Senator John Thune Discusses Federal Spending, Elena Kagan, and the new START treaty
“Saving the American Dream: The Heritage Plan to Fix the Debt, Cut Spending, and Restore Prosperity,” Heritage Foundation, May 10, 2011 by Stuart Butler, Ph.D. , Alison Acosta Fraser and William Beachis one of the finest papers I have ever read. Over the next few days I will post portions of this paper, but I will start off with the section on federal spending reform.
Additional Major Spending Reforms
Summary
Over the past decade, Congresses and Presidents have undertaken a
surge of spending that has accelerated America’s speed along the road to
economic ruin. Since 2000, non-defense discretionary outlays have expanded 50
percent faster than inflation. Antipoverty spending has risen 83 percent faster
than inflation, and other programs have grown rapidly. Despite multiple
government audits that have shown many programs to be duplicative or
ineffective, no significant federal program has been eliminated in more than a
decade. Government continues to grow, financed by taxes on Americans and an
explosion of borrowing that is imposing huge additional burdens on future
generations.
Thus, although the major entitlement programs are the primary driver of
long-term spending and debt, Congress must take tough action on discretionary
programs and smaller entitlement programs to reach a balanced budget and ensure
that federal spending is smaller, more effective, and more efficient.
Under the Heritage plan, non-defense discretionary spending—appropriated
programs such as foreign aid, K–12 education, transportation, health research,
housing, community development, and veterans health care, which account for 4.5
percent of GDP—is reduced to 2.0 percent of GDP by 2021. These reforms will
reduce the burden of government, thereby empowering families and entrepreneurs
and promoting economic prosperity.
In addition, antipoverty spending is reformed. Obamacare is repealed, as
noted earlier, and replaced with an alternative solution to uninsurance and high
costs. Agriculture and education programs are structurally reformed. The central
goal for defense is to guarantee national security as prudently and economically
as possible. With improvements in efficiency, we estimate that defense needs
will require spending approximately 4 percent of GDP for the foreseeable
future.
Rather than across-the-board spending reductions, which would not set true
priorities for government, the Heritage plan follows six guidelines in designing
reforms:
- The federal government should focus on performing a limited
number of appropriate governmental duties well while empowering state and local
governments, which are closer to the people, to address local needs creatively
in such areas as transportation, justice, job training, the environment, and
economic development. - Functions that the private sector can perform more efficiently
should be transferred to the private sector. - Duplicative programs should be consolidated both to save money
and to improve government assistance. - Federal programs should more precisely target those who are
actually in need, which means reducing aid to large businesses and upper-income
individuals who do not need taxpayer assistance and enforcing program
eligibility rules better. - Outdated and ineffective programs should be eliminated.
- Waste, fraud, and abuse should be cleaned up wherever found.
By following these six guidelines, the Heritage plan produces a more
effective and efficient government and promotes stronger economic growth.
The Daily Hatch 