Republicans last night made it clear that there will be no spending cuts to write home about. Various GOP members of Congress said they would like an across-the-board cut in "discretionary spending." This is spending that is explicitly authorized each year, as opposed to so-called mandatory (entitlement) spending that is on automatic pilot and whose level depends on how many people become eligible for Social Security, Medicare, and food stamps.
Discretionary spending constitutes just one-third of the federal budget, so the Republican sights are fixed on only that much spending ... except that the party vows not to touch military and "homeland security" spending.
With so much spending off limits, the potential for cuts is not great.
Therefore I ask: Except for those expecting new patronage and consulting jobs, why is anyone excited about last night's election results?
Wednesday, November 03, 2010
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1 comment:
I guess it's because for most people, politics isn't about policy. Rather, it's about increasing the status of their in-groups, and demoting the status of out-groups.
For those of us who do care about policy, maybe divided government will slow down the transformation of bad ideas into laws. Maybe. I wouldn't describe myself as "excited," though.
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