The Hot Air In Those Tea Cups

The proposed discretionary spending part of the national budget (over 1 trillion dollars agreed upon by the President and the Congress together) for 2011 can be broken down this way (data)

NASA, Energy, Labor, Treasury, Interior, EPA, Commerce - 1% Each

Justice, Agriculture - 2% Each

Homeland Security, Housing & Urban Development - 3% Each

State, Education, "Other" (mostly pork) - 4% Each

Health and Human Services, Transportation - 6% Each

Defense - 59%

1. Deficit spending has been occurring every year since 2002 after some years of surplus,
2. According to OMB this 2011 discretionary budget reduces NON-MILITARY spending by $520 billions (a billion is like a real lot).
3. The Economic Stimulus Package is now moved to mandatory spending, but is still slightly lower than the total spent on the discretionary dollars for the Department of Transportation.
4. Note that Defense spending is SEPARATE from Homeland Security, which in itself is three times larger than NASA.

A. The "Bank Bailout" was proposed under the Bush administration and worked very well to put the stops on a full bore depression, but the Tea Party uses this program as proof that "President Obama is a socialist."

B. The Tea Party continually points to welfare and social programs as the reason the budget is overblown, but never takes into account the $1.98 million spent EVERY MINUTE by our military and attendant programs (includes veterans and nuclear weapons maintenance).

Notwithstanding the "mandatory" spending approved by both parties, or that few specific cuts are actually being proposed by the GOP concretely in any published program or campaign literature; why not cut all discretionary spending for four years, keep the tax structure exactly as it is, frozen, for the same time period, and see where we are on the $13 TRILLION deficit both parties have contributed to since 2002 and act accordingly?

Of course that is impossible and will never happen. But what remains interesting is the size of the nose ring in the faces of the lawn chair and snake flag set.

Damn lies and statistics. Have a nice election.