Chairman Pence requests suggestions how to offset US spending to pay for rebuilding NO

I sent in my suggestion at:

www.chuckmuth.com...

to let congress know where they can cut their fat to help pay for Kirtrina.

This was brought to my attention from Chuck Muth BrushFire alert sent in my mail box today:

Citizen Outreach has been pushing for Congress to cut spending in other non-essential areas in order to help offset the massive cost for Hurricane Katrina relief almost since Day One. Particularly by repealing all the "pork" which was larded up into the recently-passed highway transportation bill....

RSC Chairman Pence announced this weekend the launch of "Operation Offset," a project designed to set priorities and offset Katrina relief costs with budget cuts elsewhere. And at the Chairman's request, over 300 News & Views readers have submitted specific offset suggestions to the Republican Study Committee via an online Brushfire Alert petition:

There is more than enough room to give you ideas and suggestions for pork and otherwise.

The pork that is proposed to be repealed is (because they want specifics):

* $230 million for the infamous "Bridge To Nowhere" in Alaska which will service an island town of just 50 people
* $4 million for bike paths and park space in Calexico, California
* $4 million for sidewalk improvements in Clarkson, Georgia
* $3 million for a river path in Springfield, Oregon
* $2.8 million for a bike/pedestrian path in Madison, Wisconsin
* $2.7 million for renovation of the Packard Museum in Warren, Ohio
* $2.48 million for bike/pedestrian paths in Chicago, Illinois
* $2.3 million for landscaping enhancements along the Ronald Reagan Freeway in California
* $2 million to construct an "intermodal center" at the Philadelphia Zoo in Pennsylvania
* $2 million for a parking garage in San Antonio, Texas
* $1.8 million to construct a visitor interpretive center at the Gray Fossil Site in Tennessee
* $1.2 million to install lighting/steps at the Blue Ridge Music Center in Virginia
* $640,000 to extend a bicycle trail in Aberdeen, South Dakota
* $320,000 for a new bicycle/pedestrian trail in Shelbyville, Tennessee
* $33,440 for a trolley barn in Harrison, Arkansas

I also added cutting back on the National Endowment for the arts. Right now I see that as a luxury item on the government's list. I know some of you had some good ideas also, and may know of other luxury governmental items that could be cut as well.

Instead of just sitting around tossing ideas of where the government should get the money, speak up and let them know your suggestions.

Edited to shorten title
[edit on 19-9-2005 by Mystery_Lady]

[edit on 19-9-2005 by Mystery_Lady]

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[edit on 19-9-2005 by Mystery_Lady]

Oh good idea. Cut funding on bike paths, one of the few things that might actually cut down on dependence on oil, which is causing us so much problem in Iraq and, um, New Orleans!

[edit on 20-9-2005 by opensecret1150]

Biking is not going to make a difference in oil consumption and dependence. The only way it may make even an extremely small dent is in a local community where many people perfer to bike and the paths actually go to downtown areas, local businesses, libraries, science centers, and etc that are within biking distance.

Bicycle paths won't help when most people travel to work and other places by car because of the distance, not convenience. Neither will they help when people actually need to go and buy more than just a couple of items that could fit in a basket on a bike. If we are looking at oil consumption from the US as a whole, it won't even begin to scratch the paint.

Another thing is this was added to the highway bill as a kickback for the CA senator (pork project) that shouldn't have been in it in the first place. If this was a stand alone bill, as well as all the other pork projects should be, would have it even passed?

Originally posted by Mystery_Lady
Biking is not going to make a difference in oil consumption and dependence.

How wrong you are. I have not driven even one mile this year, I have gotten around 100% by bike and public transport. If more people did what I did we would have far less problems with oil, pollution, etc.

By the way I can get pretty much anywhere in the country this way although it is not as convenient.

Further Reading

Originally posted by opensecret1150
Oh good idea. Cut funding on bike paths, one of the few things that might actually cut down on dependence on oil, which is causing us so much problem in Iraq and, um, New Orleans!

[edit on 20-9-2005 by opensecret1150]

see...this is why NOTHING will ever change. Because there will always be somebody that gets all passionate about the fact they couldn't get out and cut their own bike path. I mean, seriously...$2 million dollars to mow a path 2 to 3 feet wide and lay gravel or (THIS WILL BE A RIOT IF HE COMES BACK AND CORRECTS ME!)...ASPHALT!

Okay - let's spend it all on Zoo paths and making sure everybody with a banana seat up their arses has a SMOOTH - OIL-BASED - SURFACE!

WHATEVER!

Well that may be a nice way to start cutting through the fat but we are going to need a lot more than that to pay for the reconstruction of NO.

It has to be more money misused around still.

opensecret1150

public transportation such as bus lines and the subway first of all have nothing to do with bike paths the money is ear marked for. You may not have used any gas in your own personal vechicle using public transportation, but there was still gas and oil used in the vechicle used to trasnport you from one place to another place.

Do not forget that there are many places do not have any public transportation. There is no public transportation where I live, and there are alot of hills in this area. I see more people walking their bikes than actually riding them it is that hilly. It is all good and well for you not to have spent a drop of fuel in your own gas tank. It still didn't scratch the paint in the over all gas oil consumption consumption.

Vallhall

Unfortunately I think you are correct. I believe that is why Senator Tom DeLay said that there was no more fat to be trimmed in the federal budget. Every senator had to have their ear-marked pork belly prodjects.

marg6043

I believe that is why RSC Chairman Pence was asking for suggestions. I have already seen many good suggestions that were just floating about. Personally I wouldn't mind seeing the elimination of the NEA and the IRS, but I think I'm just dreaming there.

This was in September 18 News and views letter I recieved:

There is, however, a ray of hope at the end of this pork-barrel tunnel. According to the Bozeman Daily Chronicle in Montana, CITIZENS of both political parties have petitioned the local city council to give back the $4 million "earmarked" for a new parking garage, with one resident telling the Wall Street Journal, "We figure New Orleans needs the money right now a lot more than we need extra downtown parking spaces."

Which got the Wall Street Journal thinking.

"Why not cancel all of the special-project pork in the highway bill and dedicate the $25 billion in savings to emergency relief on the Gulf Coast?" it mused in an editorial. "Is it asking too much for Richmond, Indiana, to give up $3 million for its hiking trail, or Newark, New Jersey, to put a hold on its $2 million bike path?"

I believe the people in Montana are more sensable than the government. There was 25 Billion in pork in the highway bill. I believe Bush was spending 20 billion I believe. I can't quite remember, so it may have been 20 million. There is enough pork in the highway bill to cover the cost of what Bush wants to spend.

The list I posted was only a small portion of what is in the bill. Someone could suggest of repealling all of the pork in the highway bill, and give it to NO relief funds.

There will be a battle to be had though, since all the senators are greedy and wouldn't vote for the bill unless their pet project was included. That is some of the worst blackmail I have ever heard about.

Slash all of the senator's income in half, and give it to NO's relief fund. They have been raising their own pay without the people's concent for years. Then they do a poor job in congress. Use blackmail in their voting porcedures. Listen to the lobbests with the most money in their pocket. They turned a blind eye to the constituents whom they are suppose to work for. None of them deserve they pay or the retirement funds they are receiving currently. I know that they would delete that suggestion as soon as they read it.

Update (sorry for the long quote, but I don't have a URL to direct people to since this is from a newsletter. It is not the full letter.):

Yesterday, the Republican Study Committee put their budget cuts where our taxpayer money is. The RSC has suggested a whopping $810+ BILLION in specific federal budget cuts over the next ten years.

As a reminder, most estimates suggest the cost to rebuild from Hurricane Katrina will be around $200 billion ? and the federal deficit is around $350 billion. So by enacting the RSC's recommendations, we can completely pay for Katrina relief, wipe out the federal deficit...and STILL have money left over for additional TAX CUTS.

Anyway, here's the list of suggested budget cuts as proposed by the RSC. See if YOUR recommendations are included. And thanks again to all of you who took the time to make such recommendations through our online petition over the past several days!

Chuck Muth
President
Citizen Outreach
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

OPERATION OFFSET
Republican Study Committee
September 21, 2005

Delay the Medicare Prescription Drug Bill for One year
Repeal the Highway Earmarks in TEA-LU
Reduce Medicaid Administrative Spending
Increase Allowable Co-pays in Medicaid
Block Grant Medicaid Acute Services
Reduce Farm Payment Acreage by 1%
Eliminate Subsidized Loans to Graduate Students
Base Federal Retiree Health on Length of Service
Increase Medicare Part B Premium from 25% to 30%
Restructure Medicare's Cost-Sharing Requirement
Impose a Home Health Co-payment of 10%
Update the Formula Used for Federal Pension
Eliminate US subscriptions to the European Bank
Reduce Economic Assistance to Egypt
Eliminate Millennium Challenge Accounts
Level Funding for Peacekeeping Operations
Eliminate International Fund for Ireland
Level Funding for Global AIDS Initiative
Level Funding for Inter-American Foundation
Level Funding for the African Development Foundation
Level Funding for the Peace Corps
Level Funding for Andean Counter-Drug Initiative
Reduce USAID Operating Expenses
Level Funding for the International Development Assoc.
Level Funding for Asian Development Bank
Eliminate State Grants for Safe and Drug-Free Schools
Eliminate the Even Start Program
Eliminate Teen Funding Portion of Title X Family Planning
Eliminate the Administration Fees to Schools
Eliminate the Leveraging Educational Assistance Program
Eliminate Funding for the National and Community Service Act
End the Redistribution of Unused Federal Funds from SCHIP
Eliminate Childless Adult Coverage in SCHIP
Eliminate Funding for Penile Implants Under Medicare
Tie Rent Subsidies for One Person to Cost of Efficiency Apartments
Eliminate School Lunches for Students Above 350% of Poverty
Remove Ceiling for Collecting Overpayments from SSI
Verify Income of Earned Income Tax Credit Participants
Eliminate Fiscal Assistance to District of Columbia
Require IRS to Deposit Fees Collected by Treasury
Eliminate Presidential Election Campaign Fund
Eliminate the Federal Anti-Drug Advertising
Eliminate Federal Funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting
Raise the Threshold for Davis-Bacon Coverage
Charge Federal Employees for Parking
Eliminate Legal Services Corporation
Eliminate High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Program
United States Postal Service Foregone
Decline Member Pay Raise
Reduce Bureau of Land Management Construction
Reduce Fish and Wildlife Construction
Eliminate Funding for the National Endowment for the Arts
Eliminate Funding for National Endowment for Humanities
Eliminate Funding for the Forest Service's Economic Action Program
Reduce Funds for the Water Quality Cooperative Agreement
Reduce Funds for Bureau of Indian Affairs School Construction
Reduce Funds for Forest Service Capital Improvements
Reduce Funds for the NCRS Operations
Reduce Funds for Waste Disposal Grants
Reduce Funds for Cooperative State Research and Education
Eliminate Rural Empowerment Zone Grant
Eliminate Citrus Canker Compensation
Reduce DOE Environmental Management
Eliminate the Appalachian Regional Commission
Eliminate the Denali Commission
Eliminate Native Hawaiian Funding
Level Funding for Community Health Centers
Reduce Funding for the Centers for Disease Control
Reduce Funding for the Airport Improvement Program
Eliminate Attaché Positions in the Foreign Agricultural Service
Reduce Funding for Department of Education Administration
Level Funding DOE Departmental Administration Funding
Level Funding for FAA Operations
Level Funding for Treasury Departmental Offices
Level Funding for the Federal Building Fund
Level Funding for OMB
Level Funding for Agriculture Building and Facilities
Reduce Funding for the Agriculture Research Service
Eliminate the Applied Research for Renewable Energy Sources Program
Eliminate the Clean Coal Technology Program
Eliminate the FreedomCAR Program
Eliminate the Research Initiative for Future Agriculture Systems
Eliminate the Export-Import Bank and OPIC
Limit the Repayment Period of Export Credit Guarantees
Impose a Fee on the GSEs Investment Portfolio
Require GSEs to Register with the SEC and Pay Fees
Eliminate the ITA's Trade Promotion Activates
Eliminate the Advanced Trade Program
Eliminate the Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnerships
Repeal the Continued Dumping and Subsidy Offset Act
Eliminate the Foreign Market Development Program
Eliminate the Market Access Program
Eliminate the Export Enhancement Program
Eliminate the Hydrogen Fuel Initiative
Speed the Sale of Old and Excess Naval Vessels
Consolidate the Military Exchanges
Close the Domestic Dependent School System
Reduce DOD Administrative Accounts
Restrict First-Responder Grants to At-Risk Communities
Introduce HSAs as a TRICARE Option

Some of the funding in that list has been slashed already to support the war in Iraq.

More cuttings in some of the things in that list are going to put a lots of Americans in great difficulties.

No all the items in the list seems like a good idea to cut at all.

Right now dipping in the nations Medicaid that is already been deep into is going to hurt the elderly in our country that is already in the poverty line.

Also how can they cut in the prescription drugs when the pharmaceuticals are not doing anything to help.

Is many, many things in that list that can not be cut anymore.