Oh, that dreaded, awful sequester
With the automatic spending cuts known as the sequester set to kick in Friday (March 1) unless an alternative deal is reached, be ready to hear about all the terrible, horrible, unfathomable effects of cutting … less than 3 percent of all federal spending.
To put things in perspective, economist Dan Mitchell of the Cato Institute (and a double Dawg) prepared this graph from Congressional Budget Office data:
Note that, even after the sequester, spending continues to rise every year — in large part because the sequester doesn’t touch entitlements, which are the fastest-growing part of the budget.
Will there be an effect on some people? Of course: The only way there wouldn’t be is if the feds were simply taking tens of billion dollars a year and lighting them on fire. But as far as a modest measures for beginning to curb runaway spending go — and not even this White House is denying any longer that this country has a spending problem — we will hardly see anything more modest than the sequester. Anyone who says we can’t live with the sequester would probably say the same thing about any spending cuts whatsoever.
– By Kyle Wingfield
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276 comments Add your comment
Retired Soldier
February 25th, 2013
2:57 pm
get a life-
Republicans control the House, a majority of the governorships and a majority of the legislatures. When are the democrats going to fix their party?
Get Real
February 25th, 2013
2:58 pm
The liberal babble continues….headed by getalife…the Babbler -in-Chief
getalife
February 25th, 2013
3:00 pm
Retired,
Stay the course then.
Good luck with that.
Just Saying..
February 25th, 2013
3:01 pm
Upstairs: Deal suspends DeKalb 6.
Good for him.
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
February 25th, 2013
3:03 pm
Oh, Aynie Sue, a little Constitutional education is in order, missy.
The House is required to pass a budget (actually, the Congress is, but we’ll get to that later). There is no Constitutional requirement that one body of Congress “produce a federal budget acceptable to the Senate”. In fact, if the House passes a budget and the Senate fails to act on it (as the Reid-led Senate has done, it is clearly the Senate’s fault; not the House’s.
Here’s what has REALLY happened, Aynie Sue. In order to never go on record as having voted against a valid House budget (and thereby enter into negotiations on their differences), the Senate hasn’t bothered to vote on a House-generated bill which budgets this government. They have simply voted on their own versions which originated solely in the Senate.
And voted them all down.
The sequester is the fault of the Executive Branch being unable to work with the House and an inability of the SENATE to do their Constitutional duty.
Despite your ridiculous attempt to spin it otherwise, the facts are not on your side, and your so-called knowledge of the Constitution is faulty.
getalife
February 25th, 2013
3:04 pm
Bottom line:
The gop failed to do their jobs and will be fired.
Retired Soldier
February 25th, 2013
3:04 pm
getalife-
That was a quick witted response. Any suggestions why the Dems are failing in states and in the House?
Retired Soldier
February 25th, 2013
3:05 pm
And what was their job? Please define.
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
February 25th, 2013
3:05 pm
“Flailing in the wilderness” is a specialty of getalife.
Just read any of it’s posts.
BlahBlahBlah
February 25th, 2013
3:07 pm
More SKY IS FALLING rhetoric from the left wingers posting comments. Laughable.
getalife
February 25th, 2013
3:08 pm
Retired,
President Obama 2.
You 0.
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
February 25th, 2013
3:09 pm
Correction, getalife:
President Obama – 2.
America – 0.
Just Saying..
February 25th, 2013
3:10 pm
“Republicans control the House, a majority of the governorships and a majority of the legislatures. When are the democrats going to fix their party?”
Can’t agree, Retired.
The Gerrymander era is headed for correction. How many electoral votes in those GOP states?
Debt has been the cudgel, but Obama has been the target, every day, for four years.
And the GOP couldn’t get there. Couldn’t even get close, really. I’m still amazed by that.
Rove’s group is there for a reason. Those guys don’t throw money away. They’re doing it because there’s a need…
getalife
February 25th, 2013
3:11 pm
If you think killing another 750,000 jobs to end our recovery is not big deal, proceed gop.
getalife
February 25th, 2013
3:12 pm
If you think going against the majority of the American voters is a good idea, proceed gop.
Don't Tread
February 25th, 2013
3:13 pm
So 0bama wants to blame the Republicans for sequestration when the idea originated in the White House and it was passed by the Democrat-controlled Senate, in addition to the Republicans in the House. From where I stand, his party is at least 2/3 responsible for this “disaster”. (We are talking about reducing 2%…TWO percent, not 20, not 200, but TWO.)
Quick, get in the bomb shelters! It’s a disaster! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!
Retired Soldier
February 25th, 2013
3:13 pm
Obama killed far more than 750k jobs. Remember getalife, sequester is Obama created, Obama signed into law. Like Obama likes to say, no easy off ramp for this one.
getalife
February 25th, 2013
3:14 pm
Stay the course cons.
Retired Soldier
February 25th, 2013
3:14 pm
Just saying-
Try again, can’t understand your rantings.
Just Saying..
February 25th, 2013
3:16 pm
“Laughable”
We’re all waiting to see who laughs last…
getalife
February 25th, 2013
3:18 pm
The majority are sick of these self inflicted wounds to our recovery and the gop will pay in 14.
Bet on it.
Mr. Holmes
February 25th, 2013
3:19 pm
Tiberius, despite the fact that it’s a pointless endeavor to have a reality-based debate with you, I will ask: What right-wing blog informed you that the $85 billion in immediate cuts that will go into effect March 1 are only cuts to future growth?
On Friday, most federal programs will have their budgets cut by an identical and immediate 9.4%. That means not only departmental budgets but payouts like unemployment checks, Medicare payments to providers, etc. That is not a hypothetical check on future growth–that is downsizing NOW.
But please, go ahead & pull another “fact” out of your you-know-what. It’s very entertaining.
Just Saying..
February 25th, 2013
3:25 pm
“Try again, can’t understand your rantings.”
Rantings? Don’t veer into Tib speak…you’re better than that.
Short form: Dems have profound problems, nobody should ever turn their back to them.
GOP problems are worse, in perception, and in the reality of their base and policies. Future of the Party is more grim than the day I voted for Goldwater.
Jefferson
February 25th, 2013
3:26 pm
All tax rates have to return to prior levels…thats where the revenue went along with the corporate revenue. Quit kissing high income butt, they too are getting breaks they didn’t get before.
Retired Soldier
February 25th, 2013
3:26 pm
Holmes-
You are the one incorrect. The cut is a pro-rata of an entire year that started in Oct. The largest cuts are in the military, not your more important social welfare spending. You need to get your facts correct.
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
February 25th, 2013
3:29 pm
“If you think killing another 750,000 jobs to end our recovery is not big deal, proceed gop.”
If you think that killing 750,000 jobs is actually going to happen as a result of the sequester, you’re drinking the President Incompetent Kool-aid.
Hillbilly D
February 25th, 2013
3:30 pm
Future of the Party is more grim than the day I voted for Goldwater.
And yet that party of ‘64 survived. They got through that just as they got through Nixon/Watergate and just as the other side got through Jimmy Carter, Dukakis, etc. They have their natural ebbs, flows and pendulum swings but neither party is going anywhere for the foreseeable future. The jackassery of both parties will be with us, long after most of us on here are gone and forgotten.
Retired Soldier
February 25th, 2013
3:31 pm
Jefferson-
I am not a rich man, but you are correct that tax rates are wrong. When 50 per cent of Americans don’t pay fedewral income tax, something is wrong.
Solution for joint filers:
1. No deductions, period.
2. All income taxed at the same rate.
3. Earn 200k and above, flat rate of 10%
4. Earn 100k-199,999, flat rate of 7.5 percent
5. Earn 1-99,999, flat rate of 5 percent
Problem solved.
Retired Soldier
February 25th, 2013
3:33 pm
Jefferson-
Cut the numbers in half for single filers.
JDW
February 25th, 2013
3:34 pm
@Kyle…”in large part because the sequester doesn’t touch entitlements,”
Hummm…don’t we have taxes in place that specifically pay the costs of these programs Kyle? If memory serves we have for years taken in far more than we spent and even now continue to do so. Shouldn’t we focus our efforts on programs…say defense…that have so such specific taxes in place and make sure they are fully funded?
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
February 25th, 2013
3:34 pm
I guess Mr. Holmes doesn’t realize that spending is still rising in this administration, and that it is rising faster than the 9.5% the sequester will cut.
That’s a cut in the increase in spending, bub.
getalife
February 25th, 2013
3:35 pm
It is fun watching the gop self destruct.
Just Saying..
February 25th, 2013
3:37 pm
“The jackassery of both parties will be with us, long after most of us on here are gone and forgotten.”
Probably the only certainty here today.
TBone
February 25th, 2013
3:37 pm
Couple of points to make; baseline budgeting and if we are in a recovery then we are in DEEP DO-DO.
yuzeyurbrane
February 25th, 2013
3:38 pm
“There are lies, damn lies, and statistics.” “Statistics lie and liars spout statistics.” Kyle, even you are overreaching to make your point. It is obvious that the part of the Federal budget subject to the sequestration will suffer draconian cuts which will be noticed by all and will severely harm many. I suggest you have a chat with Bookman.
JDW
February 25th, 2013
3:41 pm
“The cut is a pro-rata of an entire year that started in Oct.”
uhhhhh…no….the cut is a full cut that must be implemented within the current budget year ending Oct 2012. It is the reverse of pro rata….it is condensed into the next 7 months.
“How much will be cut in 2013? The sequester would cut government spending by an average of $109 billion over the next 10 years. But the last-minute fiscal cliff deal included cuts of $24 billion for 2013, so in the remaining seven months of this fiscal year the government must come up with $85 billion in cuts.”
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-34227_162-57570678/sequestration-q-a/
Just Saying..
February 25th, 2013
3:42 pm
“And yet that party of ‘64 survived.”
True.
By changing their policies.
Mr. Holmes
February 25th, 2013
3:43 pm
And I guess Tiberius doesn’t realize that total federal spending dropped in actual dollars (to say nothing of real dollars) from fiscal 2009 to 2010, and only in fiscal 2012 was it expected to top the previous high of FY2009, only to drop again in current projections for FY13 and FY14.
But again, please don’t let facts get in the way of your obfuscation, propaganda and LIES, sir.
Just Saying..
February 25th, 2013
3:44 pm
““The cut is a pro-rata of an entire year that started in Oct.”
uhhhhh…no….the cut is a full cut that must be implemented within the current budget year ending Oct 2012. It is the reverse of pro rata….it is condensed into the next 7 months.”
Thanks, JDW.
Couldn’t keyboard fast enough…
Get Real
February 25th, 2013
3:45 pm
it is fun watching getalife be an idiot
JDW
February 25th, 2013
3:45 pm
“that it is rising faster than the 9.5% the sequester will cut.”
That is a lie..pure and simple.
Spending in this adminstration has risen at the rate of less than 3% a year from the budget inherited from Duhbya.
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
February 25th, 2013
3:46 pm
Current projections from the CBO are kinda like speeches from President Incompetent’s mouth.
Neither are based in reality and likely won’t come to pass.
MANGLER
February 25th, 2013
3:47 pm
So you’re advocating for Medicare and Medicaid reductions/reform? Kind of like the White House has been trying to do, only the GOP screams death panels and rationing when if comes from them?
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
February 25th, 2013
3:48 pm
Poor, poor, JDW.
I didn’t know President Incompetent’s Kool-aid was alcohol-based.
Mr. Holmes
February 25th, 2013
3:49 pm
And that’s what I thought. When confronted with an inconvenient fact, you scream bias.
How very Tea Party of you.
getalife
February 25th, 2013
3:52 pm
The gop civil war will end badly and when we return to full employment, I could not be happier
Get Real
February 25th, 2013
3:52 pm
Mr. Holmes …that is because spending went up 25% in 2009….duh
Just Saying..
February 25th, 2013
3:54 pm
“it is fun watching getalife be an idiot”
There’s a recognizable tenor to Con contributions, isn’t there?
Just Saying..
February 25th, 2013
3:56 pm
“Mr. Holmes …that is because spending went up 25% in 2009….duh”
Isn’t that when we started budgeting two wars?
getalife
February 25th, 2013
3:59 pm
Get Real does not handle facts and getting real very well.