Official October 2005 Budget Thread

[Jake]

Sam, can you compile what revenue would look like with a 1% increase among all tax brackets?

[Jake]

I'll be joining Hugh and hopefully many other senators in opposing the non-personell cuts to our budget. A budget is not balanced simply by slicing and dicing welfare, housing allowances, health care, food stamps, and national defense and I find the attempts to do so not only half-baked, but sickening in the sheer ignorance displayed by those supporting it.

[Jake]

It's fine as is.

[Jake]

Now we see the seemingly random cuts made. Assistance to farmers in the Third World received 500 million, assistance to fight drug lords in Columbia received none. We appropriate 10 billion to assist Katrina victims, while slashing programs that assisted many of the victims beforehand. The work of certain individuals (I certainly won't call them libertarians, nor budget hawks) is appaling in its scope. I hope the new Senate can work together to re-examine this budget, fix the discrepencies, and try to spend to money we have better. Balancing a budget shouldn't be our goal, instead we should try to smartly appropriate our federal dollars to programs that benefit our nation, our people, and our standing in the world, not merely cut for the sake of cutting.

[Jake]

Aye, with the understanding that the Senate will begin work on this issue promptly next term.

[Jake]

Yes, yes. Not official work, Senators mentioned they had budget "cutting" proposals to debate.