“Do it my way, or the government will be shut down!”
This is the point that was reached in Washington this week as President Obama issued a government shutdown threat during continued sparring with Congress over the 2011 spending bill.
The battle over the federal budget is always heated, but this year’s debate between Republicans and Democrats is especially violent, given the mandate to cut spending and reduce the deficit that sent many Republican lawmakers to Washington in the last election.
But rather than jump into the fray to debate the merits or shortcomings of the numerous proposals, I wish to make a simple comparison between the current state of the federal budget and the budget of 50 years ago, based on statistics from the website of the U.S. Census Bureau.
In 1961, the federal government operated with a total budget of $94 billion. This year, after determining the corners that can be cut and the discretionary expenditures that can be frozen, the president proposed a budget of $3.7 trillion, an increase of 3,936 percent. Adjusted to inflation, this is still a near-sixfold increase since 1961.
What are the American people getting out of this massive explosion of spending?
Consider the issue of employment. In this economy, jobs are on the forefront of many Americans’ minds. Lawmakers in Washington often speak on the issue of jobs and the importance of the government in creating jobs and sustaining a stable workforce.
In 1961, the unemployment rate was 6.7 percent. Given the dramatic increase in government spending, one would think that our current situation is better. However, today’s unemployment level of 9.2 percent is among the worst in the history of our republic.
Consider also the issue of crime. According to classical liberal theory, the prevention and punishment of crime is the most important function of government. Many publicly funded programs have been implemented over the last 50 years to combat crime and more effectively equip law enforcement personnel. So one would think that such a large increase in the federal budget would have reduced crime.
Unfortunately, the overall crime rate of 1,906 per 100,000 people in 1961 has nearly doubled to 3,465 today.
Finally, consider the issue of education, one of this administration’s chief concerns. With all that has been done to boost the educational system and all the programs that have been implemented to ensure the success of students, it seems that all this extra money would have led to greater achievement in the classroom.
However, the current graduation rate of roughly 70 percent is virtually identical to that of 1961.
One may argue that the current threats and issues that we face are more expensive than those which Americans experienced in 1961.
Yet while we do face important challenges now, the budget of 1961 was enough to support the burgeoning space program, the arms race with Russia and the explosion of infrastructure costs with the early development of the interstate highway system.
It simply stands to reason that the federal government has forgotten how to function under a reasonable budget.
I, for one, say we should cut until it hurts, then cut some more and force our officials to figure out how to be more responsible with taxpayers’ money.
Bob Minchin is a fourth-year electrical engineering major. His column appears on Fridays.
