Issue Guide: America's Future: What Should Our Budget Priorities Be?

National Issues Forums: Issue Books:

"As we gradually shed the effects of the recession, we need to make decisions about our nation's spending. What should our priorities be as we face those decisions?"

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Monday, April 15, 2013 Global Day of Action Against Military Spending

April 15: Third Annual Global Day of Action Against Military Spending

• On 15 April 2013, people all over the world will again come together for the third Global Day of Action on Military Spending. We urge you to join us.
• It is a traditional time for awareness-raising actions on how much of the US budget is spent on its defense and supporting war overseas while it is cutting back on taxpayers’ social services. And given the ongoing budget crisis, there could be a lot of potential media coverage.

Occupy Washington, DC

Flashback to 2008: The Pentagon's budget

Indefensible spending - latimes.com:

What should be the most important issue in this election is one that is rarely, if ever, addressed: Why is U.S. military spending at the highest point, in inflation-adjusted dollars, than at any time since the end of World War II? Why, without a sophisticated military opponent in sight, is the United States spending trillions of dollars on the development of high-tech weapons systems that lost their purpose with the collapse of the Soviet Union two decades ago?

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Flashback to 2008: America's war economy

America's Outrageous War Economy!:

Americans zone out playing video war games. We nod at 90-second news clips of Afghan war casualties and collateral damage in Georgia. We laugh at Jon Stewart's dark comedic news and Ben Stiller's new war spoof "Tropic Thunder" ... all the while silently, by default, we enable our rulers as they aggressively expand America's War Economy, a relentless machine that needs a steady diet of war after war. Americans surrender 54% of their tax dollars to a war machine, which consumes 47% of the world's total military budgets. 

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The case for Green Party presidential nominee Jill Stein

I know she stands a small chance to get elected, but I'm more than tired of people professedly voting for the lesser of two evils.  Our nation is building a terrible debt for our children and grandchildren, and I don't have any hope for change from the two monoliths that are the Demos and Repubs.

She is forwarding a "Green New Deal" that calls for gov support for new jobs that better the environment (and thus our economy.)  After all, good conservation practices and producing new environmentally friendly products are good for the bottom line-- for companies and the gov.

She would also carry a great mandate to take a lot of money out of today's politics, money that has an undue inside influence over the offices of our own representatives.

Above all, she will fight climate change by improving the environment.  The oceans are rising and will continue to unless we do our part in the world community of lowering the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere; most of the rest of the world is waiting on the US to actually do something about it-- we are one of the world's most wasteful countries.

A vote for Jill Stein is a vote for the positive values of a much greener economy for ours, and the world's, sake.  Thanks for listening.  David Weller, Activism News

For more information, please visit JillStein.org.

Tuesday, April 17, 2012 (Tax Day) is National Day of Action

From: Tax Wealth Not Work-- National Day of Action Tuesday, April 17th | AFL-CIO

• On Tuesday, April 17th Tax Day, across the nation we’ll raise our voices to demand that the 1% pay their fair share and that we overhaul the tax code to reflect the needs and values of the majority of Americans.

• Register your event here.

Take Action: Support bill that closes millionaires' and billionaires' tax loopholes

From: Call Your Senators. Ask Them to Support the Paying a Fair Share Act | OMB Watch

• On April 16 — the day before Tax Day — the U.S. Senate will hold a cloture vote on the Paying a Fair Share Act of 2012 (S. 2230), sponsored by Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI). 
• The bill would close an array of tax loopholes that allow millionaires and billionaires to pay lower taxes than middle-class families.
• The legislation would require all households with incomes above $1 million to pay at least 30 percent of their total income in taxes — regardless of the source of that income or the deductions that they are allowed under the current tax code.
• Please call or e-mail your senators and ask them to support this first step toward creating a tax system that asks each American to pay his or her fair share. You can look up your senators' contact information on the Senate's website.

Take Action: No Budget, No Pay

From Ask Your Members of Congress to Co-sponsor No Budget, No Pay | No Labels

• It’s a simple concept: if members of Congress can’t make budgetary and spending decisions on time, they should not be paid.
• Washington is starting to take note. On March 14, No Budget, No Pay had a hearing in the Senate. Already, the legislation has 52 congressional co-sponsors.
• That’s a solid start for the bill -- but we need even more support to make this great idea a great law.  That’s why we need you to ask your lawmakers if they are standing with the 88 percent of Americans who support No Budget, No Pay.
• Click here to ask right now.

For automatic updates on the No Budget, No Pay legislation:

Read up on the budget deal. Demand transparency. Weigh in. Democracy demands it.

The purpose of Activism News is to offer tools to assist citizens in engaging in the democratic process; in addition, we provide the latest news applicable to the average political activist. This means culling the latest from the source-- over 150 different NGO blogs-- and presenting that information with due attribution. An entire post from OMB Watch today deserves our immediate attention-- it reminds us of our civic duty during this time of critical debt deliberations to be both aware of Washington's happenings and to engage with fellow Americans and our federally elected officials. Thanks to OMB Watch for this very timely public participation request.

The Biggest Loser in the Debt Ceiling Deal: American Democracy
August 9, 2011

Like everyone else in the country, at OMB Watch, we are trying to find a sliver of hope in the outcome of the debt ceiling debacle. We are relieved that default was avoided, since the immediate repercussions could have been worse than the volatility we've seen in recent days. But the debt deal effectively steals the instruments government has to try to heal our wounded economy. Financial analysts across the globe have noticed, and anxieties about the effects of sputtering U.S. consumer demand are deepening.

As critical as the economic impacts of the deal are, the debt ceiling game of chicken was a political earthquake, and its aftershocks could keep us reeling indefinitely. America’s style of democracy, admired (or sometimes criticized) for its stability, is looking shaky.

Effective democracy requires an informed, engaged citizenry; honest debate; and elected representatives working in the public interest. These elements were not in evidence last week.

The American people are angry that big banks were rescued but not local businesses or homeowners. Americans told Congress they wanted jobs, but the only proposals under discussion were cuts to Medicare and Social Security. Our debt piled up because we gave huge tax cuts to the wealthy, went to war on borrowed money, and then revenues tanked when the housing bubble burst. The stimulus created or saved up to three and a half million jobs, but it wasn’t big enough to fill the 8 million-job hole created by Wall Street’s meltdown. Corporate taxes are at an all-time low; businesses have trillions to invest but won’t until demand returns.

A majority of Americans of both parties believe revenues should be part of the budget deal. The public wants a debate on what the federal government can do to create jobs and right the economy. Instead of addressing these crucial issues, a determined minority is doing its best to undermine the government’s ability to provide assistance to vulnerable Americans in this challenging economy and during future crises.

Anti-government ideologues have taken away a frightening lesson: that radical truculence by a small faction is a winning strategy. When elected officials fail to respond to the public’s concerns, faith in government plummets. When unemployment benefits are held hostage to tax cuts for the rich, public cynicism about who our democratic institutions serve grows. When elected officials who vote their conscience or the values of their constituents are threatened with primary challenges financed by outside special interests, the principle of representative democracy erodes. And when public trust in government bleeds out, anti-government forces gain strength.

Those of us who believe in democracy and know that public structures play a crucial role in life have to push back on the cynicism. We need more participation, more citizens scrutinizing the process. What’s at stake is too important to give in to cynicism and disillusionment. Twelve people cannot possibly represent the unique needs and diverse interests of the American populace. The potential for special interest pressure on the Committee of Twelve will be enormous. The American people need to be vigilant; they need to make themselves heard.

Even if our party structures and congressional rules are stuck in the 19th century, our technology is not. We have digital video and cell phones. We have the Internet. We have the ability to live-stream every hearing of the Committee of Twelve to libraries, college campuses, and school rooms across the country. Reports and documents can be posted online.

Every meeting a committee member has with a lobbyist or powerful interest group should be posted online. Financial disclosure statements of the Committee of Twelve and their staff should be posted online. Campaign contributions should be publicly posted within 24 hours of receipt. The committee’s final report should be posted 72 hours before it is voted on. A running public comment should start now. Let’s have a giant civics lesson in public budgets.

Government of the people requires an electoral system that produces responsible, rational representatives who care more about people than ideological purity. Government by the people in the modern world mandates modern communication tools that invite people into decision making instead of shutting them out. Government for the people only happens when citizens fiercely defend their right to know and to participate. So read up on the budget deal. Demand transparency. Weigh in.

Democracy demands it.

An example of political courage: compromise from leadership during a fiscal crisis

John F Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum
Award Announcement:  Bi-Partisan Effort to Close California Budget Gap Recognized at 2010 JFK Profile in Courage Awards  - Four Members of California’s Legislative Leadership Honored -
May 24, 2010

• The four members of California’s legislative leadership who in 2009 led a bi-partisan effort to close the state’s devastating budget deficit were presented the prestigious John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award™ today by Caroline Kennedy at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library.
• Karen Bass, California State Assembly Member, and former Democratic Speaker of the Assembly; David Cogdill, California State Senator and former Senate Republican Leader; Darrell Steinberg, California State Senator and Democratic Senate President pro Tem; and Michael Villines, California State Assembly Member and former Assembly Republican Leader, were recognized for the political courage each demonstrated in standing up to the extraordinary constituent and party pressure they faced while working with Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to address California’s severe financial crisis.
• 2008 was a year of brutal fiscal crisis for the state of California. Battered by an imploding economy and wary of implementing major tax increases or massive cuts to vital programs, the California legislature spent the summer of 2008 in a deadlock over how to close a projected $15 billion budget deficit. But even as the legislature struggled to address the crisis and pass a budget by the two-thirds supermajority required by California law, the state’s financial health deteriorated. As the U.S. economy cratered, the revenue assumptions that formed the basis of the budget negotiations fell apart. By January 2009, California’s projected deficit had grown to $40 billion. In February 2009, the rating agency Standard & Poor’s downgraded California’s bond rating to A, the lowest of any state in the nation.
• California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger called the legislature into special session to close the gap, and over the next few weeks, state lawmakers struggled to come to terms with the fiscal emergency. The February 2009 special legislative session was one of the most contentious in the state’s history. After weeks of negotiations, seeing no alternatives, Dave Cogdill, Mike Villines, Karen Bass and Darrell Steinberg – two Republicans and two Democrats – set aside party loyalties and ideological differences and agreed to a deal intended to pull California back from the brink of financial ruin. The compromise included tax increases, which set off an intense backlash among conservative constituents and activists, and deep cuts to vital programs, which brought bitter criticism from labor unions, environmental groups, state employees and social service providers.

This is an extraordinary story of difficult compromise, by elected public officials, in the dire conditions of a state's debt crisis.  There are lessons to be learned for today's  congressional leadership concerning our national debt.

Also at the JFK Library site are the acceptance speeches from the four legislators who received this prestigious award.

The national debt: what you can do right now

AmericaSpeaks: National Town Meeting results Final report

• 3,500 Americans gathered together at 57 sites across the country to deliberate about our nation’s fiscal future on Saturday, June 26, 2010.

AmericaSpeaks: The American People Want Leaders in Washington to Find Common Ground on Our National Debt

• The report issued by the President’s National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform challenges our political system and the American people to confront the difficult trade-offs required to address our nation’s long-term deficits. The public is willing to have a hard conversation about taxes and spending and Americans want Congress to pair this conversation with action.

American Democracy Project: Get on the (Budget) Ball with National Debt!

• Thought about the National Debt lately?  Or your own credit scores?  It’s all so very overwhelming!  But – if you want to have a good time with managing debt and savings….check out the new fiscal sport called Budgetball!  Budgetball is an innovative sport that combines fiscal strategy and physical activity. Players enjoy a fast-paced physical and mental exercise that encourages thoughtfulness about managing your debt and savings.

Miller-McCune: New Role-Playing Game: You vs. the National Debt

• The bipartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget has invited people to  an online “exercise in hard choices,” a game about as fun as filing your taxes but probably more satisfying for anyone who finishes it.

Public Agenda: The National Debt Clock

• The National Debt Clock widget updates constantly to show the current amount owed by Uncle Sam and his taxpayers (that's you, me, and if nothing is done, our children and grandchildren). To put the National Debt Clock widget on your own web site, copy and paste the following code into the body of the HTML code of the page where you'd like the widget to appear:

Public Agenda: National Debt Repayment Foundation

• Organization that is dedicated to increasing public awareness of and finding workable solutions to problems it believes are created by the national debt.  1730 K St., NW, Suite 904, Washington, DC 20006; phone: (202) 223-1000