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Started By
Message
re: Senate Republican: ‘We can’t afford’ $2,000 tariff checks
Posted on 11/24/25 at 4:44 pm to ragincajun03
Posted on 11/24/25 at 4:44 pm to ragincajun03
We can't afford a lot of things, but that doesn't stop them.
0
Posted on 11/24/25 at 5:29 pm to ragincajun03
We don't want more crazy inflation. Put that towards the deficit.
Posted on 11/24/25 at 5:30 pm to Figgy
quote:
Bring back Bill and Newt.
You'd need to bring back the dot com boom. Bill and Newt still increased spending, they were just fortunate to be around when the internet exploded with its accompanying revenue spike.
Posted on 11/24/25 at 5:33 pm to Flats
quote:
Bill and Newt still increased spending, they were just fortunate to be around when the internet exploded with its accompanying revenue spike.
We have the AI boom right now
But we don't seem to have anywhere near the revenue to balance the budget
What gives?
Posted on 11/24/25 at 5:52 pm to ragincajun03
Can we afford hundreds of billions in foreign aid, tens of billions in anti-poverty programs, billions to study the mating habits of tiger/lion hybrids, transgender mice and a myriad other literal wastes of very good money, climate nonsense, paying farmers to not grow food, paying farmers to grow corn that will be turned into ethanol to ruin internal combustion engines at a net loss of energy, etc, etc.?
(ETA: When I was in Iraq, just one mid-sized base was spending a million dollars A DAY on bottle water. :letthatsinkin: - "We can't afford" my arse.)
(ETA: When I was in Iraq, just one mid-sized base was spending a million dollars A DAY on bottle water. :letthatsinkin: - "We can't afford" my arse.)
This post was edited on 11/24/25 at 5:54 pm
Posted on 11/24/25 at 5:54 pm to Ace Midnight
quote:
Can we afford hundreds of billions in foreign aid, tens of billions in anti-poverty programs, billions to study the mating habits of tiger/lion hybrids, transgender mice and a myriad other literal wastes of very good money, climate nonsense, paying farmers to not grow food, paying farmers to grow corn that will be turned into ethanol to ruin internal combustion engines at a net loss of energy, etc,
Nope. We can't afford any of that either.
Posted on 11/24/25 at 5:54 pm to Ace Midnight
quote:
When I was in Iraq, just one mid-sized base was spending a million dollars A DAY on bottle water
That's the type of shite that has us in this situation
We should be shuttering military bases all over the globe
Posted on 11/24/25 at 6:02 pm to Powerman
quote:
That's the type of shite that has us in this situation
You could zero out the military budget and we'd still be underwater. I'm not against trimming back in all areas, military included, but it's typically only 15%-18% of our budget. Medicare, Medicaid and SS are the big dogs.
Posted on 11/24/25 at 6:07 pm to Flats
quote:
You could zero out the military budget and we'd still be underwater.
Right. But a big reason for that is the cumulative debt that we've already run up causing our interest payments to hoard so much of the budget. Our defense budget ballooned because of the failed war on terror and has crippled us fiscally.
Posted on 11/24/25 at 6:08 pm to 50_Tiger
quote:
Nothing idiotic about taking a step back to fix the home first before venturing out into the wilderness.
If the global environment was really "the wilderness" and if completely isolating from it wouldn't quickly cause 10 x the problems (that we would then have to deal with) they could possibly solve, and if the foreign aid budget was more than about 4% of the federal budget, you might have a point.
As it is, though, it's like Ford's policy of refusing to spend $11 for the part that would have kept the Pinto from bursting into flames in the 70s and having to pay to defend 6 and 7 figure lawsuits instead.
It's definitely idiotic given the scope of all of the factors involved.
Posted on 11/24/25 at 6:12 pm to Powerman
quote:
Our defense budget ballooned because of the failed war on terror and has crippled us fiscally.
That's factually incorrect.
In 1987 the defense budget was 32% of the federal budget.
It then declined to 20% by the late 1990s. After the "War on Terror" it went back up to 24.5%, then declined again.
In 2021 it was 11%. Which is a historic low. Last two years it was 13%.
Posted on 11/24/25 at 6:12 pm to wackatimesthree
You probably have a point. But I'd wager that at least some of our public spending has no tangible benefit to the U.S.
Posted on 11/24/25 at 6:15 pm to Powerman
quote:
But I'd wager that at least some of our public spending has no tangible benefit to the U.S.
I have no doubt of that.
The problem is that when dealing with foreign policy some information is classified. There may be reasons that you or I will never know about that justify some foreign aid.
Or, there may not be.
The point is that we won't ever know for sure. But when it's such a tiny part of the federal budget, common sense tells me that it is better to give the benefit of the doubt.
Posted on 11/24/25 at 6:18 pm to ragincajun03
Not another penny should go out in foreign aid until we can.
Posted on 11/24/25 at 6:19 pm to wackatimesthree
quote:
That's factually incorrect.
In 1987 the defense budget was 32% of the federal budget.
It then declined to 20% by the late 1990s. After the "War on Terror" it went back up to 24.5%, then declined again.
In 2021 it was 11%. Which is a historic low. Last two years it was 13%.
The denominator is much larger due to an aging population and because servicing the interest on our debt is so costly.
For instance - FY 2005 our budget was 2.47 trillion and the interest payments were 183 billion
In 2024 it was 6.7 trillion with 880 billion going to interest. Defense spending isn't getting under control. The denominator is getting out of control.
Posted on 11/24/25 at 6:22 pm to Powerman
quote:
Defense spending isn't getting under control.
What percentage of the budget would you consider "being under control?"
Again, 2021 was a historic low.
The interest on the debt is a completely separate issue, as it is what it is relative to any expense you can name, not just defense.
quote:
The denominator is much larger due to an aging population
So SS/Medicare is the relevant expense you should be attacking. Not defense.
Posted on 11/24/25 at 6:25 pm to wackatimesthree
quote:
So SS/Medicare is the relevant expense you should be attacking. Not defense.
Those are mandated by law. Defense is discretionary and easier to cut.
And the "historic low" is sort of irrelevant when you consider how much more we spend than other nations
Posted on 11/24/25 at 6:42 pm to Powerman
quote:
And the "historic low" is sort of irrelevant when you consider how much more we spend than other nations
Historic means since 1776. Do you think we spent more than other nations in 1776? How about 1876? 1905?
Not to mention, I think your perceptions are out-kicking your coverage again.
Here's a table of military spending by percentage of total government budget by country. I count roughly 15 nations who spend more than the US and another 7 or so who fall within the range that we have been at for the past 4 years.
LINK
And since the factor in question is spending, that's definitely the metric that matters.
quote:
Those are mandated by law.
LOL. So we change the law. What do you think "SS Reform" means?
quote:
Defense is discretionary and easier to cut.
Cutting something "because it's easier" is the dumbest reason ever. That's like being 100 lbs overweight and having heart disease, but deciding to reduce weekly screen time rather than lose weight "because it's easier."
But you haven't answered the question. What should the defense budget be if 11% is too high for you?
This post was edited on 11/24/25 at 6:43 pm
Posted on 11/24/25 at 6:44 pm to wackatimesthree
We account for 37% of global defense spending
I think we have some room to cut
Call me crazy
I think we have some room to cut
Call me crazy
Posted on 11/24/25 at 6:47 pm to Powerman
quote:
Our defense budget ballooned because of the failed war on terror and has crippled us fiscally.
That's objectively wrong.
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