Sequester. Since we are getting bombarded with the word, I decided to look it up to see what it means in the dictionary.
In its noun form, it is a general cut to government spending
In the verb, it means to isolate or hide away. In this case I think it's use is the verb and the truth is hidden away.
In order to get the Republicans to agree to avert the fiscal cliff/debt ceiling crisis two years ago, the President said he would be glad to cut expenditures...in two years. So the President came up with a deal and it was called sequestration. Well the two years is up and the cuts will occur in two days.
Like all of the other fiscal cliffs and debt ceiling crises we have been exposed to for the past 4 years, nothing gets done until the last minute. There is no leadership, no one at the helm to bring all of the parties together and hammer out a deal.
Obama's sequestration included cuts to the military that he figured would be revolting to Republicans and they would eventually agree to compromise with him. But the Republicans seem willing to go along with these cuts, the wars are winding down and there is less pressure on the military. This reaction from the republicans was unexpected to Obama. In his sequestration he had also included cuts to many social programs his base relies on...cuts he never thought he would have to make.
President Obama has taken to the road to try to drum up outrage against Republicans to pressure them to cave in on the sequestration cuts.
President Obama treats the sequester like it is a red headed step child, as if he was the innocent bystander and had nothing to do with it...But award winning journalist Bob Woodward, blew the whistle & firmly placed paternity rights to sequestration in Obamas corner.
But in this case "sequester" does hide the truth. The truth is that these so called "cuts" are only a pinprick to the growth of government spending.
Both sides are equally guilty of protecting their pet projects and sacred cows which automatically grow fatter each year under baseline budgeting.
Senator Tom Coburn who knows better than most what the game is about, said the other day: "There's easy ways to cut this money in ways the American people will never feel. What you hear is an outrage because nobody wants to cut spending."
Senator Coburn has documented billions in waste and fraud that could be cut from the budget...read his excellent, 2012 Wastebook. But none of this is being addressed in the "sequester."
The CATO Institute did an exhaustive study on how we are spending 100 billion on corporate welfare. But none of this is being touched with the "sequester" either. Here is their excellent report: Corporate Welfare in the Federal Budget.
The people and their children who will have to shoulder the burden of this out out of control spending, are tired of having the truth about the debt and deficit "sequestered" away by their leaders.
Ed Farnan
First Published February 27, 2013
Ed Farnan lives in the US and has been writing articles and opinion pieces as a conservative/liberterian for years.
Topics include: Energy independence, questioning the science behind global warming, secure borders, 2nd amendment rights, smaller government and the many great Irish influencers of yesterday and today.
Ed's columns have been linked to or appeared in various publications such as WSJ, NY Daily News, NY Post, Washington Times, Des Moines Register, USA Today, India Times, AMAC, and many other publications throughout the USA and world. Ed is often a guest on radio stations in Europe and the USA and is a guest on Fox News.
