A Meat-Axe Approach to Budgeting?
Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-Maryland) spoke to the National Association of Development Organizations this afternoon in Arlington. Afterwards, CNSNews.com asked him “if he would support the $100 billion in cuts that House Republicans are proposing.” Chris Goins of CNSNews.com described Rep. Hoyer’s answer, writing:
“I voted against H.R.1,” he told CNSNews.com, referring to the full-year appropriations bill. “I thought it was a simply a meat-axe approach without any consideration of priorities. Nothing was put in priority. No hearings. No analysis.”
“He continued: “The way to do it is in a considered way, understanding the consequences of the cuts.”
“During his speech, Hoyer said that part of the solution to the deficit was to cut spending -- but he qualified his support.
“We can not cut spending recklessly,” Hoyer said. “Cuts have to be smart and targeted” Hoyer said.
“Simply having a political document that makes a pledge to America and picking a figure out of the air of a $100 billion. Why? Because you analyzed that $100 billion was the figure you could cut. No, but because it sounded good. Hundred is a nice round number picked out of the air, put in a document and is now trying to be implemented in Washington. Without any concern for the consequences of those cuts. Without any concern what is spending and what is investing.”
“According to Hoyer, Democrats have been more than willing to show compromise and they understand the deficit is a “substantial risk” to our economy and the welfare of our country.
“We are only targeting 14 percent of our budget; the other 86 percent is not being looked at,” he said.
“Hoyer emphasized that $100 billion out of an entire budget of $3.7 trillion may seem small, but it represents is 22 percent of discretionary spending.
All of that weasel-wording may indeed be true, but we growled on March 3, 2011 about the GAO report released thanks to Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Oklahoma), which detailed 34 major areas of wasteful and duplicative government spending” that were estimated to waste between $100 and $200 billion. In fact, Sen. Coburn thought the GAO report “will make us look like jackasses.” Seems referring to cutting $100 billion as a meat-axe approach to budgeting is nothing but overdone rhetoric. Consequently, it seems Mr. Hoyer et al need to work harder with their GOP colleagues to avoid making them all look like jackasses. And those billions don't even include a lot of other wasteful spending we’ve growled about over the years. Sheesh!
By the way, Goins’ article includes a short Eyeblast clip of the video with Rep. Hoyer.