Free Republic

No one in Washington—Republican or Democrat—is trying to balance the budget. Gone is shame about overspending or undertaxing. Every two years, the congressional budget Office publishes a fact-filled report entitled "Budget Options." This year's version is 343 pages, and flipping through it, you get a quick tour of the federal government's far-flung activities. The Army Corps of Engineers spends about $800 million annually to maintain and improve the inland waterways, the Office of National Drug Control Policy buys about $100 million in anti-drug ads and the Department of Transportation provides about $100 million in subsidies for "essential" air service to...