Commentary by Rich Tucker - In the self-declared “Little City” where I live, a sign went up recently. It says that Falls Church plans to build one of those radar signs to alert drivers if they’re going too fast. The project is being funded by the “American Recovery and Reinvestment Act,” better known as the Stimulus. And so it goes. Just across the Potomac River, Congressional leaders are supposedly grappling with ways to trim our country’s massive debt, some $14.3 trillion and counting. Meanwhile, already-approved stimulus programs roll merrily along, regardless of whether they’ll actually create any jobs. Think of it this way: A new radar sign might compel drivers to slow down. But it won’t “create” any jobs, because it will be installed by a local government team that would have been getting paid anyway. And wasn’t “creating jobs” supposed to be the whole point? In recent days, President Obama has held a series of news conferences ahead of his meetings with Congressional Republicans. He repeatedly says he wants a big agreement that would trim trillions from the nation’s $14.3 trillion debt over the next decade. Yet in a recent meeting, Sen. Mitch McConnell asked the vice president: “How much does the Biden plan actually cut from next year’s discretionary spending budget?” The answer: $2 billion. Well, that probably seems like a lot. $2 billion is more money than most of us could even imagine earning or spending. But in this context, it’s nothing. “According to the Congressional Budget Office, our total federal deficit for 2010 was approximately $1.3 trillion. That means that every day, the government will accumulate an average of $3,561,643,835.62 in additional debt. So trimming $2 billion from next year’s budget saves us about 12 hours of borrowing. That means that we’d be in the clear on, say New Year’s morning. But by the time most of the college football bowl games had kicked off, we’d be borrowing again, and would continue to do so for the rest of the year.
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Tucker: Still not Serious About Spending
Commentary by Rich Tucker - In the self-declared “Little City” where I live, a sign went up recently. It says that Falls Church plans to build one of those radar signs to alert drivers if they’re going too fast. The project is being funded by the “American Recovery and Reinvestment Act,” better known as the Stimulus. And so it goes. Just across the Potomac River, Congressional leaders are supposedly grappling with ways to trim our country’s massive debt, some $14.3 trillion and counting. Meanwhile, already-approved stimulus programs roll merrily along, regardless of whether they’ll actually create any jobs. Think of it this way: A new radar sign might compel drivers to slow down. But it won’t “create” any jobs, because it will be installed by a local government team that would have been getting paid anyway. And wasn’t “creating jobs” supposed to be the whole point? In recent days, President Obama has held a series of news conferences ahead of his meetings with Congressional Republicans. He repeatedly says he wants a big agreement that would trim trillions from the nation’s $14.3 trillion debt over the next decade. Yet in a recent meeting, Sen. Mitch McConnell asked the vice president: “How much does the Biden plan actually cut from next year’s discretionary spending budget?” The answer: $2 billion. Well, that probably seems like a lot. $2 billion is more money than most of us could even imagine earning or spending. But in this context, it’s nothing. “According to the Congressional Budget Office, our total federal deficit for 2010 was approximately $1.3 trillion. That means that every day, the government will accumulate an average of $3,561,643,835.62 in additional debt. So trimming $2 billion from next year’s budget saves us about 12 hours of borrowing. That means that we’d be in the clear on, say New Year’s morning. But by the time most of the college football bowl games had kicked off, we’d be borrowing again, and would continue to do so for the rest of the year. Read more
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