Category Archives: Federal Budget

Schedule a Meeting and Open the Government

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Chuck Schumer said, “We’ll set up an appointment with him, anytime, anyplace.” Take him up on that offer today and the issue will be settled.

Mr. President, schedule a meeting for 5:00 pm today, October 23, 2025. Include in that meeting Senate Majority Leader John Thune, Speaker Mike Johnson, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.

Include one simple provision in the scheduled meeting. The government must be open for business.

At 3:00 pm today, Senate Majority Leader John Thune schedule a vote on the no-strings attached continuing resolution. A YES vote sends the bill for the President to sign and keeps the meeting on schedule. A NO vote cancels the meeting.

Schumer gets his meeting, and the American people get their government back. It is a win-win for everyone.

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Democrats Reject Shut-Down Compromises

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Yesterday, Chuck Schumer and the Democrats rejected two compromise proposals from Republicans to open the government.

One was to guarantee a vote by a set date on an extension of Obamacare credits. This is what Democrats have been railing for.

Here was a deal offered up on a silver platter. Republicans would debate it and bring it up for a vote. There is no guarantee that what the Democrats want will pass, but there was a guarantee that they would get a vote.

Some Republicans, including the Georgia firebrand, Marjorie Taylor Greene, have expressed concerns about the anticipated rate increases in Obamacare when the credits expire at the end of the year. They may have her on their side. By the way, the expiration date for the credits was set by the Democrats when they adopted the credits during the Covid crisis.

The point here is that Democrats might get something out of the deal. There is no way to know until they open it up and debate it. But Schumer rejected the proposal.

Majority leader, John Thune, had a pointed response published by MSNBC. He reportedly said, “At some point, Democrats have to take ‘yes’ for an answer.”

A second compromise was to peel off appropriations for the War Department and pass that spending bill. This would assure that military and War Department personnel would get paid. Schumer rejected that offer as well.

There are no strings attached to the Republican bill. It simply authorizes the continued operation of the government at the current level through November 21. During this time, the House and the Senate would act on appropriation bills to fully fund the government through the end of the fiscal year on September 30, 2026.

Even though Republicans hold a slim majority in the Senate, they need 60 votes to end debate and vote on the simple, no-strings, continuing resolution that the House has already passed. They only have 55 votes right now with three of those votes being Democrats. They need five more Democrats to side with them but that is not happening.

Democrats say that Republicans are unwilling to discuss the many issues involved with the budget. Republicans are more than happy to debate and do what the Democrats say they do not want to do.

What they will not do is to hold up government operations and services to Americans while they debate. Republicans have a simple clean, continuing resolution on the table.

Republicans have compromised with two offers. Republicans want to open the government, keep providing the services to Americans and debate the points of contention with the Democrats.

Democrats reject both compromise offers. As Majority Leader Thune says, “At some point, Democrats have to take ‘yes’ for an answer.”

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Fish or Cut Bait

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We are now in day 3 of the Schumer Shutdown. The explanation is pretty simple.

The House passed a 24 page continuing resolution to keep things as they are and continue funding the government through November 21. The Senate received the resolution and put it on the floor for a vote.

Because of the filibuster rule in the Senate, there must be 60 votes to end debate. Democrat minority leader Schumer refused to call on Democrats to vote to keep the government open until November 21.

Instead, he introduced a bill that demanded:

  • Free health care for illegal aliens
  • $500 million in taxpayer funding to prop up liberal news outlets
  • A $50 billion cut in investments for improving rural health care
  • Billions in funding for DEI and climate projects in foreign countries

What a contrast between a simple 24-page resolution that kept the government open and the Democrat monstrosity. For years Democrats passed, with Republican support, continuing resolutions to give time to work out issues.

This time; however, Democrats demand that everyone rush to make radical changes. Republicans will not consider these changes.

For example, I looked at the Democrat bill. Page 57, Section 2141 is crystal clear – “Repeal of Health Subtitle Changes.” These were changes made in the Working Families Health Care Bill which, among others eliminated the Biden administration give-away of free health care for illegal aliens.

Democrats also wanted to do away with $50 billion investments made for rural health care. They wanted to add billions for DEI and projects related to climate.

Simply put, Republicans cut budget items that gave your tax dollars to illegal aliens and worthless projects in foreign countries. Democrats want to put those back.

So where does that leave us? Are we at an impasse where Republicans will have to fold in order to reopen the government?

It seems that was the way at always worked in the past. This time it is different.

Because there are no appropriations and the government is not funded, the President now has flexibility to make even more cuts without a congressional fight. I am amazed that Democrats are not willing to extend with a continuing resolution but are willing to hand the power to President Trump to cut programs.

President Trump has shown great patience as we enter into day three. He is meeting with Russ Vought of the Office of Management and Budget to look at programs that could be cut permanently or temporarily. Be assured. Cuts are coming.

In this case, Democrats think that they can win. They should realize that President Trump is not interested in cutting bait. He came to fish.

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Responding to Federal Firing

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On Valentine’s Day, I started work early as I normally do. I was greeted with an e-mail sent late the previous evening with the glaring subject line, “Notice of Termination.”

The subject line was bad enough. The message included this line, “The Agency finds, based on your performance, that you have not demonstrated that your further employment at the Agency would be in the public interest.” The message went on to say that I was removed from my position as of close of business February 13.

I had a lot of different emotions hitting me from all sides. I had not been just laid off. I was not cut because of a reduction in force. I was fired for not “demonstrating” that my work was in the public interest. At least that’s what the message said.

Several thousand federal employees who had been on the job less than a year got the same message. The action of making the cuts was not personal, but it sure felt like it was.

At that moment, I had an important decision to make. How would I respond to this action? I had no control over the circumstances, but I did have control over what I did next.

Feelings of anger, resentment, and bitterness, shouted for me to grab hold and dance with them. I cannot honestly say that I did not entertain those feelings for a few moments. There was another voice that was not as loud but it was convincing.

That voice came from a message that I have drilled into my mind for nearly four decades. I have given away hundreds of jars of beans with a pecan. It is a four minute sermon as to how to face circumstances exactly like I was facing right then.

If you are facing similar circumstances now, take a moment to watch the video. After you have seen it, you probably know someone who could use a lift. It won’t change your circumstances, but it will change how you view them.

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All Government Money Comes from You

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We need to talk. As a nation we have spent on Covid relief as if money was perpetually flowing from an endless fountain. 

Employers cannot find workers because for some it is more profitable to draw government benefits. 

Don’t get angry at the person taking the benefits. The individual drawing the payments did the research and determined that it was worth the effort to apply for it and receive it if qualified. FacebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedintumblrmailFacebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedintumblrmailby feather

Senators Dodge Accountability

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Through some miracle, I am able to write this commentary in the midst of a government shutdown.

In all of the drama watching the clock tick down till midnight, Senator Bob Corker of Tennessee made brief comments about the voting process.

He explained that Senator Jeff Flake of Arizona and others had reached an agreement that the next vote by the Senate would be on a bill that was agreed to by the President and Republican and Democrat leaders in the House and Senate.

He went on to say that this pushes ahead a negotiation that will yield results. At first take that sounds reasonable. But remember, this is a politician talking.

What he is really saying is that there will be a closed door meeting with a handful of people. There will not be an open floor debate and discussion.

The news keeps saying that it takes 60 votes to pass. That is not true.

It takes 60 votes to end the debate. Then there is a vote on the resolution itself. That vote only requires a simple majority.

There should be a vote to end debate with each Senator on record to proceed to a vote on the House bill. That bill funds the government temporarily, provides border security, and provides emergency disaster relief which includes Georgia farmers hit by Hurricane Michael.

If there were not enough votes to end debate, then someone could offer an amendment and the Senate could deliberate and vote on the amendment. In other words, be accountable for the vote.

The US Senate is supposed to be the great deliberative body. They should go on record so that everyone can hear and see.

Historians should be able to look back and see how our “distinguished” Senators set priorities and addressed border security. But this is not about the great deliberative body debating and hammering out these issues.

It is about allowing individual Senators to dodge accountability. Theoretically some Democrats might be persuaded to vote to end the debate and proceed forward.

I believe that some Republicans do not want to end debate because they do not want real border security. They just do not want their constituents to know that.

They want to dodge accountability. Once again, this puts on open display the hypocrisy of politicians in Washington.

They say that they can’t do away with the filibuster for appropriation bills because the Senate is the great deliberative body. Yet their actions show that they do not want the Senators to deliberate at all.

The Senators are dodging accountability. They should be held accountable.

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Trump’s Line in the Sand

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Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer met with President Trump to talk about the budget. They got a couple of surprises in the meeting.

The President had press in the room with the cameras rolling. He made introductory remarks about positive legislation such as Criminal Justice Reform that had support of Republicans and Democrats alike.

He also gave a status on several areas where portions of the border wall were complete. Illegal traffic into the United States was down where the wall was in place.

San Diego dropped 92%. El Paso dropped 75% and then when the wall was up, dropped 95%. Tucsan dropped 92%. Yuma dropped 96%. President Trump pointed out that the only reason it was not 100% was because illegal entrants would go to the unfinished areas and go around.

Normally after a few introductory remarks, the President would excuse the press and continue with a private meeting. This time he did not do that. The cameras kept rolling.

Like a pit bull with a bone, President Trump hunkered down on his position. He made it clear to Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer that border security was non-negotiable.

Nancy Pelosi realized what was going on. She complained that it was unfortunate that the cameras were rolling. Pelosi said, “We came in here in good faith and we are entering into this discussion in the public view.”

President Trump simply replied, “It’s called transparency.”

Both Pelosi and Schumer insisted that they did not want to have a government shutdown. Schumer said that President Trump had called 20 times to shut down the government.

In the past, Republicans have recoiled in fear and retreated when Democrats threaten a government shutdown. Pelosi and Schumer got an unexpected response.

President Trump did not recoil and retreat. On the contrary, he picked up the gauntlet and ferociously charged ahead. When Schumer said that President Trump would be responsible if there was a shut down, President Trump boldly took ownership and leadership.

I’ll take it. You know what I will say? Yes. If we don’t get what we want one way or the other, whether it’s through you, through a military, through anything you want to call, I will shut down the government. And I am proud.

I’ll tell you what, I am proud to shut down the government for border security, Chuck. Because the people of this country don’t want criminals and people that have lots of problems and drugs pouring into our country.

So, I will take the mantle. I will be the one to shut it down. I’m not going to blame you for it. The last time you shut it down it didn’t work. I will take the mantle for shutting it down and I will shut it down for border security.

President Trump drew a line in the sand. Republicans in the House and Senate need to stand up with him. The American people are standing with him.

The only ones who are not standing with him are the mainstream media and some Democrats in Congress. This time they will be the ones who make the compromise.

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President Trump Played the Hand He Was Dealt

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I have seen many posts and commentaries critical of the President for signing the Omnibus spending bill into law. I do not think that there was anything more that he could gain by vetoing the bill.

His top priority was to rebuild our nation’s military after nearly a decade of neglect. This bill took a big step in that direction.

Other initiatives such as building the wall, defunding Planned Parenthood, and reforms in the Veteran’s Administration were passed over by Congress. It is neither reasonable nor realistic to believe that Congress would have improved any of these other initiatives.

Republicans control both the House and Senate. It does not appear that they put up much of a fight in the bill that they gave the President. If they did not have his back at the beginning, he certainly could not expect them to have his back to support a veto.

It took a fork lift to deliver the 2200 page bill to the President. When it arrived at the Whitehouse, he looked down Pennsylvania Avenue toward the Capitol. All he could see were taxi cabs and Uber cars with members of Congress scrambling to get to the airport.

Congress is supposed to pass a budget and the President sign it before October 1 of each year. When they do not have their act together in time, they merely pass a short term extension.

For this year they extended through December 8, then December 22, then January 19, then February 8, then March 23. I count five times they kicked the can down the road. There is no evidence that anything substantive took place during those temporary extensions.

Here is the real ugly truth. The 2200 pages were churned out by lobbyists and congressional staffers who then packaged it up for a handful of elected members of Congress.

Those few members, from both parties, then push it out to the rest of the members giving little or no time for debate, much less time to read it. This is all under a cloud of imminent disaster if it is not passed by the deadline – which by then is literally hours away.

Georgia Senator David Perdue is on a lonely crusade to change the budget process. Along the way he has built support for his ideas. Congress even established a joint study committee to consider changes in the budget process.

We are now 6 months away from the next budget being due. Maybe I should more correctly say that we are six months away from the next season of kick the can.

Republicans in Congress need to stand up for the agenda on which they have been running and getting elected. Fund the wall, defund Planned Parenthood, and reduce the size of government.

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President Trump’s Twitter Etiquette – I Don’t Care

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The mainstream media has been in an uproar today because of President Trump’s tweet about an MSNBC show host.

I heard poorly rated @Morning_Joe speaks badly of me (don’t watch anymore). Then how come low I.Q. Crazy Mika, along with Psycho Joe, came…..to Mar-a-Lago 3 nights in a row around New Year’s Eve, and insisted on joining me. She was bleeding badly from a face-lift. I said no!

Righteous indignation abounds.  All day long the mainstream media has condemned the “unpresidential” tone of the tweets.  Several Republicans in congress were quick to join in the condemnation.FacebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedintumblrmailFacebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedintumblrmailby feather

Finish Your Chores Before You Play

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The mini drama plays out every day in thousands of households around the world.  “Mom, can I go to the mall, play, see my friends, watch a movie?  You fill in the blank.  Mother responds, “Sure, but first clean up your room.”

Five or ten minutes later, “Mom, can I go now, my friends are waiting?”  This time the Mother’s response is in the form of a question. “Have you cleaned up your room?”  The answer comes back, “I’m almost done.”  The mother patiently replies, “Finish cleaning up your room.”FacebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedintumblrmailFacebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedintumblrmailby feather