Saturday, Might 10, 2025 | 2 a.m.
Republicans have repeatedly denied that they need to eviscerate Social Safety and Medicare. However their assurances fly within the face of a long time of political historical past. President Ronald Reagan proposed main cuts in each of those applications quickly after taking workplace in 1981. And President George W. Bush proposed altering each of those applications to personal accounts.
Former Home Speaker Newt Gingrich shut down the federal authorities in 1995 as a result of President Invoice Clinton refused to conform to giant cuts in Medicare and Medicaid. Different conservatives have proposed a discount of entitlement plans for youthful generations, thus opening the door to additional cuts.
In the meantime, the US spends more cash on protection than subsequent 10 international locations mixed.
The army affords free well being care to members and their dependents, low cost groceries, tax-free buying, tuition-subsidized baby care and a bunch of different companies. Rosa Brooks, a former prime Pentagon official, has stated “the army has change into a substitute welfare state.”
As well as, the Protection Division continues to fabricate ships, plane and different warfare equipment which have confirmed to be ineffective and in some instances out of date. However members of Congress refuse to cease the waste as a result of it brings revenue to their districts. The Pentagon’s personal estimate of wasteful protection spending totals greater than $1 billion yearly.
Relatively than crippling Social Safety and important well being applications that cowl greater than 70 million seniors, let’s concentrate on the large waste in different areas such because the Protection Division.
