posted on August 24, 2001 02:46:13 AM
WASHINGTON, Aug. 22 — Ending a brief but giddy era of fiscal plenty, the Bush administration released projections today showing that the federal budget surpluses outside the Social Security system will dwindle to almost nothing for the next several years.
The political rhetoric ratcheted up a notch after the White House released its mid-session budget review showing the government had just a thin cushion to balance its budget before it might have to tap into the Social Security (news - web sites) trust fund.
The review projected an overall surplus, including Social Security and Postal Service receipts, of about $158 billion in 2001, compared to estimates in April of about $281 billion and the record $236.92 billion seen in the last fiscal year.
It showed a slim $1.9 billion surplus in 2001 outside of receipts from Social Security or the Postal Service. The cushion is small enough that a slight deviation in either spending or revenues could force the White
House to dip into Social Security --something it had promised not to do.
It's a result of foolish beliefs, poor planning,and wasteful living, plain and simple.
As it is for everyone, it's when there's not a lot of money that the worst things always happen. The transmission goes out in the car, the Mississippi floods over it's banks; the roof leaks over the kids beds, there's an earthquake in Seattle; the city comes around and tells you that your sewer line to their service needs replacing, Hurricane Homer wreaks havoc on the eastern seaboard.
You've got money set aside for such things, don't you? Of course you do. Well, Bush doesn't. 1.9 billion dollars isn't enough to fight a half sized forest fire, much less a full fledged national disaster.
And the little idiot stands there and shrugs his shoulders apologetically as if he's at a loss to explain to his mommie why he came home without the milk she sent him to the store to get, even though he knows that she knows he spent it on candy again.
posted on August 24, 2001 06:13:45 AM new
Good morning, Ken.
I liked it.
Happy to accommodate.
I wouldn't trade common sense for all the smarts in the world. It has served me well thus far.
Given my druthers, though, I would like to have both.
I had a brother-in-law who was the chairman of the math department of a university. The man had absolutely no common sense whatsoever. Made a real fool of himself sometimes.
posted on August 24, 2001 10:39:15 AM new
What people fail to realize is the meaness of the Republican politicans. If Bush doesn't get to raid Social Security to pay the 18 BILLION DOLLARS that he wants to give to his buddies in the defense industry under the guise of the bogus Missle Defense Program, he'll have to take the earmarked taxpayer money from some other program. That usually means the Shcool Lunch program, Welfare, Disability, and other "Hand-out" programs that go to people. That 18 BILLION DOLLARS to his buddies is also a "Hand-out" won't stop the rhetoric of blaming the country's woes on the governement helping out the less fortunate people of this nation. You wait and see!
posted on August 25, 2001 11:57:54 AM new
Well of course most of us knew that this would be the inevitable result of the ill-conceived tax cuts. I was surprised though that the effects were so immediate and drastic.
