I Feel Betrayed By John Boehner and Nan Hayworth

Notice that this past weekend's newsbites consisted of one single newsbite.

(*SHRUG*)

My heart just wasn't in it this weekend. I'm so depressed about the Republican betrayal.

As for the media...

(*SIGH*)

If anything, they're even more worthy of our contempt than the politicians because either reporters, editors and publishers are too stupid to ask the right questions... or else they're deliberately providing cover for the politicians.

Folks...

(*SIGH*)

How do you measure a "cut?" You know... a budget cut?

Here's how I measure it:

According to OMB, the federal government spent $3,465,213,000,000 over the course of 2010.

In English... 2010 federal spending was three trillion, four-hundred and sixty-five billion, two-hundred and thirteen million dollars.

So... recall... Republicans campaigned last year partly on a promise to cut $100 billion from the federal budget.

Right...? Are you all with me...? We're all on the same page...?

So... $3,465,213,000,000 minus $100 billion equals... $3,365,213,000,000 - correct?

O.K., now that I've outlined my basic conception of what a "cut" means, allow me to point out that many of the same Republicans who campaigned partly on a promise of cutting $100 billion out of the federal once they took power "clarified" what they "meant" by $100 billion upon winning election and being sworn in.

All of a sudden $100 billion in promised cuts became... er... $61 billion in cuts.

Right...? Still with me, folks...?

So now let's re-do the math:

$3,456,213,000,000 minus $61 billion equals... $3,395,213,000,000

We still on the same page, folks...?

Next...

(*SIGH*)

Remember that original promise to cut $100 billion? Scratch that. Remember that "clarified" promise to instead cut $61 billion? Scratch that too. So what are Republicans and the media now telling us...?

In response to a question I had posed to her on Saturday, my congresswoman, Dr. Nan Hayworth (R-NY-19), has told me that she expects the final agreed upon "cuts" to amount to approximately $39 billion...

To quote Dr. Hayworth directly:

The final agreement has not yet been released, but an approximately $39B reduction in spending in the months of fiscal year 2011 that occur in calendar year 2011, versus the baseline of the President's 2011 budget proposal, is what has been agreed upon, as I understand it. The $39B would therefore include the total of $10B in cuts that were passed in the two previous short-term CRs as well as the $2B in cuts passed in the "bridge" CR just after midnight on Saturday, April 9. I caution again that this is as I understand what I have heard from the Speaker in our Conference meeting on the night of April 8 - it's not all in writing yet.

Uh-huh...

(*PURSED LIPS*)

Folks... notice one particular string of words: "...versus the baseline of the president's 2011 budget proposal..."

(*GRITTING MY TEETH*)

Folks... President Obama's 2011 budget proposal was... er... a proposal. It was words on paper - not reality.

Folks... the actual 2010 budget - the actual 2010 federal spending total of $3,465,213,000,000 represents reality.

Everyone's following... right...?

O.K., so returning to reality, the "cut" number that Congresswoman Hayworth and her colleagues (and the media!) are going with is now $39 billion.

To recap: $100 billion became $61 billion which became $39 billion. Does that about cover it?

Oh... folks... if only we were talking about real "cuts" I wouldn't be nearly so furious as I am right now at the lies and misrepresentations fed us by the politicians and the media...!!!

Folks... here's the reality as best I can figure it:

THERE WILL BE NO CUTS...! FEDERAL SPENDING IS SET TO INCREASE, NOT DECREASE!

O.K., last math exercise: $3,465,213,000,000 minus $39 billion equals $3,426,213,000,000.

Therefore...

If we were indeed talking a real $39 billion cut in federal spending being made this year now that Republicans control the House of Representatives we'd be talking fiscal year 2011 total spending amounting to $3,426,213,000,000.

Right...?

(*SHRUG*)

Folks... scroll back up to the link provided for the official U.S. government Office of Management and Budget figures - the sentence that begins, "According to OMB..."

What's their official estimate for fiscal year 2011 spending amount to?

(*PAUSE*)

Yep... $3,818,819,000,000.

That's the number! Not $3,426,213,000,000 as the politicians and media would have us assume it's going to be based upon supposed "cuts" of $39 billion.

Folks... rather than go down... according to the best official estimates - the federal government's own official projections - federal spending with Republicans controlling the House are expected to rise by $362,606,000,000.

In English... OBM expects total federal spending for 2011 to be almost three-hundred and sixty-two billion more than 2010 spending.

Folks... does that sound like a "cut" to you...???

My friends and readers, I'm not a "math guy." I wasn't a finance major in college. I'm not a CPA. I lack an MBA.

One thing I am... I'm an honest guy.

Perhaps I've gone into more detail than absolutely necessary here in order to make my point, but ask yourself... based upon what's I've just outlined... have your elected representatives been telling you the truth? Has the media been accurately reporting on what's really going on?

Forget your position on spending... lay aside for the moment your position on government shutdowns and who would have "won" had their been a government shutdown....

(*PAUSE*)

What I'm asking you is simply this: When will you demand basic truth-telling from your elected representatives and the media?

Is it acceptable to you that nowhere (nowhere I could find at least) in mainstream media reporting will you get the sort of info you've just got here... at my blog... from me?

Folks... do me a favor: Pass this post on.

You know what... here's what I suggest: Print out this post. Mail it to both the editor and publisher of your local newspaper(s). Demand that the media start giving you the truth.

As for your elected officials... (*SIGH*)... you can try reaching out to them. If you do, I certainly wish you more luck than I've been having.

Folks... America needs our citizens to stand up for - at a bare minimum - TRUTH.