of taxpayer dollars," Obama said on a day when he signed a presidential memorandum reforming the contracting system across the entire government.

"In this time of great challenges, I recognize the real choice between investments that are designed to keep the American people safe and those that are designed to make a defense contractor rich," Obama said.

The president's promise to clean up contracting was in line with his pledge to cut the soaring federal budget deficit in half by the end of his mandate in 2013.

As Obama spoke, he was flanked by his former Republican rival for the presidency, Senator John McCain, who is a hawkish opponent of wasteful spending in the Pentagon, and scours legislation for lawmaker's pet projects.

Obama honed in on runaway Pentagon spending, vowing that "the days of giving defense contractors a blank check are over," and highlighted work by Defense Secretary Robert Gates to overhaul military procurement at the Pentagon.

[Army Air Corps]

I was referring to Porkulus alone and not all the horrendous spending that has yet to be crammed down our throats, mate.

[Darkwolf377]

I reject the false choice between Obama’s bullsht rhetoric and reality.

He is using the good will of those who supported him and the power of the presidency to try to rewrite history. Were he competent and confident in that competence he would NEVER reference Bush. He would simply come out with his plans HONESTLY and not invent these bizarre fictions about how he’s come to rescue us from wasteful spending even as he tosses more billions in the air to make us think he’s doing SOMEthing.

An utterly cynical, indeed hateful person. He has such open contempt for the citizenry that it’s rather shocking.

But it’s Wednesday night, which is party night at the White House, so why dirty the air with the observations any thinking adult could make? Let’s all just pretend he’s NOT trying to dynamite the foundations of trust and accountability that he is claiming to shore up.

[Army Air Corps]

I makes one terribly angry the more one thinks about it.

[tallyhoe]

It always is limited to DOD with liberals they never cut social programs. Lets see he spends 3.7 trillion and saves the tax payer 40 billion? Ouch this hurts!

[ronnie raygun]

Read between the lines people, he’s cutting the military.

[HollyB]

Since when has Obama been concerned with saving tax payer dollars? Only when it’s related to national defense.

[HollyB]

Quite manipulative - the way he twists things around.

[dmartin]

As Obama spoke, he was flanked by his former Republican rival for the presidency, Senator John McCain

Standing right next to the current occupant of the oval office showing his support. Yet on Monday he was calling him out. A mere two days ago.

McCain Calls Out Obama

Can someone do me a favor and count how many John McCains there are currently wandering around Washington, D.C.?

[ding_dong_daddy_from_dumas]

[jveritas]

Never before in history of American politics there has been such a liar for a President. The man tripled the deficit in 30 days and spent 1.3 trillion dollars on the welfare of the parasites and non producers but yet he is claiming that he is cutting spending and worst of all he wants to cut defense spending instead of cutting the spending on the parasites. It is insane.

[freekitty]

Is this a joke?

[KC_Conspirator]

Dont know whether to laugh or cry. Especially when I continually see the MSM lie for Obama.

[Rockitz]

Remember with liberals, the more you repeat a lie, the closer it comes to being the truth....at least in the collective minds of the sheeple.

[NonValueAdded]

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[bestintxas]

POS this 0

[dr_who]

Incredible.

[metmom]

He could start with all those bailouts.

[corvus]

Obama ‘honed’(?) in on runaway Pentagon spending...

And is going to axe the egregious spending...

Oh, sure. Like he promised no more earmarks!

[1010RD]

This is Obama’s Mai Lai spending massacre. He had to spend our money, before he could save it.

[ponygirl]

"too much money has been paid out for services that were never performed, buildings that were never completed, companies that skimmed off the top,"

Hey, this sounds like the Education budget.