What government programs would you cut or eliminate?

[Burgold]

Everyone hates paying taxes, but most people want to enjoy the benefits of them. If you could take an axe or a scalpel to the Federal budget what would you remove. What's unnecessary that really bugs you?

I'll start with one that I disagree with myself about. The National Endowment for the Arts could be removed. It's a really small percentage of the government and I truly believe that the arts serve an important part of our educational/cultural identitiy and without the arts we would stagnate and suffocate. Nontheless, I'd be willing to get rid of the NEA and fold the useful parts into another institution or even transfer all its responsibilities to state and private hands. Reason being, the community centers, outreach, and talent is better seen and understood from close in. More, the NEA in my mind should not support those who've "made it," but be a cultivating force for new ideas and new artists (then again, I do think that funding things like the Smithsonian, Brooklyn Museum of Art, etc. are hugely important, but I'm nto certain the NEA does that although they do support tours that make it to those venues).

So, though it would pain me I could see the NEA getting the axe.

[Zguy28]

Farm subsidies.

While true that many farmers need gov't help, many more do not and yet still recieve it. Free money! Yay!

God forbid some of them would have a conscience.

[Corcaigh]

Fix Farm Aid.

Millionaire landowners are paid legacy subsidies for NOT growing crops.

In 2005 when farmers made record profits, the Feds handed out $25 billion in aid.

Part of that included $1.3Billion to people who aren't farmers, but they own land that used to be farmed.

[SnyderShrugged]

Dept of education, FEMA, NEA, EPA, IRS, FCC, etc etc

[GibbsFactor]

Dept of education, FEMA, NEA, EPA, IRS, FCC, etc etc

What he said.

[Darth Tater]

Cut or eliminate? Name one! Cut many of them and eliminate the rest.

[JohnLockesGhost]

We could probably make do with about half the military spending.

[PleaseBlitz]

http://www.extremeskins.com/showthre...nment+programs

Merge.

[DirtyBird]

Dept of Education, IRS, ATF, DEA, EPA and close ALL overseas military bases or give the host country the option of completely funding them. Just to start.

[Zguy28]

http://www.extremeskins.com/showthre...nment+programs

Merge.

Pleaseblitz proposes cutting this thread to save bandwidth.

[BigMike619]

Pleaseblitz proposes cutting this thread to save bandwidth.

you wanna cut PB?

[Burgold]

I don't know about the EPA or the DEA. I'd like to see them properly funded first before we decide that they aren't necessary. The EPA, especially under Bush, has been so woefully undermanned and understaffed that they can't possibly do their job as a watchdog... pretty much with the DEA

[Zguy28]

you wanna cut PB?

No way. I love Peanut Butter. This ain't no sissy state like Connecticut.

[Corcaigh]

We could probably make do with about half the military spending.

A question for the group ... without searching, how many F-15s, F-16s and F-22s does the Air Force have?

And how many do you think we need to protect our interests?

And how many F-35s is the Air Force buying at a cost of $104million each?

[techboy]

In theory, everything not specifically authorized by the Constitution, so pretty much anything that's not interstate highways or the military.

In practice, that's pretty drastic, so I'd probably settle for one or two programs at a time.

Perhaps we could start by eliminating the Department of Education.