re: Post your reaction to Massie losing

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That only works if you allocate zero to everything.

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It's a rhetorical starting point.

Less spending = less fraud

More spending = more fraud

And this is even conceding your dishonest framing about labeling wasteful spending as fraud, mind you. You still can't win the discussion with that given to you.

And that's ignoring the larger point about fiscal responsibility and our deficit/debt and how you can DOGE all you want, but if spending remains the same, our deficit/debt will grow.

It doesn't matter how much wasteful spending or fraud you discover being distributed by agencies if you fund those agencies at the same level the following year. This is a basic mathematical equation.

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We should cut waste and fraud AND reduce the deficit. The two are not mutually exclusive.

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You're the one dishonestly conflating these concepts

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Cope, bro. Cope more.

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Hershel Walker won his primary. .

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Explain it.

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Im not sure I can. Might have better luck teaching my do calculus.

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You said that all of the guy's that wanted McCarthy have been ousted.

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Yep. And they are.

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So if the guys that wanted McCarthy ousted, are also Trump's picks, then how is Trump a McCarthy guy?

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They aren’t. They are the people Trump has worked to get rid of.

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Cutting budgets alone is not going to eliminate waste and abuse because grifters are loyal to the grift.

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If you cut spending to bare bones levels there won't be any to waste.

Hence, to get back to square one, DOGE means nothing if Trump/MAGA continue to sign CRs that spend at Biden levels. Literally nothing.

Our deficit/debt is based on the allocation by Congress. What happens after that allocation is irrelevant to a discussion bout the debt/deficits.

You've just tried to dishonestly digress the conversation to something else while conflating that digression with the larger point.

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Why do y'all have such an issue responding relevantly?

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It is relevant. You just don't like when a real concrete example is given, and not just some talking point that can never be proven right or wrong.

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Oh look, it's Kevin McCarthy

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So you can't answer. Again, more talking points, but no solutions. This is your MO. You'll never present any concrete examples because those can be argued right or wrong. Instead, you put forth suppositions that can't be argued.

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How did Massie vote on that bill?

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Voted for the bill. And Trump pushed for it, and did RFK Jr. for many years.

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His district is not all of Kentucky

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So just all of his constituents in his voting precinct changed. Not Massie, right? You want to keep moving those goal posts?

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Which specific policies has he shifted on since November 2024?

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- Big Beautiful Bill - constituents supported it
- Continuing Resolutions (CRs) / Government Funding Bills -
Massie was often the sole Republican voting No on short-term funding bills to avert shutdowns. Trump publicly pressured him to support them.
- Homeland Security / ICE Funding Bill (H.R. 7147, 2026 appropriations)
Massie was the only Republican to vote No.
Included billions for ICE/deportations but also funded the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (which Massie called a “censorship arm”)
- War Powers Resolutions (e.g., H.Con.Res. 38 and others re: Iran strikes, 2025–2026)
Massie introduced or co-sponsored measures (often with Democrats) to require congressional approval for military actions against Iran
- Voted against certain rules for bills (e.g., SAVE America Act rule in 2026) because they suspended normal House procedures or bundled unrelated spending. He clarified he supported the underlying SAVE Act (proof of citizenship for voting) but opposed the rule.

So at some point, you are saying all of his constituents changed, after previously voting for him? Is that your final answer?

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The cope-spin to defend Biden-level spending (on top of Trump's Covid-era spending) is so entertaining. And these are the same people who once claimed to be supporters of the Tea Party and small government.

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Teh deflection to put the entire scope of fiscal responsibility on Thomas Massi is classic Democrat strategy.

Democrat raise spending and the howl “why don’t republicans balance the budget”. Now MAGA is doing the same thing within the party

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Less spending = less fraud

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Within a given department, maybe. If a 25% reduction in funding results in a 25% reduction in fraud, fraud still exists and DOGE still has an important role to play.

Fraud and waste should be eliminated irrespective of budgets. You disagree?

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It is relevant.

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Not to DOGE.

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So you can't answer.

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I can answer, you just don't understand the larger point (even though it's been explained directly ITT).

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Again, more talking points, but no solutions.

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There is a difference in solutions and positive solutions. I'm concerned with positive solutions, not the easy way out.

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You'll never present any concrete examples because those can be argued right or wrong. Instead, you put forth suppositions that can't be argued.

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I literally gave a concrete example in response to your post, but you just didn't get it, even though it's been explained ITT.

Legislative pragmatism is a recent 180 for MAGA. They were the ones rabidly supporting legislative policy purity in the fall of 2023, which is what led to Kevin McCarthy being ousted as SOH. The question is why MAGA keeps flip flopping on a major policy position.

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Voted for the bill.

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So what's the specific relevance to this discussion?

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So just all of his constituents in his voting precinct changed.

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All of his constituents did not change. I didn't say that, either.

Strawman after strawman.

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- Big Beautiful Bill - constituents supported it
- Continuing Resolutions (CRs) / Government Funding Bills -
Massie was often the sole Republican voting No on short-term funding bills to avert shutdowns. Trump publicly pressured him to support them.
- Homeland Security / ICE Funding Bill (H.R. 7147, 2026 appropriations)
Massie was the only Republican to vote No.
Included billions for ICE/deportations but also funded the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (which Massie called a “censorship arm”)
- War Powers Resolutions (e.g., H.Con.Res. 38 and others re: Iran strikes, 2025–2026)
Massie introduced or co-sponsored measures (often with Democrats) to require congressional approval for military actions against Iran

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Which of these specifically show a change in Massie since November 2024?

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So at some point, you are saying all of his constituents changed, after previously voting for him? Is that your final answer?

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Clearly about 20-25% of them did. The question is what influenced that change.

It's likely a combination of AIPAC spending and Trump/MAGA influence causing them to do the MAGA thing and flip flop on policy positions.

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Fraud and waste should be eliminated irrespective of budgets. You disagree?

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The question is what impact on the debt-deficit identifying fraud has, when we allocate the same amounts each year. You didn't respond to any of that from the post.

So, I'll ignore your digression attempt and make it easy and just ask you here directly: What impact on the deficit-debt does identifying fraud have, if Congress-The President allocates the same amount each year?

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But don’t come here and tell me that cutting waste and fraud is pointless unless we cut the deficit.

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What is a better scenario:

1. Maintain Biden-level spending and deficits while eliminating wasteful spending to 0

2. Cut Biden-level deficits in half while wasteful spending still occupies 25% of the reduced allocation

?