Cost-Cutting Suggestions for Federal Budget

Rep. Neugebauer recently asked for specific suggestions on Federal cost-cutting. I sent him the following:

This responds to your recent Roundup in which you asked for proposals on Federal spending cuts.

1. Shutdown the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

The Afghanis don't want us there. They have been preconditioned by the Russians to avoid accepting foreign intervention. With the American presence, they foresee continued pressure to reduce/eliminate poppy (opium) production, which is their main source of income. If the population wishes the Taliban to take over, so be it. If we feel this is the source of terrorism in the US, use indirect methods of warfare, such as CIA agents on the ground and long-range bombing of bases with airplanes or missiles. This will be a much cheaper control than maintaining ground forces for an indeterminate period.

The situation with Iraq is similar. They now have considerable internal violence, which is not our business to control. We should not be nation building. Our compassion should not force us to help the "poor and unfortunate" Iraqis. The public is never innocent. They have the option and responsibility to control their own destiny.

2. Stop persecution of small businesses through taxes and regulations.

We developed this country on a capitalistic basis, which was very successful in our achieving a standard of living greater than any other country. We have been declining into socialism, with a simultaneous distraction of our economic base and personal liberties.

Rich people make jobs. I don't know of anyone who was employed by a poor person. Rich people always desire to get richer. They then give their money away through charities and trusts.

As our military personnel returns from Afghanistan and Iraq and attempts to enter the labor force, they need job opportunities. These job opportunities must come from businesses and those businesses in turn must have reasons to hire, rather than being persecuted by the Federal government

3. Stop bailouts

Private enterprises will never do their best to operate in a healthy profitable manner, so long as they have a fallback position of being "saved" by the federal government for ridiculous risks they may have taken.

This includes bailouts of foreign countries, such as our recent contribution to the Greek catastrophe. We are not part of the European Union. In fact, we should be competing with them. While they may not be our enemy in the traditional sense, they are certainly our competitors in world markets. If you don't believe this, ask the Boeing executives about Airbus.

4. Stop subsidies.

Most federal subsidies involve tax credits or grants to particular industries, such as wind energy, photovoltaics, cotton production, and to various local operations, such as schools.
An industry, which is unable to compete in world markets, should be allowed to fail, since it is economically impractical. The converse to this is to support inefficiency, which your gut feeling should tell you is wrong.

Federal subsidies to local schools indirectly grant to federal authorities the right to control local educational programs. This should be the responsibility and right of parents, who elect their school boards, which in turn appoint educational administrators.

Subsidies also include grants to individuals for specific actions. Examples are "cash for clunkers" and tax credits for home insulation. Additionally, the "earned income" status in the IRS regulations should be eliminated. Aiding the poor is the responsibility of the public, including organizations such as churches, other charities, and individuals. It should not be the responsibility of government to hide charity under the guise of special names such as "earned income". Such action only leads to an entitlement mentality.

The big item for cost reduction is the general group involving entitlements. This includes Social Security and Healthcare. It should be the responsibility of every citizen and his family to take care of costs involving medical care and the subsequent living costs of retirement for those unable to continue employment. Government should not apply any age restrictions on employment nor subsidize inactivity at any age.

5. Reduce the size of federal government.

In these days, the greatest opportunities for employment are with the federal government. As numbers of employees increase, the total payroll increases. Government payroll should be cut by reducing new employment and shutting down departments for which no obvious need exists. Ex-government employees should seek positions in private industry.

6. Give up globalization

Globalization means to put the populations of all countries on an equal economic basis. This is contrary to the desires of the American public. They have had the justified advantages of capitalistic hard work in previous generations and feel no desire to give away those advantages to their own detriment. The populations of other countries have the same opportunity and should exercise it.

We have given away manufacturing jobs to many other countries, because their labor costs are lower than those of the US. An abusive compassion would say that it is justifiable. However, most citizens would agree that the federal government should not be penalizing its citizenry through exercise of a globalization theory.

The handmaiden of globalization and the reason why jobs can be exported is the US's "free trade" policy. This has had the disadvantage of closing down whole US industries, such as the textile industry. US citizens can now go to Sears, JCPenney's and purchase articles of clothing at relatively low prices. In fact, the racks of those stores are filled with Chinese, Guatemalan, and Korean goods. The problem is that textile job elimination in the US has reduced the ability to purchase. Several years ago, the federal government applied a special tariff against imported steel. This gave an opportunity for the US steel industry to reestablish itself, with availability of local production and increased US jobs. This program needs to be extended, which will increase federal government revenues similar to cost reductions.