Today, the US Senate approved “The Bipartisan Infrastructure Act,” commonly referred to as the Infrastructure Bill. Early reporting indicates that it will allow the federal government to spend approximately $1 trillion dollars on “infrastructure” projects provided for in the bill. CNN.com put the figure at $1.2 trillion.
https://www.cnn.com/2021/08/10/politics/bipartisan-plan-infrastructure-vote-congress/index.html
NPR.org provided a short list of the spending approved in the bill:
Transportation
·
Roads, bridges, major
projects: $110 billion
·
Passenger and freight
rail: $66 billion
·
Public transit: $39
billion
·
Airports: $25 billion
·
Port infrastructure:
$17 billion
·
Transportation safety
programs: $11 billion
·
Electric vehicles:
$7.5 billion
·
Zero and low-emission
buses and ferries: $7.5 billion
·
Revitalization of
communities: $1 billion
Other infrastructure
·
Broadband: $65 billion
·
Power infrastructure:
$73 billion
·
Clean drinking water:
$55 billion
·
Resilience and Western
water storage: $50 billion
·
Removal of pollution
from water and soil: $21 billion
The package would be financed through a combination of funds, including repurposing unspent emergency relief funds from the COVID-19 pandemic and strengthening tax enforcement for cryptocurrencies. While negotiators said that the cost of the plan would be offset entirely, the Congressional Budget Office predicted it would add about $256 billion to projected deficits over 10 years.
The White House gives us a similar picture of how the bill would be funded:
Offsets
In the
years ahead, the deal will generate significant economic benefits. It is
financed through a combination of redirecting unspent emergency relief funds,
targeted corporate user fees, strengthening tax enforcement when it comes to
crypto currencies, and other bipartisan measures, in addition to the revenue
generated from higher economic growth as a result of the investments.
The Infrastructure Bill is not law yet. Now, it must go back to the House of Representatives. The more radical Democratic members of the House may oppose it because they think it does not provide for enough spending. Unbelievable!
I respectfully submit that the US Government would need a revenue surplus of $120 billion a year for 10 years to pay off the principal only on the $1.2 trillion in spending provided for in this bill.
Can you remember the last time the US Government had a revenue surplus? Was it applied to the national debt, or was it given back to the taxpayers as a tax refund to buy votes? Look it up.
Can a reasonable person look at the plans provided to pay for the Infrastructure Bill with any degree of certainty that they will work? Do you think the government will stop spending and garner a revenue surplus? Look at what they are planning next for your answer. They want to spend $3.5 trillion more! That is the spending they want for the so-called Budget Reconciliation Act.
The Democrats needed 10 Republicans to vote with them on this bill. Sadly, 19 Republicans voted for it. They are:
Roy Blunt, R-Mo.
Richard Burr, R-N.C.
Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va.
Bill Cassidy, R-La.
Susan Collins, R-Maine
Kevin Cramer, R-N.D.
Mike Crapo, R-Idaho
Deb Fischer, R-Neb.
Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.
Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa
John Hoeven, R-N.D.
Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.
Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska
Rob Portman, R-Ohio
James E. Risch, R-Idaho
Mitt Romney, R-Utah
Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska
Thom Tillis, R-N.C.
Roger F. Wicker, R-Miss.
To be fair, these Republicans may have felt that they could limit the spending provided for by “reaching across the aisle.” Perhaps they got greater influence over what the money is to be spent on. Further, I have often asked that our elected officials learn to work together. There may be other reasons for “bipartisanship.” They are beyond the scope of this post. The point is … spending is not an issue that may be negotiated.
CONCLUSION:
It is our position that the government’s excessive spending poses a threat to the very existence of the United States of America as we know it. Our Senators and Representatives just do not seem to get it. We the People must let our elected representatives, Democrat and Republican, know that we are opposed to deficit spending of any kind, and that we will show our displeasure in the 2022 and 2024 elections.
