It's Not about Spending, It's about Values

This is a SAMPLE federal budget from Pew research foundation. I thought it was interesting and a way to start thinking about the whole shebang.

The fight over the budget is not about spending. It’s not about “reining in” government, and the deficit. It’s not about “fiscal responsibility.” It is about values.

If it was about spending, we would all be taking a hard look at the largest parts of our budget, where cuts would really matter. What programs are we cutting, and why? How will that help the overall budget? What items are we NOT cutting, and why? What about those tax loopholes for the wealthiest Americans and huge corporations like Haliburton, who pay no taxes? What about the tremendous “welfare for the rich” programs that seem to be held sacrosanct? Even Warren Buffet and Bill Gates talk about this, and with more sophistication than our current legislators. What about the billions we give to dictators who line their own pockets and stomp on economic and political freedoms for their people, and the wars in Irag, Afghanistan and now in other countries? How effective are our very expensive post- 9/11 national security programs, and what about them?

If this “debate’ was really about cutting government spending, the so-called “negotiations” wouldn’t be getting “stuck” on funding for planned parenthood, cancer screening for women, medical research, the defense of marriage act, or NPR.

So we are down to the nitty gritty: the Republicans want to “rein in” government spending for the middle class, the working poor, women, kids, the sick, disabled, and elderly. They do not want to rein in government for the rich. Obama ran on the opposite platform, that government has a role to play in our lives. Why isn’t he jumping on this, and the fact that the economic problems we face stem from the riotous deficit spending policies of the Bush/Cheney administration. Where were the tea party zealots then? The president and his economic advisers would do well to educate the American people about the real issues and the real options. I think this is a huge gap in the Obama administration’s handling of this crisis, and of its handling of economic issues in general.

And finally, if this “debate” was about "spending," wouldn’t you think twice about the COST of closing down the government, then re-booting it, no matter where you are on the political spectrum? Would you be yelling with glee "Shut it down," when that will cost taxpayers money and hurt not help the economy? Is this like destroying a village in order to save it? If you really want to cut spending, does this make sense? But, and here's the heart of the matter, is this argument making a dent? Do the know-nothings who are refusing to compromise (on things like women's health) care? Doesn’t look like it. And that’s the real story.