Next on the Federal Spending Docket: It's Budget Time!

Friday, February 20, 2009 2:13 PM

In case you think the Federal government hasn't spent enough of your money yet, there's something to look forward to:  Congress will now turn their attention to the Budget Bill.

That worries you? Well, if you want to believe Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, there's no need to worry, because, as she is quoted in the Wall Street Journal:

We absolutely intend to proceed in a very fiscally sound way.

And:

Each of these pieces of legislation will have to justify its existence.

Why, thank you!

But for some reason, I don't find this very assuring, after all, Nancy Pelosi used a very similar phrase when she discussed the massive government spending package at a media availability to announce the "stimulus" deal Congressional leaders brokered behind closed doors:

Job creation, economic stabilization, inspiring confidence in the American people that we're going in a New Direction -- and that New Direction includes fiscal responsibility. So what's in here is to grow the economy, bring more revenue to the Treasury so that we can do our work for the American people in a fiscally sound way.

So if the trillion dollar "stimulus," which supposedly had no "earmarks" yet is riddled with wasteful spending projects, was "fiscally sound," in Pelosi's mind, then the American taxpayer has every reason to be concerned.

Not only are we looking at an 8.7% increase in discretionary spending over 2008, which according to the White House Office of Management and Budget would be the largest increase in discretionary spending since at least 1978 -- with the exception of a 10% boost in 2002, shortly after the Sept. 11 attacks.  No, we're also talking about the omnibus bill which is notorious for earmarks, and will likely see all the pet projects that didn't make it into the "stimulus" here.

But hey, what's another couple hundred billion these days...?

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