Federal Budget Cuts---How much can be cut?
Okay, the question is----How much of the 3 trillion dollar budget can Obama actually cut?
53% is Mandatory Spending---Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security
9% is interest of the 10 trillion dollar debt
19% is War, National Defense, and Homeland Security spending
19% is available for trimming
I suppose he can make cuts (savings?) in Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security spending. That doesn't seem likely.
He could reduce the interest on the debt by decreasing the debt. That doesn't seem probable. That would require increasing Federal income through growth of the economy or higher taxes and at the same time paying down the debt without increasing other spending. That doesn't seem to be likely.
Where and how much can be cut from the 19% for war, national defense, and homeland security? If we're not in Iraq, we'll be some place else----someplace in Africa, the next hot spot.
The 19% available for trimming is used in part for government agencies, Federal employee pay, and Federal worker retirements---running the Government---plus legislator's pet projects in their home states. I can't see Government managers decreasing the size of their Company (bigger = a higher pay grade) nor lawmakers being willing to give up "bringing home the bacon."
And no, Obama, the President does not have line item veto power. All you can do is "lean on" Congress.
Will Obama find a different way---a change? Or does he want to, or intend to, or is it just rhetoric? How much will the National debt be four years from now? How successful will he have been in cutting spending. On second thought, I guess cutting spending may not be synonymous with decreasing the debt.
7:54:09 AM 
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