It baffles me that our government presented a plan that would not implement ONE PENNY worth of budget cuts to help with this crisis. Let’s go ahead and spend $700 billion, but let’s not do a corresponding budget cut in any area to offset this new cost…incredible.
Corruption in Washington is so deep (on both sides) that to even consider a federal budget cut is seemingly beyond comprehension. NOT ONE PENNY IN CUTS. Doesn’t this bother anyone? I haven’t seen talk of a massive budget cut proposal to accompany this new emergency outlay anywhere in the news.
Governor Palin is perhaps the only one who has even alluded to trimming unnecessary spending in our government (aside from McCain’s earmark stance). This reduction in spending approach gets some folks on the left so angry (it limits their power with constituents and special interests...let's face it, there are a lot of folks to keep happy). With that said, I believe Palin is actually right on the money concerning limited spending….if a government spends frivolously beyond its means, how can this benefit the people?
Going forward, both Presidential candidates will likely have to completely revamp their economic plans. If Obama implements his current spending plan, the U.S. would add roughly $500 billion in additional costs to the deficit. I don’t feel comfy with the prospect of increasing our national debt this much, especially in the current environment.
On the other hand, if McCain doesn’t reduce U.S. presence in the Middle East AND cut domestic spending dramatically, I’m not sure we will be able to turn the economic crisis around over the next four years. McCain’s approach to cutting earmarks is great, but earmarks alone won’t do it. We need massive budget cuts and we need them now.
I was very disturbed to hear that some in Congress wanted to add additional mortgage bailout initiatives to the $700 billion plan. Whoa…this is exactly the approach that got us into this pickle in the first place (i.e., the belief that every American deserves a home whether or not they can afford it). This goes to show that certain folks in Congress will spend more if they can, even if our country is on the potential brink of disaster. The spending culture in Washington is very disturbing to me…we can’t keep throwing money at every problem we see.
While some may believe that it’s every American’s patriotic duty to pay more in taxes, I disagree with this premise. Any politician who goes down this road will likely end up with egg on their face. Americans are (rightfully) angry about the current situation and do NOT want to pay higher taxes to bail out CEOs and to keep people in thier homes...this is pure distribution of wealth.
Final thought:
For decades, many of us have lived beyond our means as individuals at one point or another. The problem I see now is that when people cannot sustain their desired standard of living, they begin looking to government for answers...this way of thinking is extending beyond party lines.
The scary thing is that many Americans may get exactly what they’re looking for…more government in our lives.
v/r,
FMC
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2 comments:
This $700B bailout would be an excellent opportunity for our candidates to show real leadership. Obama could really help himself by sincerely telling his Democrat colleagues to leave the additional main-street mortgage bailout out of this legislation and reach across the aisle to get the job done (there’s a first time for everything). McCain has already stated his earmark & pork barrel stance but he could do better by encouraging his congressional friends to check the partisanship at the door. The fact is: the taxpayers are stuck with this bailout. Congress has failed us to this point and it’s about time they started caring more about their main-street constituents instead of the ones who can afford lobbyists.
And as for Wall Street – get your heads out. Look outside your little bubble to see what havoc you have caused. Stop paying off the ratings agencies, stop compensating your CEO’s millions for a job any college grad could do and suck it up because some of these businesses were meant to fail.
The average citizen should be outraged that this type of behavior has been running unchecked for so long. I’m not a fan of big government, but a healthy dose of regulation – and consequence – is needed here. The agencies in charge of regulation also need to have the power to enforce the rules (and the testicular fortitude to do so). Our country’s checks-and-balances system is out of balance and gridlock is the result. As a nation, we need to tighten our belts and cut down on spending. We need to monitor those elected to office so they do the same. We need to stop living in houses we can’t afford. The government can’t afford the house of debt being built and they’re expecting the taxpayers to pay the mortgage for generations to come. I, for one, am not cool with that.
I'm glad to see that a majority of Americans don't approve of the bailout.
FMC
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