And while we're contemplating the debt, we just have to point out that one of the biggest spenders, defense, is already lining up it's publicity to make sure it's share of the new budget is bigger than it should be;
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Pentagon chief says 6-month temporary budget bill will have devastating effect on military (msn.com)

Pentagon chief says 6-month temporary budget bill will have devastating effect on military
Story by Associated Press
• 14h

WASHINGTON — Passage of a six-month temporary spending bill would have widespread and devastating effects on the Defense Department, Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin said in a letter to key members of Congress on Sunday.

Austin said that passing a continuing resolution that caps spending at 2024 levels, rather than taking action on the proposed 2025 budget will hurt thousands of defense programs, and damage military recruiting just as it is beginning to recover after the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Asking the department to compete with (China), let alone manage conflicts in Europe and the Middle East, while under a lengthy CR, ties our hands behind our back while expecting us to be agile and to accelerate progress,” said Austin in the letter to leaders of the House and Senate appropriations committees.

Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson has teed up a vote this week on a bill that would keep the federal government funded for six more months. The measure aims to garner support from his more conservative GOP members by also requiring states to obtain proof of citizenship, such as a birth certificate or passport, when registering a person to vote.

Congress needs to approve a stop-gap spending bill before the end of the budget year on Sept. 30 to avoid a government shutdown just a few weeks before voters go to the polls and elect the next president.

Austin said the stop-gap measure would cut defense spending by more than $6 billion compared to the 2025 spending proposal. And it would take money from key new priorities while overfunding programs that no longer need it.

Under a continuing resolution, new projects or programs can’t be started. Austin said that passing the temporary bill would stall more than $4.3 billion in research and development projects and delay 135 new military housing and construction projects totaling nearly $10 billion.

It also would slow progress on a number of key nuclear, ship-building, high-tech drone and other weapons programs. Many of those projects are in an array of congressional districts, and could also have an impact on local residents and jobs.

Since the bill would not fund legally required pay raises for troops and civilians, the department would have to find other cuts to offset them. Those cuts could halt enlistment bonuses, delay training for National Guard and Reserve forces, limit flying hours and other training for active-duty troops and impede the replacement of weapons and other equipment that has been pulled from Pentagon stocks and sent to Ukraine.

Going forward with the continuing resolution, said Austin, will “subject service members and their families to unnecessary stress, empower our adversaries, misalign billions of dollars, damage our readiness, and impede our ability to react to emergent events.”

Noting that there have been 48 continuing resolutions during 14 of the last 15 fiscal years — for a total of nearly 1,800 days — Austin said Congress must break the pattern of inaction because the U.S. military can’t compete with China “with our hands tied behind our back every fiscal year.”

Johnson’s bill is not expected to get support in the Democratic-controlled Senate, if it even makes it that far. But Congress will have to pass some type of temporary measure by Sept. 30 in order to avoid a shutdown.

We think this is a sure sign that the Defense department is afraid the golden goose might be done dropping golden eggs on Pentagon desks. Time for a publicity campaign, eh?​

 

You should ask the top 100 billionaires to start buying US treasury bills to block China from buying the whole US government!!!!!

 

We should cut government spending by 30% and demand Congress only pass balanced budgets.

 

Cuts in domestic spending are not popular. Tax increases for rich people and corporations are popular. The answer to the problem is obvious.

 

Which program do you want to cut?

Everyone can think of programs they do not like. The problem is that there are no big ticket programs 51% of the American people want to cut. The largest and most expensive programs are the most popular. The government grew to its present size in response to popular demand.

 

30% across the board.

No sacred oxen, only social security, medicaid and unemployment benefit PAYMENTS exempted because of their dedicated funding source.

We cannot tax our way out of debt.
We cannot tax our way out of debt.
We cannot tax our way out of debt.
We cannot tax our way out of debt.

 

And no, government grew to its present bloated size because of congressional spending.

The debt grew to its present bloated size because of irresponsible congressional spending.

 

Congressional representatives gave the voters what they wanted. Most voters also want higher taxes on rich people. I wish Congressional representatives gave us that, too.

 

Congressional members gave themselves what they wanted.

 

We cannot tax our way out of debt.
We cannot tax our way out of debt.
We cannot tax our way out of debt.
We cannot tax our way out of debt.

 

The Washington Post, March 29, 2023

Americans want spending cuts. Just not those ones. Or those ones.

The poll expanded on its overall question by isolating 16 areas where spending could theoretically be cut. In only one area specifically did a majority say that the government was spending too much in that area specifically: assistance to other countries, at 69 percent. (Many Republicans think we’re spending too much to help Ukraine, which could help explain that.)

But this kind of foreign aid is usually less than 1 percent of the budget...

About 6 in 10 say the government is spending “too little” on Social Security, Medicare, health care more broadly, education and infrastructure. On none of these areas do even 1 in 5 Americans agree that we’re spending too much.

Americans want spending cuts. Just not those ones. Or those ones. - The Washington Post

 

We have taxed our way out of debt. In 1945, when the Second World War ended the national debt as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP) was 114%. By 1980 this had declined to 32%.

U.S. National Debt by Year (thebalancemoney.com)

During time the top tax rate never got below 70% and was often much higher.

http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-soi/02inpetr.pdf

 

Kennedy advocated that the top tax rate be lowered to 70%. It is always much lower than that. Also, the economy was growing. Kennedy only advocated that more of the growth go to tax payers, rather than the government. Kennedy' claim that cutting taxes generated more economic growth than not cutting them has been disproved by Republican tax cuts for the rich since 1980.

 

During the Reagan administration the top tax rate was cut from 70% to 28%. The national debt grew from $286 billion in 1980 to $2,602 billion in 1988.

http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-soi/02inpetr.pdf

U.S. National Debt by Year (thebalancemoney.com)

 

Congressional members gave those who voted for them the spending increases they wanted. Most Americans want more domestic spending. Most Americans also want higher taxes on the rich.

 

..

 

In other words, you have nothing to say in response to my fact based argument.