Heritage Foundation Eats An Elephant
graphic by Sean Gallo |
It seems strange at a time when there is so much political buzz, nobody is talking much about our fiscal problem. The presidential candidates from both sides show little or no concern, probably because the topic is not “sexy” enough for media coverage.
Well, I hate to be a buzz-killer, but the budget elephant is still in the room, getting bigger and smellier every day.
We have been repeatedly told by our political leaders and media pundits that our fiscal problem is too impossibly huge to even think about. Well, it’s not. This can be solved. Why not roll up our sleeves and start working on it? Like, now?
Fortunately, we still have one shining treasure in our national vault — the Heritage Foundation. This group of geniuses has no fear of tackling big, vexing problems. And they have a solution for our seemingly intractable spending problem. It’s called the “Blueprint for Balance – A Federal Budget for 2017”.
How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. The Blueprint for Balance is a six-course elephant dinner:
- SLOW THE GROWTH IN SPENDING, while fully funding national security needs
- CUT TAXES by $1.3 trillion over 10 years
- BALANCE THE BUDGET within seven years
- REDUCE SPENDING by $10.5 trillion and cut the deficit by $9.2 trillion over 10 years
- ELIMINATE BUDGET GIMMICKS and establish a process to address unauthorized appropriations
- ELIMINATE PROGRAMS that produce favoritism and limit opportunity
When I lived in rural Montana, my electricity was provided by a rural cooperative with outstanding local service at a reasonable (albeit heavily subsidized) price. Now I live in an urban area with a huge nuclear power plant operated by the nation’s largest electric utility company only a few miles from my home. My electricity should be cheap, right? Oh heck no! Because I am forced to subscribe to a ‘grandfathered’ rural electric cooperative, my rates are much higher than my neighbors who are served by the big guys. Plus the co-op gets taxpayer subsidies.
At the turn of the century it was necessary to establish rural electric cooperatives. There was no other way to provide affordable electricity in sparsely-populated areas. But like most government programs, it has outlived its purpose.
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Tom Balek is a fellow conservative activist, blogger, musician and contributes to the ARRA News Service. Tom resides in South Carolina and seeks to educate those too busy with their work and families to notice how close to the precipice our economy has come. He blogs at Rockin' On the Right Side
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