Posted on 04/04/2011 4:09:06 AM PDT by Reaganite Republican
It is very discouraging when I read comments on Free Republic that essentially dismiss a serious effort like Paul Ryan’s as “not enough” until it completely defunds all the awful agencies that have grown up over the years. Trying to get something serious like his plan served up, explained and considered is a challenge enough without the carping of those on the right who won’t even read the summary, much less the detailed talking points.
I consider myself a Tea Party participant and supporter, but when the Tea Party starts morphing into what the libs say it is, or what some of the polls say it supports (”they only want to protect their own benefits and entitlements and they won’t consider any reforms to medicare or Social Security” [even when these reforms are structured to make changes long before a person approaches retirement]) if frankly disgusts me. We, in the Tea Party, need to remain principled and support this kind of effort (Ryan’s kind of effort) to get these reforms debated, understood by most of the electorate, and then enacted. If we can’t do that, we should just give it up and admit that we’ve all be suckered into this awful state of dependency that FDR and LBJ and Obama intended.
Here you’ve excerpted this article on Ryan’s plan (not even fully revealed but just pre-announced) and Freepers are dismissing it as “not enough!” “needs to start by eliminating X, Y, and Z!” and “RINO lite!”
Paul Ryan is the kind of principled conservative we need to support to get things actually done in turning around this beast we call the Federal Government and Budget. I’d love to see the Departments of Education and Energy and others eliminated, but save that for the 2016 election and let’s get a plan underway that we can defend and run on in 2012 that leads to turning around this beast!
JMHO.
It has to be politically palatable or we won’t be in power to make any changes.
And the next Congress can surely cut further, with a GOP majority in both houses
I agree... we shall see if the republican that replaced our long term dim congressman is a good one... so far he seems to be thinking correctly.
LLS
Everything will be cut... even defense... but they need to be smart cuts of things that we do not need.
LLS
Even when the republicrats controlled the entire govt they couldnt find enough balls between them to cut anything so forgive my skepticism. This BS could just as well say, "and the republicans have outlawed the democrat party and forbidden everyone that has been elected under that party from running ever again for any office." There's prolly more chance of that happening.
You are correct; we don't need utopianism at the moment...we need pragmatism.
I don’t think we have 10 years. Maybe 2 before the next collapse. They need to cut $1 Trillion for 2012. The actual sixe of govt has to be cut that means actually closing up unnecessary Federal agencies. Its not rocket science. The GOP is just as bad as the Dems. They just cannot bear to cut the govt. down to size. They love big government as much as the Dems. I will wait to see Paul Ryan’s budget but from what he basically didn’t say on Chris Wallace yesterday I’m not real optimistic. Paul Ryan has no idea of what will happen 10 years down the road. He need to try to get these spending cuts through as quickly as possible. Getting this past the Dems in the Senate is going to be next to impossible anyway.
The big hammer the GOP has is the vote on the debt ceiling. They need to vote no and let the chips fall where they may. Then the Dems will be in the mood for compromise.
you are kidding? Ryan is strictly a smooth talking technocrat. These cuts are a joke. Government does NOT shrink. Any talk of budgets pass a year or two are "smoke and mirrors."
Our Republic will soon (if not already) be transformed into a socialist hell. Nothing the Republican leadership is proposing will change things. We need bold steps, not this accounting type mentality.
Why on earth would you say that? Do you have any notion as to the relative sizes of those expenditures? Medicare IS the fiscal problem. The NEA and planned parenthood, noxious though they are politically, are rounding errors fiscally speaking.
Unless these cuts are done now, this fiscal year, they're as real as Unicorn farts and pixie dust. And Congressman Ryan knows it.
L
Please delineate your recommended “bold steps” and then explain your plan for getting them passed.
I would say that because it is a moral failure to deprive our elderly of one dime of health care while money is still going to support illegal aliens, baby killing, and Muslims.
So it’s a question of sequencing? You support cutting Medicare and Medicaid ($739 billion annual expenditure), but only if the NEA ($150 million annual, or 1/5000 the size) is defunded first?
What you are, is a big government Liberal.
It is a question of ethics. Many of those folks who went to Normandy and Vietnam and didn’t stick around for 20 years are now on Medicare, not the VA. I’m well aware that Medicare is going to have to take some hits to balance the budget, but doing that while sending even one red cent to Planned Parenthood, La Raza, and Acorn is treasonous.
You’re a Liberal. You use anecdotes to prove the moral case for an amoral system. The nation is going bankrupt. Cutting 100% of the discretionary budget will not change that. Without immediate reform of the entitlement system, particularly the fastest growing part of it, the medical entitlements, World War 2 will have been fought for nothing.
First the discretionary budget, then Medicaid, finally Medicare.
I don’t want to hear one sorry RINO politician standing up advocating cuts in care to our elderly while still justifying the acceptability of funding La Raza and baby killing.
You have just described an impossible task.
I hold no elective office, nor do I desire such. I am a citizen with one vote. I influence my family and friends to be conservative.
Our leaders in Congress are elected to represent us. Time and time again, they have been neutered by the Washington elites.
Anyone rational human, with a deep understanding of the power of government to destroy ,that objectively looks at what Ryan is proposing, will easily conclude that he proposes will do nothing to shrink the power of of government.
Bold steps? It is apparent to most Freepers that drastically reducing government at all levels will save our Republic.
How best to get there is the big question? That's the $20T question.
At this time, I can't see how it happens. Nonetheless, it doesn't diminish the fact that what Ryan is proposing will do NOTHING to stem the tide of tyrannical government.
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