Getting Off the Merry-Go-Round

I’ve got a question that’s been eating at me:

Why in the world did we wait all this time to cut government spending, when every president since Lyndon Johnson has complained about it?

Seriously. Every single one of them – Democrat or Republican – has taken the mic at some point and warned us about deficits, national debt, bloated bureaucracies, and wasteful programs. They wagged their fingers at Congress, said the system was broken, and then… nothing. The bills got bigger, the programs got fatter, and the taxpayer kept getting squeezed.

Let’s not sugarcoat it: Washington, DC became a cash-burning machine, and we let it happen.

They told us the money was for roads and schools — but a chunk of it ended up funding ridiculous studies, foreign aid to countries that hate us, and pet projects in some senator’s backyard. They said it was for national defense, but billions disappeared into black holes of unaccounted Pentagon contracts. They promised help for the working man, but somehow the money always floated up to consultants, cronies, and the career class living high off the hog.

And what did the average American get? A tax bill. Inflation. And a government that can’t balance a checkbook.

Remember the push to make federal agencies show results before getting more money? The fight to get rid of people double-dipping or drawing paychecks for jobs that barely exist? The effort to shine a light on out-of-control spending in foreign aid and the UN? It wasn’t perfect, but it was a start – a rare break from the usual Washington routine of promising restraint and delivering debt.

But you know what happened next. The establishment pushed back hard. Bureaucrats buried reform in red tape. Congress got cold feet. The media mocked every effort like it was some cruel joke. And before long, we were right back on the spending treadmill.

The truth is, we didn’t cut spending earlier because too many people were feeding off the beast – contractors, lobbyists, lifetime politicians, even some folks in the private sector getting fat government checks. Nobody wanted to kill the golden goose. And the voters? We got distracted, divided, or discouraged – told that any cuts would hurt the “most vulnerable,” while billions went missing behind our backs.

Well, the gravy train is breaking down. Inflation is back. Interest on the debt is exploding. And now the pain isn’t just on paper – it’s at the grocery store, the gas station, and on every tax return.

We’ve had moments – brief glimmers – where someone in power actually tried to do something. President Trump, for all the controversy that follows him, at least talks about it in plain language. He isn’t afraid to call out the “deep state” and the swamp that feeds off your money. His administration pushes hard on cutting regulatory bloat, trying to rein in waste, fraud, and abuse in bloated federal programs. His administration took aim at agencies that had forgotten who they were supposed to serve. And the swamp counterattacked by mobilizing their drone Federal District Court Judges to far exceed their power and throw a monkey-wrench into Trump’s plans. The Supreme Court, headed by that seeming swamp creature John Roberts, hasn’t done their job to rein in the minor courts either.

So I say it’s past time we stop waiting. Stop trusting smooth-talking politicians who say one thing and do another. Start demanding real, painful, honest spending cuts – not in promises, but in actual dollars.

Let’s stop asking “why did we wait this long?”

Let’s start asking, “who’s still standing in the way?”

Because the American people are ready. It’s Washington that’s the problem – and if we don’t fix it soon, they’re going to spend us straight into ruin.

Look at the voting record for your Congressman and Senators — if it doesn’t agree with what they promised when they ran for office, remind them, primary them, and get rid of them. Rinse and repeat. Without an aggressive voting bloc the situation will never get better.

I don’t believe you’ll welcome your entry into the 3^rd world. I know I won’t.

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Jack Sotallaro

Continuity planning, civilian and military