12 Ways to Bail Out the States

Written on February 20th, 2011

according to statistics from the New York Times Budget Puzzle

   44 states and the District of Columbia need $125 billion. If we implemented any single one of the following options, we could bail them out.

   1. Pull out of Afghanistan immediately

   2. Pull out of Iraq immediately, reduce the size of the military, and eliminate other defense spending such as weapons programs, nuclear, space, Navy, Air Force, waste, fraud, abuse, etc.

   3. Cut most Energy Department funding and all Department of Education funding besides Pell grants

   4. Cut all foreign aid, sell federal buildings, eliminate earmarks, NASA, FCC, Office of Personnel Management, National Science Foundation, EPA, CPB, and National Endowment for the Arts, and reduce government travel budget, etc.

   5. Abolish the Department of Housing and Urban Development, make $27 billion in cuts to the Department of Health and Human Services, make $24 billion in cuts to the Department of Homeland Security, cut all discretionary Social Security spending, reduce Social Security benefits for high-income individuals, and make small cuts to the judicial branch

   6. Abolish four Department of Agriculture services, eliminate farm subsidies, cut $11 billion from the Department of the Interior, make drastic cuts to federal public-sector employment and pay, make small cuts to the Department of Labor, and find $20 billion in additional cuts

   7. Reduce spending on items 1 through 6 by 16.7% each

   8. De-fund Amtrak and make other cuts to the Department of Transportation, and impose a millionaire’s tax and a 5% national sales tax

   9. Eliminate many corporate and individual tax loopholes, make small cuts to the Departments of Justice and Commerce, and eliminate the Government Printing Office

   10. Jack up the estate tax and investment taxes to Clinton-era levels and raise payroll taxes on some incomes above $106,000 (although I wouldn't propose we do this)

   11. Let the Bush tax cuts expire for everyone (although I wouldn't propose we do this)

   12. Make 3.25% across-the-board cuts to all federal spending items

For more entries on budgets, finance, debt, and the bailouts, please visit:

http://www.aquarianagrarian.blogspot.com/2013/12/proletarian-radical-agorist-economics.html

http://www.aquarianagrarian.blogspot.com/2014/01/proposed-us-federal-government-budget.html

http://www.aquarianagrarian.blogspot.com/2014/04/spencer-stuart-recruited-executives-for.html

http://www.aquarianagrarian.blogspot.com/2014/04/viewing-legislation-through-economic.html

http://www.aquarianagrarian.blogspot.com/2014/04/2011-new-york-times-budget-puzzle.html

http://www.aquarianagrarian.blogspot.com/2014/04/economic-policy-for-2012-us-house.html

http://www.aquarianagrarian.blogspot.com/2014/05/response-to-campaign-for-liberty.html

http://www.aquarianagrarian.blogspot.com/2014/05/federal-spending.html

http://www.aquarianagrarian.blogspot.com/2014/05/debt-and-federal-budget.html

For more entries on states' rights, the Tenth Amendment, and other states' issues, please visit:

http://www.aquarianagrarian.blogspot.com/2014/02/secession-petition-signatures-as-of.html

http://www.aquarianagrarian.blogspot.com/2014/05/the-tenth-amendment.html