The question for today is: Where do you start?
The president announced a wage freeze on to all civilian federal employees, including those working at the Department of Defense, but not military personnel. He said "The hard truth is that getting this deficit under control is going to require some broad sacrifice, and that sacrifice must be shared by the employees of the federal government. Today, I'm proposing a two year pay freeze for all civilian federal workers."
Now, while practically any spending cut is a good one when it comes to the government, once again I think these folks have the picture upside down. Because, at the moment total U.S. debt stands at approximately 13.723 trillion dollars. But holding back wage increases saves only $2 billion. So, while it's a step toward cutting spending, it isn't even a drop in the bucket.
What's more, money in the hands of the workers in question isn't likely to wind up in long-term investments or sewn into mattresses, it's going to be spent on things like rent, food, clothing and similar items that spur the economy, so we have a double whammy. Not only are employees earning less, they're either going to cut their spending or evaporate their savings.
In the meantime, massive federal programs will go on shoveling funds out the door, hand over fist, as our electees pay back whoever it was they bought votes from.
So, I think a much better solution would be to reinstate salaries for federal workers, who actually might serve a purpose and eliminate payments of any kind to elected officials, whether it be salaries, benefits, or any other kind of compensation. That way these politicos will be getting exactly what they're really worth. And that amounts to zero.
That's it for today folks.
Adios
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