Dan Scott said:
I don't think material spending cuts are going to happen because they messed it up from the start. They went with the slash and burn own the libs method and made mistakes or claims that's weren't true.
I get going after the low hanging fruit first but I think they would have been more effective starting with something a lot agree with like the DOD. So much talk how they haven't passed an audit X years. But then they pass a CR that gives them more money. And Trump said in an interview that he doesn't want to cut defense now because world too dangerous.
They never were regardless of how they started. At some point, everyone is going to realize this.
When you come out of the gate saying you aren't going to touch any of our mandatory spending which accounts for 2/3 of the budget then you've already lost any opportunity to have meaningful spending cuts. It's also Republican Party policy not to touch any Mandatory spending and long since been communicated multiple times by R's and Trump.
Their plan is cut as much as fraud as they can and then try to unleash private industry which they hope will overtake all of our existing and planned spending. Count me as laughably skeptical that can be accomplished considering we already projecting $1-2T in deficits every year for the next 10. We will be at $150T in debt by then.
Never mind the fact when Democrats get back in power they will immediately reverse anything this admin has done to reverse our inevitable demise.
Regarding the USAID foresight conversation, I'm totally cool with them killing the entire thing without looking at any of it first. Screw that entire program. 85% of is fraud and/or wasteful spending. Being delicate about it accomplishes nothing because the pigs with their snouts in that trough would never have let it anything get cut unless you hit it with a slash and burn tactic. If you break some eggs along the way, and have to re-up a few things then fine.
