I am not a “Gang of Six” well ........

I am not a “Gang of Six” well maybe a “Gang of Six Packs” however Ithink I can figured out how to strike $5 trillion from our federal budget within 10 minutes.

President Obama convened a 15 member National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility, led by Erskine Bowles & Alan Simpson. They came up with ways to strike $4 trillion off the deficit. Their plan even covered Social Security. GOP Representative Paul Ryan was on that committee and voted against their conclusion, as a matter of fact many did not vote for the Bowles-Simpson plan.

A few months later, Budget Committee Chairman, Rep. Paul Ryan created his own Fiscal Budget Plan and his idea tells us he can strike $6 trillion off the deficit. Ryan’s plan depends more on repeal of President Obama’s Health Care plan and another tax cut for the richest of the rich, down to 25%. There is much scrutiny in his plan and it took Democrats to help push Ryan's plan through the House, because his own party had no faith in it.

So now we're back to square one and President Obama has decided to awaken VP Joe “Nappy Time” Biden to lead a new 15 member council. Only 6 members of Congress signed up; 4 Democrats and 2 Republicans (including House GOP Leader Eric Cantor).

Now since the 2008 election, GOP have said "we need to go back to pre 2008 spending" which is nice, however even that spending was out of control prior to 2008. And all the promises made in the GOP’s “Pledge to America” have before 2010 election, has fallen flat. Where are the jobs they promised to create? What about that $100 Billion spending cut promise?

That turned into a paltry $38 billion to complete this fiscal year.

Many on the GOP have a love affair with pre-2008 spending, but both wars in Afghanistan and Iraq were off the books until 2008, so how much were we really spending prior to 2008? No one really knows because the Congressional books aren't correct. I think we need to get a "bookie" in there, at least they know how to work the books.

But I have heard other GOP members call for a return to 1998 spending and I say let's do it. So let’s turn everything back to 1998 for the next 5 years.

Let's return to the Clinton administration tax levels of 39% for all. Why since we're paying 36% now? Simple, the Bush tax cuts have not done what they were supposed to do; create jobs, help small business form, and put extra cash in the pockets of consumers. If we get rid of the Bush tax cuts, that's close to $1 trillion back in the Treasury every year.

Or even raise taxes on those making less than $2 million yearly from 36% to 37% and raise the rest from 36% to 38%. That can still bring in $500 billion.

We can use Ryan's plan on Medicare changes however the voucher has got to be more than $15k. Ryan's voucher system only rises at 2.1% yearly, however health costs rise at 3% yearly, so the voucher must be raised to at least $25k, because for some of our senior citizens, that $15k will be gone in 4 months. Should we start rationing their health care?

OK, so we did taxes and Medicare now let’s start on Social Security.

We are living longer nowadays, better foods, more vitamins and so on, so the age has got to go up to at least 72. Most seniors are still working till their 80's anyway and they are still paying into the SSI and Medicare tax. And let's get rid of the Nixon era law that once you become eligible for SSI, you get it automatically. No offense to those immigrants that just got their citizenship, but if 80 yr old Grandpa Joe just became a citizen and has not held a job, his family has got to step up. Sounds mean but this is a real burden on the Social Security.

So raise the age limit and raise the tax by a 0.25% and things start rolling. I do not believe in privatizing Social Security for the fact that it will grow the Federal Government even more and Social Security becomes a Government 4o1k system in the stock market and your Social Security could end up with nothing from playing market. Like most 4o1k's you get a once a year chance to move it, so you might as well take it to the casino for all that’s worth.

Military spending needs cut, but in a positive manner. We have to rebuild our military after over a decade of war in Afghanistan and seen years in Iraq. Not to mention the health of our soldiers.

Get out of both and it hurts me to say that. I am still a believer that we never finished the job in getting Osama bin Laden. While other Americans feel we did enough, I still want him in shackles for his part in Sept 11.

We can save another $1 trillion by leaving, shifting money to the health of our soldiers and rebuilding of our military. We’ll still come out ahead on budget. However, we need to rethink our military strategy future equipment needs. Get rid of the silly ideas and notions of floating tanks or vertical lift-off air freighters. Improve what works; drones, faster more mobile personnel carriers and tanks, lighter more efficient body armor for our troops and etc.

Also, if there’s any department to be shuttered, it’s the Department of Homeland Security. This was a knee jerk reaction to Sept 11 and a campaign payback from President Bush to Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge. It is an unnecessary department that rearranged agencies into one. How about getting people to do their job and not creating more useless departments, if anything creation of new Supervisory positions could have had a larger savings.

Now corporate tax loopholes can have a huge savings for us.

Start a higher tariff of American companies that move their major operations overseas and then ship it back for twice the amount of its cost. Everyone should know by now that the new Buicks that are getting high praise here have been built in China and successful sellers for 3 years now. So China is our new proving grounds for American motor companies?

Also, the news about General Electric huge rebate is nothing new, it was higher in 1998. As a matter of fact, in 1998, 250 of our nation’s largest profitable corporations paid only 20.1% in taxes, when they were supposed to pay 35%.

41 of those companies actually paid ZERO and they reported a combined 25.8 billion in profits and received tax break refunds of 3.2 billion- PepsiCo, JP Morgan, Chevron, Texaco, Enron, General Motors and Northrop Grumman to name a few. Oh and General Electric then received a 6.9 billion tax break.

So I’ve tackled the quick fixes that could clear up $4 trillion in the 15 minutes it took you to read this and yet our inefficient Congress must set up committee after committee and waste more taxpayer money to accomplish nothing in over three years.

But the most important point being, I am not out to satisfy constituents nor the big money lobbyists that line the pockets of 98% of Congress. Spending cuts hurt, but it depends on where and how the cuts are implemented that makes them work correctly.

One has to wonder why I'm not a drooling drunk reaching for the next brew to numb my last brain cell. Please click a link and help pay my beer tab. Big Poppa Politics = Lights out