July 12, 2010

How Congress Spends Your Money

How Congress Spends Your Money

National Debt Awareness Center
August 22, 2010

The National Debt Awareness Center advocates reduction of the National Debt and replacement of federal income tax with a national retail sales tax. NDAC does not support any political party.

The National Debt is $13.3 Trillion!
U. S. Treasury Department report to Congress: U.S debt to rise to $19.6 trillion by 2015.

--- Updated 22 August 2010---

The bar chart is created using data taken directly from the Monthly Treasury Statement and from the historical tables published by the U. S. Treasury Department. Your money is spent through U. S. Senate Appropriations Bills.

The "Debt Total" box is generated from data published by the Office of Management and Budget. Download the 2011 tables. Look at Table 7.1 for a full history of the Debt.

Press Release on Tax Code and the IRS.

DEFICIT VS. DEBT

Suppose you want to spend more money this month than your income. This situation is called a "budget deficit". So you borrow (i.e.; use your credit card). The amount you borrowed (and now owe) is called your debt. You have to pay interest on your debt. If next month you don't have enough money to cover your spending (another deficit), you must borrow some more, and you'll still have to pay the interest on the loan. If you have a deficit every month, you keep borrowing and your debt grows. Soon the interest payment on your loan is bigger than any other item in your budget. Eventually, all you can do is pay the interest payment, and you don't have any money left over for anything else. This situation is known as bankruptcy.

Each year since 1969, Congress has spent more money than its income. The Treasury Department has to borrow money to meet Congress's appropriations. Here is historical deficits chart.

We pay interest* on that huge debt. And now the Treasury is having trouble finding lenders!

Here is an excellent graphic depicting the budget process.

Some info about the "FED". And a video.

Top Ten Budget Time Bombs.

*** Please note that Congress "deemed" the FY2011 budget (as part of the "War Supplement Bill"), meaning that the Presidential Budget Proposal for 2011 was completely thrown out by Congress, so we have no budget for 2011. What we have is essentially a "continuing resolution", meaning that Congress can continue spending without the guidelines of a budget.

As of 11 July 2010, there are indications that President Obama may actually veto this bill. [Deemed means "don't do it, but say we did".] The Congressional Budget Office reports on the Federal Debt and the Risk of a Financial Crisis in this new report.

Your money is spent through Appropriations Bills passed by The U. S. Senate and signed by the President. The Government does not have any money; it takes your money from you and borrows more, then spends that! The bailouts of 2008 and 2009 are purely deficit spending. Expect to see enormous deficits in the forseeable future, leading to much more debt; and interest payments on that debt will become the largest item in the federal budget. On C-SPAN, President Obama boldly told Americans: "We are out of money."

In 1913, when the Federal Reserve was created with the duty of preserving the dollar, one 20-dollar bill could buy one 20-dollar gold piece. Today, fifty 20-dollar bills are needed to buy one 20-dollar gold piece. Under the Fed's custody, the U.S. dollar has lost 98 percent of its value. The dollar is the storehouse of our wealth. Has the Fed faithfully safeguarded that storehouse? Was it not Thomas Jefferson who taught us,
"In questions of power let us hear no more of trust in men, but bind them down from mischief with the chains of the Constitution"?
The Treasury Department has the third largest expense in the federal budget. Only Defense and income redistribution (The Departments of Health and Human Services, HUD, and Agriculture (food stamps)) is higher. As the debt increases, so does the interest payment. Social spending is the largest item in our federal budget. Do you have "Compassion" for lower income earners? Then see Government Enforced Compassion (aka: Socialism).
"If one understands that socialism is not a share-the-wealth programme, but is in reality a method to consolidate and control the wealth, then the seeming paradox of super-rich men promoting socialism becomes no paradox at all. Instead, it becomes logical, even the perfect tool of power-seeking megalomaniacs. Communism or more accurately, socialism, is not a movement of the downtrodden masses, but of the economic elite." - Gary Allen, None Dare Call It Conspiracy, Concord Press, 1971
As of 1 August 2010, the Treasury Department spent so far this year $375 Billion of your money on interest payments to the holders of the National Debt. Compare that to NASA at $19 Billion, Education at $53 Billion, and Department of Transportation at $73 Billion.

And here is a great example of Government efficiency in operating a project. And one more. It's going to be much worse this year!

When you buy something, all the companies involved in producing that something and delivering it, were charged a wide range of taxes, and it's part of the cost of everything you buy. The U. S. Leadership is planning to raise all corporate taxes. The price of everything you buy will go up to cover that tax cost increase. You will be paying those corporate taxes! See more on this. Energy Tax!

The "Economic Stimulus" is shifting us from an "economic crisis" to a debt crisis! Consider this; if businesses could print their own money and give it away to customers so they could buy the products, many folks would be happy for a while; but the businesses would go bankrupt. Well, that's what our government is currently doing, printing and giving away money.

SOCIAL SECURITY

Social Security is not part of the Federal Budget general fund. It is a separate account and has its own source of income. Social Security payments do not go into the general fund; they go in the Social Security trust fund, and should NOT be counted as general revenue. The trust fund is supposed to be used to pay future benefits. But....keep reading....

As of August 2010, there is less being paid into the Social Security Trust Fund than is being paid out to beneficiaries. Social Security is now using its "surplus". Government agencies that borrowed from the trust fund now have to pay the money back. But they've spent it. Where will they get it? More bail outs (taxes) coming. And here is a "must read" about the problem.

Here is a link to the Social Security Administration's FAQ page about the Trust Fund, and their latest Report (August 2010).

Beware the term "Social Security Surplus"; there is no such thing. Social Security is a Ponzi Scheme, there is never more in the Trust Fund than will ever be needed.

Social Security must be fixed. Here is a debate page. And here is more information on the Root Problem with Social Security.

For more information on the federal budget, and for breaking news regarding new taxes and Social Security, go to the National Debt Awareness Center website:
http://www.federalbudget.com/

File:Deficits vs. Debt Increases - 2009.png

2010 United States Federal Budget

Source: Wikipedia

Estimated Receipts

Estimated receipts for fiscal year 2010 are $2.381 trillion, an estimated decrease of 11% from 2009. Total Spending

The President's budget for 2010 totals $3.55 trillion. Percentages in parentheses indicate percentage change compared to 2009. This budget request is broken down by the following expenditures: Deficit

The total deficit for fiscal year 2009 was $1.42 trillion, a $960 billion increase from the 2008 deficit.

The 2009 deficit includes the cost of the Troubled Asset Relief Program ($154 billion in 2009), the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 ($202 billion in 2009, $353 billion in 2010, and $232 billion in 2011 forward), and the 2009 Omnibus spending bill ($410 billion)—and changes due to President Obama's policy proposals.

The 2009 budget deficit would represent 12.3% of gross domestic product, the largest share since World War II.

Let Every Federal Department Justify Its Existence - Constitutionally

The 2011 federal budget for the following departments totals $1.5 trillion. Before cutting Social Security and Medicare, which are funded through dedicated payroll taxes (FICA) [not by the federal income tax], the U.S. government needs to trim the fat in each department and eliminate those functions that need only be performed at the state level (or not performed at all by the government).

By Doug Patton
July 20, 2010

The executive departments of our federal government read like an alphabet soup of bureaucracies entwining and entangling themselves into every area of our lives. The litany of "on-the-books" divisions and subdivisions does not even count the unaccountable czars, advisors and otherwise nebulous bureaucrats whose only business it is to annoy the American people and to demand of us affiliation and information to which they have no constitutional authority.

Imagine if each cabinet secretary had to come before Congress and justify, on constitutional grounds, the existence of his or her department...
  1. USDA -- Department of Agriculture (2011 Budget $25.7 Billion).

    Created under President Abraham Lincoln in 1862 to help farmers who needed good seeds and information to grow their crops. Farmers couldn't find this information any other way? And today's USDA is the only entity that can monitor the quality of our food?

  2. DOC -- Department of Commerce (2011 Budget $9.1 Billion).

    Founded in 1903 as the Department of Commerce and Labor, which later became its own department in 1913. As with so much that sounded good at the time but is later found to be a public policy mutation in need of a justification, this department most likely would not have passed muster with the Founders.

  3. DOD -- Department of Defense (2011 Budget $708.3 Billion).

    One of the few mandated and approved by the Founders. Originally created as the War Department, the name was changed after WWII. Today, we find ourselves with fewer troops under arms than many of our most dangerous enemies, including the Islamic Republic of Iran. This is one of the few departments we should not only continue funding but which should be beefed up.

  4. ED -- Department of Education (2011 Budget $68.6 Billion).

    Originally created as part of the Department of Health, Education and Welfare in the Eisenhower fifties, Jimmy Carter carved out the federal Department of Education to make it a separate cabinet post in the late 1970s as a pay off to the teacher's unions for helping him win his one pathetic term.

    There is no constitutional justification for it, and it should be abolished.

  5. DOE -- Department of Energy (2011 Budget $28.4 Billion).

    Another Carter boondoggle, this agency was created with one ostensible goal in mind: reduce America's dependence on foreign oil.

    Enough said?

  6. HHS -- Department of Health and Human Services (2011 Budget $81.3 Billion).

    Again, this massive entitlement bureaucracy grew out of Ike's HEW and was given its own agency by Carter.

    The largest federal agency, it is now so huge that it would probably require a team of constitutional experts to determine whether any part of it can be justified.

  7. DHS -- Department of Homeland Security (2011 Budget $43.6 Billion).

    Although the Constitution gives Congress the authority to create new agencies, it also puts limits on what government can do.

    Created during the George W. Bush administration after 9/11, the jury is still out on whether this agency is constitutional.

  8. HUD -- Department of Housing and Urban Development (2011 Budget $43.5 Billion).

    Have you seen any of our inner cities lately?

    This department was created in 1965 and should be abolished yesterday.

  9. DOJ -- Department of Justice (2011 Budget $29.2 Billion).

    Although the post of attorney general dates back to George Washington's first cabinet, Congress did not create the Department of Justice until 1970. Since a main responsibility of the executive branch is to enforce the laws, DOJ can stay.

  10. DOL -- Department of Labor (2011 Budget $117.2 Billion).

    An excuse to promote labor unions, especially during Democrat administrations.

    Dismantle it.

  11. DOS -- Department of State (2011 Budget $52 Billion).

    Foreign policy being the constitutional province of the executive branch, the Founders saw DOS as an important part of the Republic. Of course, it would be nice if more of the bureaucratic lifers who work there were patriotic Americans.

  12. DOI -- Department of the Interior (2011 Budget $18 Billion).

    Created in 1849, I'm sure there was justification for it at the time.

    However, over the last century, it has overreached in the area of taking private property.

  13. DOT -- Department of Transportation (2011 Budget $79 Billion).

    Established in 1966 during Lyndon Johnson's Great Society years.

    It would have been hard for the Founders to imagine jet air travel in the 21st Century; still, it is difficult to make the case that federal involvement with America's transportation issues has been a plus. [TSA anyone?]

  14. VA -- Department of Veterans' Affairs (2011 Budget $125 Billion).

    One of the newer agencies, VA was created in 1989.

    If protecting the nation is job one for the federal government, then taking care of the veterans who sacrificed to preserve our freedoms should be a legitimate federal issue.
Finally, there is the Treasury Department (2010 Budget $13.4 Billion). Washington's first treasury secretary, Alexander Hamilton, would frown on eliminating his job. Of course, he never knew Timothy Geithner.

File:Interest - Stacked bar chart 2006 - 2007.png

Senator Rand Paul Introduces $500 Billion in Spending Cuts

"By removing programs that are beyond the constitutional role of the federal government, such as education and housing, we are cutting nearly 40 percent of our projected deficit and removing the big-government bureaucrats who stand in the way of efficiency in our federal government," said Rand Paul.

Rand Paul Press Release
January 25, 2011

In the face of an ever-expanding national debt, newly elected Senator Rand Paul is taking a bold and proactive step in protecting our national security and lowering our deficit. By introducing $500 billion in spending cuts today — to be enacted over one year — Sen. Paul is starting an important conversation with his Senate colleagues about how to fix our nation’s current economic situation.

“I am proud to introduce my own solution to the mounting debt our spendthrift, oversized government has accrued. By rolling back to 2008 levels and eliminating the most wasteful programs, we can still keep 85 percent of our government funding in place,” Sen. Paul said today.

“By removing programs that are beyond the constitutional role of the federal government, such as education and housing, we are cutting nearly 40 percent of our projected deficit and removing the big-government bureaucrats who stand in the way of efficiency in our federal government,” he continued.

Link to Bill

Link to Bill Overview

A Detailed Look at the Rand Paul Spending Bill

Washington Examiner
January 26, 2011

Want to save $500 billion this year? Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., has a way to do it.

Is it realistic? Maybe not every part of it, but have a look below and judge for yourself. I don't think his total removal of rental subsidies is unreasonable -- the fact that Section 8 is a total failure doesn't justify dumping its beneficiaries into oblivion. But there's also no reason every agency has to see its budget increase every year, and a lot of these cuts really do make sense. Most of them simply represent a return to 2008 levels of spending -- remember that a 30 percent cut is less than it seems when an agency's budget been increasing by 40 percent over the last few years.

Why fund NASA at traditional levels if President Obama has scaled back its mission? Why not let Indian tribes manage their own trust funds, especially considering the federal mismanagement? Why not realign our military bases abroad, sell unused federal buildings (something Obama has already begun doing), transfer some national parks to the states, and end the wasteful corporate subsidies that come out of the Departments of Energy and Commerce?

Of course, even this bill would only cut this year's record deficit by one-third. But if you can bring discretionary spending down a notch with something like it, then cut Defense further as the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq wind down, you've gotten to the point where you can look Americans in the eye and tell them you've done everything you can, and it's time to do something about Social Security and Medicare to save the nation from long-term financial collapse.

I've copied down the short version of what gets cut from each agency or department, and the percentage cut. Paul offers a more complete explanation of each item here.

LEGISLATIVE BRANCH...............................$1,283,000,000 (23%)
Notes: The Government Printing Office is abolished.

JUDICIAL BRANCH..................................$2,434,000,000 (32%)

AGRICULTURE.....................................$42,542,000,000 (30%)
The Agriculture Research Service, National Institute of Food and Agriculture, Resources Conservation Service, and Foreign Agricultural Service are abolished. The Forest Service gets a $1.2 billion haircut.

COMMERCE.........................................$5,322,000,000 (54%)
National Oceanic And Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is cut by $857,000,000.

DEFENSE.........................................$47,500,000,000 (6.5%)

EDUCATION.......................................$78,000,000,000 (83%)
Only the Pell grant program survives.

ENERGY..........................................$44,200,000,000 (100%)
The Defense Department takes over all of Energy's remaining functions (nuclear waste, for example) and about $18 billion of its budget.

HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES.......................$26,510,000,000 (26%)
Notes: FDA is cut by $230,000,000; Indian Health Service is cut by $650 million; CDC is cut by $1.17 billion; NIH by $5.8 billion.

HOMELAND SECURITY...............................$23,765,000,000 (43%)
Notes: Coast Guard is shifted to Defense. TSA's funds are cut by $900 million.

HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT...................$53,100,000,000 (100%)
Notes: Completely eliminated. Veterans' housing programs are transferred to the VA.

INTERIOR........................................$10,934,000,000 (78%)
Bureau of Reclamation and Bureau of Indian Affairs are abolished.

JUSTICE..........................................$9,057,000,000 (28%)
Note: Office of Justice Programs is abolished.

LABOR............................................$2,803,000,000 (2%)
OSHA, MSHA, and the The Employment and Training Administration are spared all cuts (no cuts to unemployment benefits).

STATE...........................................$20,321,000,000 (71%)
Note: Massive foreign aid cuts. All international commissions and organizations are defunded.

TRANSPORTATION..................................$42,810,000,000 (49%)
Notes: Amtrak is completely de-funded.

VETERANS’ AFFAIRS................................No cuts

CORPS OF ENGINEERS..............................$1,854,000,000 (27%)

EPA.............................................$3,238,000,000 (29%)

GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION.................$1,936,000,000 (85%)

INTERNATIONAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS..............$24,300,000,000 (100%)

NASA............................................$4,500,000,000 (25%)

NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION.....................$4,723,000,000 (62%)

OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT..................$9,070,000,000

SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION..................No cuts
Social Security is self-funded via the FICA payroll tax.



FCC.............................................$2,150,000,000 (22%)

ABOLISH.........................................$2,050,000,000 (100%)
(1) Affordable Housing Program.
(2) Commission on Fine Arts.
(3) Consumer Product Safety Commission.
(4) Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
(5) National Endowment for the Arts.
(6) National Endowment for the Humanities.
(7) State Justice Institute.

MISC
Collect delinquent taxes from Federal Employees...$3,000,000,000
Freeze Federal Government employee pay............$2,000,000,000
Reduce Federal Government travel..................$7,500,000,000
Repeal Davis-Bacon............................... $6,000,000,000
Prohibit union project labor agreements...........$2,000,000,000
TARP repeal.......................................$4,481,000,000
Sell Federal Buildings...........................$19,000,000,000
Reduce Federal vehicle budget.......................$600,000,000

Rand Paul's Plan to Slash Federal Spending Gets Criticism, Praise

Wire Reports
January 27, 2011

Critics lashed out Wednesday at a proposal by U.S. Sen. Rand Paul to slash numerous federal programs, including food stamps, to save $500 billion in a single year. But Paul's supporters praised him for sticking to his campaign promise to attempt to reduce the size of the federal government.
"Some of the elements of the plan, which would remove the safety net that poor and vulnerable people need, we would find morally objectionable," said the Rev. Patrick Delahanty, executive director of the Catholic Conference of Kentucky.
But Mica Sims, a Lexington Tea Party organizer, said she was "very proud" of Paul.
"He's doing exactly what he said in last year's campaign that he would do," she said.
Paul introduced a 12-page bill in the Senate on Tuesday that would slash $42 billion from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's food stamp program — a 30 percent reduction from the current funding level.

It would eliminate the Departments of Energy and Housing and Urban Development and most of the Department of Education. It also would eliminate international aid and numerous agricultural programs, and subsidies to Amtrak, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and the U.S. Government Printing Office.

Paul said the proposal, which also would cut $16 billion for the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, would roll back federal spending to 2008 levels and eliminate what he considers the most wasteful programs.

The Kentucky Republican said he hopes his proposal, which he called the Cut Federal Spending Act of 2011, will spark a dialogue within the Senate about how to repair the nation's economy.
"I am proud to introduce my own solution to the mounting debt our spendthrift, oversized government has accrued," Paul said in a statement. "By rolling back to 2008 levels and eliminating the most wasteful programs, we can still keep 85 percent of our government funding in place."
On Fox News Wednesday, Paul said he promised the Tea Party to keep his bills "simple and readable." He said his reduction plan is "five times larger than anybody else's proposal but still attacks only one-third of the federal deficit."

Paul, a Bowling Green eye surgeon elected in November with support from Tea Party activists, centered his campaign largely on fiscal issues. He promised to press for a constitutional amendment that would require the federal budget to be balanced each year. He also said he would present a proposal early in his term to balance the budget in one to five years.
"By removing programs that are beyond the constitutional role of the federal government, such as education and housing, we are cutting nearly 40 percent of our projected deficit and removing the big-government bureaucrats who stand in the way of efficiency in our federal government," he said.
But Matt Erwin, spokesman for the Kentucky Democratic Party, said Paul's proposal goes too far.
"Rand Paul is fulfilling his campaign promise to gut funding for our children's education and the services which Kentuckians rely on," Erwin said. "Nothing about a politician introducing legislation that would harm his constituents is commendable."
Sharron Oxendine, president of the Kentucky Education Association, said Paul's bill "appears to me that he doesn't have much interest in education and the children of Kentucky."

U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said he disagreed with Paul's proposal to do away with most of the Department of Education.
"I'd love to have that conversation with the senator," Duncan said during a news conference.
Duncan said the department's role should not be to pay for local public schools but to "spur innovation."

President Barack Obama announced in his State of the Union address on Tuesday the Department of Education would provide incentives to hire 100,000 teachers in math, science and technology fields. Those incentives will come in the form of troops-to-teachers programs, Pell grants and debt forgiveness for professionals to switch careers to become teachers, especially in rural areas, Duncan said.

Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell said Paul's spending reduction plan underscores the serious of the nation's mounting debt.
"I'm glad Senator Paul and many of our colleagues are taking the opportunity to put forward their ideas on how best we can help provide a sustainable future for our children and grandchildren," McConnell said.

"There is widespread interest in the Republican conference for spending cuts that pay more than lip service to reducing the debt, and I look forward to working with Senator Paul and anyone else who is interested in tackling this crisis head-on."
On Wednesday, Paul introduced legislation seeking a full audit of the Federal Reserve, the central banking system of the United States. He said it would provide answers to the American people about how their money is being spent in Washington.



Senator Rand Paul Favors Cutting U.S. Aid to Israel

The Associated Press
January 28, 2011

Tea party-backed Republican Sen. Rand Paul favors cutting U.S. aid to Israel as part of a deficit-driven effort to slash government spending by $500 billion this year, drawing criticism from Democrats and Republicans who argue the U.S. must be unwavering in its support for the longtime Mideast ally.

The freshman Kentucky lawmaker unveiled his budget proposal this week that would make significant cuts in education, housing and energy while reducing money for wars in Afghanistan and Iraq by $16 billion. Paul's plan also would cut some $20 billion in overseas aid, and he said he wants to eliminate the $3 billion the United States provides to Israel annually in foreign military assistance.
"The overwhelming majority of Americans agree with Senator Paul — our current fiscal crisis makes it impossible to continue the spending policies of the past," Paul spokesman Gary Howard said in a statement responding to the criticism. "We simply cannot afford to give money away, even to our allies, with so much debt mounting on a daily basis."
The latest economic forecast puts the deficit at a record $1.5 trillion.

Paul explained his position in an interview with CNN on Wednesday, saying he respects Israel as a Democratic nation but feared funding an arms race in the Mideast. His proposal drew a swift response from Republicans and Democrats.
"We share Senator Paul's commitment to restraining the growth of federal spending, but we reject his misguided proposal to end U.S. assistance to our ally Israel," said Matthew Brooks, executive director for the Republican Jewish Coalition, in a statement Thursday. The organization counts several former senior Bush administration officials on its board of directors.
Rep. Nita Lowey of the New York, the top Democrat on the House Appropriations subcommittee that oversees foreign aid, said the United States cannot renege on its commitment to the only Democratic nation in a dangerous region.
"Using our budget deficit as a reason to abandon Israel is inexcusable," Lowey said in a statement. "It is unclear to me whether Rand Paul speaks for the tea party, the Republican Party or simply himself. I call on all those who value the U.S.-Israel relationship to make it clear that our nation will not abandon our ally Israel."
The United States has stood staunchly with Israel for decades, through various governments in Washington and Jerusalem. The United States and Israel signed a memorandum of understanding several years ago to ensure Israel's military edge in the region. Under the agreement, Israel received $2.8 billion in U.S. dollars in the last fiscal year and is slated to get $3 billion in the current year.

The agreement calls for $3.1 billion in U.S. funds to Israel over a five-year period beginning with the next budget.

Last November, Vice President Joe Biden met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and told the Jewish Federation of North America that the Obama administration "represents an unbroken chain in American leaders who have understood this critical strategic relationship.".

The steadfast support for Israel is widespread in Congress and Paul's proposal is certain to face strong opposition. In a fresh example of that support, six senior members of the House sent a letter to President Barack Obama imploring him to promise a veto of a pending U.N. resolution that condemns Israel and urging him to pressure Palestinian leaders to negotiate directly with Israel.

Signing the letter were House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Va.; House Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer, D-Md.; Foreign Affairs Chairwoman Ilena Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla.; the panel's top Democrat, Rep. Howard Berman of California, and the heads of the committee's subcommittee on the Middle East, Reps. Steve Chabot, R-Ohio and Gary Ackerman, D-N.Y.

Rand Paul: End Aid to Israel

Reason Magazine
January 27, 2011

Pressed on CNN's Situation Room about details on his budget cut plans, Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) says end all foreign aid--and when pressed further says that includes to Israel.

Paul touches on the lack of wisdom of funding both sides of an arms race in the Middle East, then hat-tips to Israel's role as a fountain of peace and democracy in the Middle East, but concludes that, especially when we're borrowing all the money from China, all foreign aid has to go.

It's an interesting dance, avoiding seeming critical of Israel (which he refused to do), yet still doing the one thing that people who get upset at those who are critical of Israel want the least out of a U.S. politician: cutting off U.S. support.

In the video above, the foreign aid part starts at 4:25; the Israel part specifically starts at 5:29.

Obama Appointed Deeply-entrenched Political Elites to His Cabinet and to Head the Departments of the U.S. Government

This list was compiled by Patrick Wood, The August Review, March 9, 2009.

For details on their affiliations with the American Security Project, Aspen Institute/Aspen Study Group, Atlantic Council of the United States, Bilderberg Group, Bretton Woods Committee, Brookings Institute, Center for Strategic and International Studies, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Council on Foreign Relations, International Institute for Strategic Studies, Trilateral Commission, etc., click here.

- Vice President: Joe Biden
- Department of State: Hilary R. Clinton
- Deputy Secretary of State: James Steinberg
- Assistant Secretary of State, Asia and Pacific: Kurt M. Campbell
- State Department, Special Envoy: Richard Haass
- State Department, Special Envoy: Dennis Ross
- State Department, Special Envoy: Richard Holbrooke
- State Department, Special Envoy: George J. Mitchell
- Department of the Treasury: Timothy F. Geithner
- Department of Defense: Robert M. Gates
- Department of Energy: Steven Chu
- Department of the Interior: Ken Salazar
- Department of Education: Arne Duncan
- Department of Health and Human Services: Tom Daschle (see the note for this listing)
- Department of Agriculture: Tom Vilsack
- Department of Transportation: Ray LaHood
- Department of Labor: Hilda Solis
- Department of Housing and Urban Development: Shaun Donovan
- Department of Veterans Affairs: Eric K. Shinseki
- Department of Commerce: Judd Gregg
- Department of Homeland Security: Janet Napolitano
- Attorney General: Eric Holder
- National Security Advisory: General James L. Jones
- Deputy National Security Advisor: Tom Donilon
- Director of National Intelligence: Dennis Blair
- Director of the Central Intelligence Agency: Leon Panetta
- White House Chief of Staff: Rahm Emanuel
- White House Military Office: Louis Caldera
- Ambassador to the Untied Nations: Susan Rice
- Domestic Policy Council: Melody Barnes
- US Trade Representative: Ron Kirk
- National Economic Council: Lawrence Summers
- Council of Economic Advisors: Christina Romer
- Economic Recovery Committee: Paul Volker
- Office of Management and Budget: Peter Orszag
- Securities and Exchange Commission: Mary Schapiro
- Council on Environmental Quality: Nancy Sutley
- Environmental Protection Agency: Lisa P. Jackson
- Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate Change: Carol Browner
- Office of Faith Based and Neighborhood Partnership: Joshua DuBois

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