Best Way To Slash The Debt: Reelect Obama

[printer2]

Finally, we have a semi-serious plan to rein in government spending, reduce the debt, and prevent America from going broke. President Obama's "deficit commission" has issued a draft report with dozens of concrete proposals for cutting spending and raising taxes, but it also contains one unstated conclusion: No politician hoping to get reelected will ever support all the measures it will take to make America solvent again.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/usnews/20101...VzdHdheXRvc2xh

Would your representative support the changes as outlined in the draft?

http://www.fiscalcommission.gov/site...hair_Draft.pdf

[Beaver Bob]

This is a great idea, but has an issue, nobody is willing to sit back and wait for gradual change except for the dems at the moment.

The repubs are being over aggressive when the economy is more fragile than it has ever been may be good, may be bad who knows, and the socalled independents seem to pick aside and play just as aggressively once they are elected which is something america is not ready for at the moment.

Getting people to sit back and realize that economic climate takes time to change is a difficult task, and I pray that people will be wise in 2012 when elections come.

[printer2]

Gradual change? Cut $200 Billion in government spending in 2015. Sounds real soon to me.

$100+ billion in potential Defense savings

$100+ billion in potential Domestic savings

Cuts spending $200 billion below the 2015 levels in the President’s Budget

$100B in Illustrative Defense Cuts

DISCRETIONARY BUDGET
2015
_____________
Apply the overhead savings Secretary Gates has promised to deficit reduction - 28 Billion

Freeze federal salaries, bonuses, and other compensation at the Department of Defense for three years - 5.3 Billion

Freeze noncombat military pay at 2011 levels for 3 years - 9.2 Billion

Double Secretary Gates’ cuts to defense contracting - 5.4 Billion

Reduce procurement by 15 percent - 20 Billion

Reduce overseas bases by one-third - 8.5 Billion

Modernize Tricare, Defense health - 6 Billion

Replace military personnel performing commercial activities with civilians - 5.4 Billion

Reduce spending on Research, Development, Test & Evaluation by 10 percent - 7 Billion

Reduce spending on base support - 2 Billion

Reduce spending on facilities maintenance 1.4 Billion

Consolidate the Department of Defense’s retail activities - 0.8 Billion

Integrate children of military personnel into local schools in the United States 1.1 Billion


$100B in Illustrative Domestic Cuts
_____________
Reduce Congressional & White House budgets by 15% - 0.8 Billion

Freeze federal salaries, bonuses, and other compensation at non-Defense agencies for three years - 15.1 Billion

Cut the federal workforce by 10% (2-for-3 replacement rate) - 13.2 Billion

Eliminate 250,000 non-defense service and staff augmentee contractors - 18.4 Billion

Reduce unnecessary printing costs - 0.4 Billion

Create a Cut-and-Invest Committee charged with trimming waste and targeting investment - 11 Billion

Terminate low-priority Corps construction projects - 1 Billion

Slow the growth of foreign aid - 4.6 Billion

Eliminate a number of programs administered by the Rural Utility Service (formerlyREA) - 0.5 Billion

Eliminate all earmarks - 16 Billion

Eliminate funding for commercial spaceflight - 1.2 Billion

Sell excess federal property - 1 Billion

26 other options of $2 billion or less - 17 Billion

[acmanko]

The only problem I see is that all these cuts are to the military and that's taboo. When we reduced Military spending after the fall of the USSR and how unprepared we were for These so called jihads we've been dealing with, the US Armed Forces get what amounts to a blank check.

We like all the weapons we can think of that keep others from messing with us. All the US wants is a world where we can trade peacefully with everyone .
But there is always some rogue country that wants to take potshots at us.

Even though I personally believe we could cut some Military spending, I don't see it happening anytime soon. If anything I see it increasing.

[printer2]

The only problem I see is that all these cuts are to the military and that's taboo. When we reduced Military spending after the fall of the USSR and how unprepared we were for These so called jihads we've been dealing with, the US Armed Forces get what amounts to a blank check.

We like all the weapons we can think of that keep others from messing with us. All the US wants is a world where we can trade peacefully with everyone .
But there is always some rogue country that wants to take potshots at us.

Even though I personally believe we could cut some Military spending, I don't see it happening anytime soon. If anything I see it increasing.

What country took a serious pot shot since the fall of the Soviet Union? The big problem we have seen appear since then is not countries that start the fighting but failed states with factions with nothing to loose that are causing all the trouble. Destroyers or aircraft carriers do not scare them, actually they make for juicy targets.

The above gave half the cuts to the military and half to domestic spending.

[acmanko]

It really does not matter what country can or which faction can do us harm. Our defense is the sacred cow and we don't want it touched. It is one of the few things our government is given in the constitution.

[2cool4us]

What country took a serious pot shot since the fall of the Soviet Union? The big problem we have seen appear since then is not countries that start the fighting but failed states with factions with nothing to loose that are causing all the trouble. Destroyers or aircraft carriers do not scare them, actually they make for juicy targets.

The above gave half the cuts to the military and half to domestic spending.

It's easy for a non-American to speak on matters of USA military. We protect US interests, citizens, and resources worldwide. Canada at it's disgression still acts like an English colony.

[printer2]

It's easy for a non-American to speak on matters of USA military. We protect US interests, citizens, and resources worldwide. Canada at it's disgression still acts like an English colony.

I am not speaking of the US military. I was speaking of a document your government put out on ways to reduce your expenditures. It is a little easier for me to speak about governments reducing their spending as our country tackled the same issues that you have to fifteen years ago.

For a person that has trouble understanding the question proposed in this thread you sure are disrespectful of another's person's country.

[glennac]

Printer this has to be the dumbest thread you have ever started while not the dumbest thread posted on this forum it sure fall down toward the bottom in my opinion. You really had to get smashed to come up with this one. Thank you, thank you very much.

[printer2]

Printer this has to be the dumbest thread you have ever started while not the dumbest thread posted on this forum it sure fall down toward the bottom in my opinion. You really had to get smashed to come up with this one. Thank you, thank you very much.

How so?

[freddy-b]

It really does not matter what country can or which faction can do us harm. Our defense is the sacred cow and we don't want it touched. It is one of the few things our government is given in the constitution.

It should say Federal Government. but other than that....................
You are absolutely correct.