Posted on 04/02/2023 12:09:53 PM PDT by Twotone
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) fired an opening shot Tuesday in the coming battle between GOP lawmakers and President Joe Biden over raising the debt ceiling.
In a letter to Biden, McCarthy laid out the basics of what House Republicans want in exchange for voting to raise the nation’s borrowing limit.
So far, however, the White House appears uninterested in engaging with Republicans.
Here are five takeaways from the GOP proposal.
MILITARY FUNDING ISN’T ON THE CHOPPING BLOCK — FOR NOW
McCarthy wrote in his letter that House Republicans will prioritize “reducing excessive non-defense government spending,” but neither the letter nor public statements from members of House GOP leadership on Tuesday mentioned cuts to defense spending.
Republicans have split in recent months on whether spending reductions should include an effort to trim the military’s budget. Some lawmakers have floated the idea of eliminating bureaucratic layers at the Pentagon or slashing aid to Ukraine.
Others have said Pentagon spending levels should stay untouched given the global challenges posed by China and Russia.
Pentagon funding took up 15.1% of the federal budget in fiscal 2023.
But military support for Ukraine could still emerge as a flashpoint on Capitol Hill in the future — just not, it seems, as part of debt ceiling talks.
House Republicans have started conducting oversight of where aid to Ukraine has gone over the past year, and winding down involvement in the war against Russia has become a rallying cry in the 2024 GOP presidential primary.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonexaminer.com ...
1) Excuse to raise taxes (MUCH worse than debt)
2) Excuse to raise taxes (MUCH worse than debt)
3) Excuse to raise taxes (MUCH worse than debt)
4) Excuse to raise taxes (MUCH worse than debt)
5) Excuse to raise taxes (MUCH worse than debt)
Sounds like some good negotiating points. I know Kevin McCarthy is unpopular here, but there’s some framework to work with here.
Either be specific telling the WH exactly which expenses are to be reduced and the exact number to be reduced,
or, an across the board reduction of every department including DOD (they are soaking in fat). Say, 5-10% would be a good start.
And close the government if there is any foot dragging.
The Republicans need to hold their d/feet to the fire. They should suggest funding the crazy stuff only if d/government salaries are cut to pay for it 2 for 1.
The WH has already said it's not going to negotiate with Republicans unless they get their objectives met.
So Republicans shouldn't have offered anything. Don't even meet with Biden or put out a statement or anything. Just let the debt ceiling crash, the dollar is imploding anyway so who cares.
Get rid of ALL and EVERYTHING related to the climate farce. There is no way we are going to change the climate of the universe...which includes the earth..they are not separable.
Work requirements-Jesus.
We’ve been doing this now for decades. It’s now time to close the government and let the whole thing crash. We are feeding the addiction with extending the debt ceiling.
You must not have a business to be saying such irresponsible things.
People need stable markets, even nihilists without any assets.
Republicans are going to have to get control of the senate, house, and presidency and actually reform the budget rather than wasting their time like they did under Paul Ryan and Trump in 2017 and 2018.
Another revenue stream is mining leases for strategic metals and mineral on Federal land. Not only are such leases good for national security, they also add to deficit reduction.
I'm also in favor of taking the current spending for all discretionary programs and lopping five percent off.
I would like to point out that the United States government is ignoring a revenue stream...
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I’d rather see all federal lands returned to the states, but certainly there’s plenty of revenue to be had there. They should be also talking about ending unconstitutional departments like Education & Energy. Those have needed to go for ages.
I agree with your first point. Never flash your cards when you are about to negotiate. Keep them close to your vest. Make the other side open with their gambit.
The problem with reducing Defense spending is it never seems that the stuff that should be cut, gets cut. The equipment will keep rolling to Ukraine while base housing is underfunded and MWR programs get slashed.
Debt ceiling,
What an absolute UniParty farce.
-fJRoberts-
Debt ceiling,
What an absolute UniParty farce.
-fJRoberts-
This is how stupid Republicans are.
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Yes, and it’s amazing how some people think all of this theater is meaningful. The Republican plan probably won’t pass the Senate and it is DoA at the White House. The reality is that most US citizens want more funding for themselves and their pet projects...not less. You can make sane budget cuts WHEN YOU ARE IN POWER, but it’s clear that you never run on being fiscally conservative (or hell even being fiscally restrained)...Americans broadly just don’t care.
Republicans need to go scorched earth on all the money used to fund their left wing organizations.
Cut the extra $6.3 trillion that congress spent in the first 2 years of the Biden regime that caused the massive inflation and misery.
We cannot grow our way out of debt through the magic of tax cuts. This has been proven false for several decades now. Laffernomics is laughable.
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