Posted on 04/27/2013 10:32:32 PM PDT by Kaslin
House Speaker John Boehner took a lot of heat in January when he rubber-stamped the presidents job-crushing tax increases. Indeed, an entire movement sprang up on Twitter -- symbolized by the hashtag #FireBoehner -- in the weeks prior to the compromise urging conservative members of Congress to oust him from his position of leadership in part because he publicly proposed tax hikes as part of the negotiations. The initiative failed, of course, but that didnt stop Republicans from bristling at Boehners supposed betrayal and questioning his leadership. Now, it seems, thats all water under the bridge -- at least for now.
Today, however, and unlike the president, the leader of the lower chamber is actually serious about cutting operational spending -- which is estimated to save taxpayers some $400 million by January 2014 (via USA Today):
The House of Representatives will spend 15% less on its own operations this year than it did three years ago under a cost-cutting effort launched by Speaker John Boehner that is on pace to save taxpayers more than $400 million by the end of this year
When Republicans took control of the House in January 2011, Boehner, the new speaker, said cutting House spending would be a priority.
Since then, House lawmakers have seen a nearly 20% decrease in their office budgets. Three years ago, the average lawmaker had an annual $1.5 million budget, which is down to $1.2 million. Those budgets which vary by office cover everything from staff salaries to district office rent and bottled water.
The graph below illustrates just how serious House Republicans are about cutting spending under Boehners leadership:
I imagine that serving as Speaker of the House in 2013 is no easy task. In many ways, the Republican Party is fractured along ideological and political lines, and thus finding compromise on every issue is probably difficult. That Boehner was about to find a way to unite his party (namely, by cutting wasteful federal spending) is commendable -- especially because Democrats in the Senate are refusing to implement the same exact cost-savings measures. Go figure.
When we are spending 3 billion more than we take in, in ONE DAY, 200 million, really doesn’t dent anything.
We are dealing with a trillion (a million million) dollars a year overages. It’s like saving 200 dollars but overspending a million dollars. The principle is fine but if the best we our side can do is only save 200 bucks, our side isn’t really doing anything to fundamentally address the overspending.
He’s in control of the House. This is where the purse strings are supposed to be. Saving 200 million but overspending by a trillion, I just cannot applaud this.
Boehner is a useless drunk
uh huh yeah right , that’s the ticket
I’ve always figured that he was on the take from the libs.
Hes in control of the House. This is where the purse strings are supposed to be. Saving 200 million but overspending by a trillion, I just cannot applaud this.
Rather than fight the Dems the Gutless Old Party has just decided to declare victory over them on some issues. It started with the sequester and this is just more of it.
“to save taxpayers $400 million by 2014”.
Bullshit.
How many taxpayers are there in America? Anyone know off hand? Let’s arbitrarily say that there are 50 Million taxpayers. Divide that into $400 Million and that comes to a grand savings total of $80.00 per person.
I’m always lousy at math but that seems to be the whole deal. Somebody check my math and correct it if necessary.
50,000,000 into 400,000,000 = 80.
Shit, I’ve saved the taxpayers almost that much in just two cases I helped win for the government, and I didn’t get any extra reward for it.
Boehner is a useless, gutless, jellyfish who has got to go before any re changes can take place within the GOP. If not, 2014 is a wash, and the Tea Party will become the new second leading political party in the US.
$400 million!? And we are supposed to be impressed or pleased with Boehner? I think that he is in cahoots with President Obama. He could be doing so much more to stop the profligate, relentless and ever-increasing spending of the Obama administration and he is not doing that. This is like the way that Obama asked his cabinet members, early in his administration, to find $100 million of combined cuts that they could make (they failed, by the way). Meanwhile, he is increasing our spending by trillions.
Boehner has demonstrated that he is part of the problem and not part of the solution.
I have been trying to find the results of his re-election campaign in 2012. How did he do, and who was his opponent? As far as I can see, he won in a landslide, and if this is true (please, someone, confirm this or correct me) I think it is compelling evidence that the Democrats believe that Boehner will advance their agenda. Otherwise, they would have slated a candidate and done their get-out-the-vote effort against him.
I know a simple way he could save a ton of money for the American tax payer, SECURE THE FRIGGIN BORDER!
Sorry, but I’m not impressed in the least. Weeper is still a present danger to conservatives and the country. Let him go back to Ohio and run his family saloon. The nation will be safer this way.
Boy, Marco Rubio sure did lie down with dogs (McCain,Graham, Flake). How do you say fool in Spanish?
“The House of Representatives will spend 15% less on its own operations this year than it did three years ago under a cost-cutting effort launched by Speaker John Boehner that is on pace to save taxpayers more than $400 million by the end of this year.”
This would be an impressive number, IF THIS WAS FREAKIN’ 1935!
Believe it or not it is “TONTO”.
Boy, Marco Rubio sure did lie down with dogs (McCain,Graham, Flake). How do you say fool in Spanish?"Florida voter" or a more recent translation "Rush Limbaugh".
He announced his intention for his "Dream Act" before he was elected.
His Chief of Staff is an open borders dimwit, but I'm sure Rubio had no idea before hand.
$200 million saved?
We are spending $7 million each minute. Every minute. That is $420 million per hour.
Boehner just saved us a half hour of spending.
Whoopee. We are saved. Crisis averted.
50 goes into 400 eight times not 80
“Boy , Marco Rubio sure did lie down with dogs (McCain, Graham, Flake). How do you say fool in Spanish.?”
Perhaps his fellow Gang of Eight member Menendez will take him on a stress relief trip to the Dominican Republic.
Rubio has sold out for the Sunday talk show circuit today and the promise of higher office in the future. The Senate is a pay your dues club with an entrenched hierarchy. Freshman senators only get the kind of exposure Rubio gets if they are doing the bidding of those with big money and real power. Rubio is the GOP’s Barack Obama. The question is who is controlling him? Beware.
The Boston Marathon Bombers didn’t come in through the Mexican border, and one was a naturalized citizen
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