Here’s a Promising Plan to Finally Get a Grip on Federal Spending

The Daily Signal ^ | July 25, 2019 | Romina Boccia

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

The massive spending deal, negotiated by Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and agreed to by the president, looks poised to kill off the Budget Control Act of 2011—the law that was meant to restrain federal spending.

With that law on the way out, the question arises: Where can fiscal conservatives turn to exert real and lasting fiscal discipline?

Thankfully, two members of Congress have introduced a bill to do just that.

The Maximizing America’s Prosperity Act—or MAP Act—is a bill proposed by Rep. Kevin Brady, R-Texas, and Sen. Mike Braun, R-Ind., that would limit federal spending to a fixed portion of the economy, adjusted for economic conditions.

The bill would enforce that spending limit by triggering automatic spending cuts when Congress fails to abide by the cap. The spending cap would then be slowly lowered year by year to achieve budget balance.

The end goal of this bill is to get federal spending back down to the level of federal revenue. This would bring the country leaps and bounds closer to the lean federal budget we need and toward finally stabilizing the debt.

The MAP Act builds off the best parts of the 2011 Budget Control Act and would correct some of its shortcomings, such as broadening the scope of spending that can be cut and doing away with the defense/nondefense bifurcation.

The Budget Control Act was limited by the fact that its spending caps only applied to about one-third of the federal budget—discretionary spending—while nondiscretionary (or mandatory) spending was allowed to continue growing unabated. In addition, it placed separate caps on defense and nondefense spending, creating incentives to lift the caps on both sides.

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

And here we have another “austerity” plan that Congress won’t bother to enforce.

PING!

[chajin]

Any bill passed to supposedly control Federal spending in the future is a waste of paper, time, and effort, because future politicians will refuse to vote against their own self-interests (re-election and/or lobbying income).

Federal spending will only be controlled when either the money is monetized into worthlessness, or the Federal government, and the American nation in general, collapses.

[Cowboy Bob]

There is no mention of Welfare or Affirmative Action in the Constitution. Those programs need to be eliminated.

[SkyPilot]

Federal spending will only be controlled when either the money is monetized into worthlessness, or the Federal government, and the American nation in general, collapses.

Correct.

[FirstFlaBn]

When nobody buys the bonds anymore, a brief spell of hyperinflation will occur as the printing presses will have to go into overdrive to pay entitlements. Immediately after that an economic collapse into deflation will occur.

That’s the only believable ‘promise’ from a politician.

[eyeamok]

Please Pay Attention:

As long as we have a Debt Based Monetary system, where All Monies are Loaned into Society with Interest Attached, there is NO WAY IN HELL to Ever Control Spending. See EXPONENTS!!!

[D Rider]

Non-discretionary is the key. Also known as entitlements. They suck up all of the tax revenue, everything else is borrowed money.

Here is my proposal. Cut entitlement budget by 20%, and payout proportionally the remaining amount to those thst are in the system. If less people are in the system, then a higher payout to individuals. Make it widely known, and let citizens rat out the illegals stealing from our citizens. Then deport the welfare theives like crazy.

[wastoute]

See how long the country lasts when the EBT cards stop working.

[DoodleDawg]

The bill would enforce that spending limit by triggering automatic spending cuts when Congress fails to abide by the cap. The spending cap would then be slowly lowered year by year to achieve budget balance.

We tried automatic spending cuts for the past five or six years. Congress just repealed it. You expect them to enact even more stringent and larger automatic cuts?

[itsahoot]

The bill would enforce that spending limit by triggering automatic spending cuts when Congress fails to abide by the cap.

No Congress can bind a future Congress.

[DoodleDawg]

There is no mention of Welfare or Affirmative Action in the Constitution. Those programs need to be eliminated.

There's no mention of Social Security, Medicare, or the Air Force in the Constitution either. Should we eliminate those?

[Cowboy Bob]

Sure, why not?

[momincombatboots]

Eliminate everything that starts with department of, except defense and border control.
Protecting our sovereignty is what makes us a nation.

[PGalt]

They should all be in federal prison at a minimum.

https://www.usdebtclock.org

Debt slave much?

[SaxxonWoods]

We’ve had multiple “plans” for decades. Democrats and Republicans agree that high deficits and debt are bad, and have agreed on that for decades. It’s about the ONLY thing they agree on.

After all this, can’t ANYONE figure out that they aren’t going to do anything about it?

[bitt]

p

[5th MEB]

All you have to do is change the Air Force name back to what it used to be; The ARMY Air Force, problem solved.

Now get rid of welfare.

[NobleFree]

We tried automatic spending cuts for the past five or six years. Congress just repealed it.

I thought it sounded like deja vu all over again.

[Brian Griffin]

Welfare comes under the Congressional power to dispose of federal property.

Article IV, Section 3

“The Congress shall have Power to dispose of and make all needful Rules and Regulations respecting the Territory or other Property belonging to the United States”

Instead of given a bundle of money to Binman Bob to throw into the back of a Waste Management vehicle, Congress can given the money to Binman Bob’s sister, who’s a young mother in need of money.