A Fraud Perpetuated on the American People

“A fraud perpetuated on the American people.”  What an irony that Senator David Perdue pointedly addressed his fellow Senators with these words on June 6, the same day that we remembered D-Day 73 years ago.

On June 6, 1944, the United States launched the most massive military undertaking in world history.  It required an unshakable resolve, monumental planning, impeccable execution, and passionate prayer.  It was a time of crisis for our nation and, with God’s care, we rose to meet the crisis.

73 years later our nation is in the midst of another crisis that is even more ominous. It is a crisis that is more sinister and threatening than even the threat of terrorism. Like a cancer on our nation, it is steadily and tenaciously destroying us from the inside.

For 14 minutes, Senator Perdue presented common sense truth to the Senate.  This was not an address filled with partisan flamboyancy. It was not an address in the late night hours to an empty room simply to have footage for campaign commercial.

It was a call for the Senate to simply do its job.  It was a call to seriously address a national debt that has grown to nearly 20 trillion dollars.  It was a call to have an honest budget process. You can watch his message in less time than it takes for a coffee break.

If you feel that you do not have time to watch it, then I’ll give you the reader’s digest version below.  But you need to watch this speech.

This is not a politician pontificating.  It is a plain spoken American exhorting his colleagues to stop serving themselves and serve the American people.

He first noted that there were 50 working days before the end of the fiscal year.  That does not include 5 weeks that the Senate will take off in August. (My comment: They need to stay there and get the job done.)

In the last 43 years Congress has adopted a budget prior to the end of the fiscal year only 4 times.  There have been 178 continuing resolutions. What really happens in these continuing resolutions is that 6 people get into a room and determine how the government will spend a trillion dollars.

Before October 1 each year, Congress must pass 12 appropriations bills.  Over the past 43 years, the average has been two and a half. They come to the midnight hour of September 30 and are presented a resolution to adopt or not fund the government.

All government spending each year is approximately 4 trillion dollars.  Of that, Congress only debates slightly more than 1 trillion of discretionary spending.

75% of spending each year is spending that is not discretionary. Discretionary spending includes defense, veterans, agriculture, transportation, and other agencies.

I have pulled a few quotes from the speech that go to the heart of Senator Perdue’s exhortation and warning.

Over the last eight years and over the next ten years, every dime that we’ve spent on discretionary spending has by definition been borrowed. There is no other way to look at it….

That means we have to go to China and the rest of the world to fund all of our discretionary spending… It cannot be sustained for a long period of time.

Yet we’re sitting here with a budget that goes for the next 10 years that says we will continue to operate business as usual and add another $10 billion to this already burdensome debt of $20 trillion….

The debt crisis and budget problem are interlinked. There is no way to solve the debt crisis until we solve the budget process….

Mr. President, as we check off every single day over the next 50 days, I want my colleagues to be reminded of what we will have to do to fund the government come October 1. Please let’s not get up to September 30 with a gun up to our head that says, spend the money this way or not fund the government tomorrow.

That is total irresponsibility just like I think this is a fraud perpetrated on the people of America and it is not honest relative to what we have to face up to in terms of our responsibilities. We cannot afford to do all we are doing, that is just pure fact.

Take 15 minutes.  Watch the video.  This is your nation.  This is about your money. Do what you can to help Senator Perdue move and motivate his fellow Senators to grasp the reality of the crisis at hand and do the job they were elected to do.

Signature-Donald E. Cole

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