THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2010
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Politics & The Nation A17 Senate committee is expected to approve START resolution In a breakthrough Tuesday, BYWALTER PINCUS The Senate Foreign Relations
Committee is expected to ap- prove a resolution of ratification for the new Strategic Arms Re- duction Treaty on Thursday, ac- cording to congressional and ad- ministration sources. The resolution is based on a
draft by Sen. Richard G. Lugar (R-Ind.) and will have the sup- port of Sen. John F. Kerry (Mass.) and otherDemocrats, the sources say. The resolution is themeans by
which the Senate traditionally lays out its concerns and under- standings about treaty language and sets out its interpretations without changing the actual text of the pact, which was signed in April by President Obama and Russian President Dmitry Med- vedev. Lugar’s draft is expected to be
approved at Thursday’s markup session as a substitute for one that Kerry circulated two weeks ago. The committee would still have to deal with amendments, even after adopting the draft. More than 15 amendments, al- most all from GOP members, have been sent to Kerry but committee sources said the hope is that some will be worked into the resolution, possibly garner- ing additional GOP support.
Sen. Bob Corker (Tenn.) became the first Republican on the panel to say he would support Lugar’s resolution. Corker,who has been the focus
of pro-treaty lobbying, said: “If Senator Lugar’s resolution is ad- opted in its entirety on Thursday and is not weakened through amendments, I will vote it out of committee.” Said one congressional source: “With Corker as well as Lugar
aboard, we will be able to claim bipartisan support for the pact.” He spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk about the on- going negotiations. Lugar’s draft attempted to deal
with frequently stated GOP con- cerns about the treaty. Among other issues, lawmakers were seeking long-term commitments to rebuild the aging U.S. nuclear weapons complex and to main- tain the reliability of the nuclear
Mr.President,we’restillwaiting. Wewillgo throughourfederalbudget–
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grandchildren’s tab. Our looming debt crisis threatenstodestroytheAmerican dreamfor future generations.Yetyour administrationcontinues
I Monument
pilingupdeficits of over atrilliondollarsa year.By2012 our national debt will be larger than the entireU.S. economy.Isn’titpast time you identified the programsyou’d cut? In all fairness, both partiesgot us into this mess. “Deficits don’tmatter,” Vice President Dick Cheney scoffed as the Bush ad-
ministration andaRepublican Congressled one of the biggest spending spreesinAmerican history,nearly doubling federal outlays over eightyears. Our bipartisanflight from responsibility is anational disgrace—and it’sfast becoming anational disaster.Vague promises to eliminate“waste, fraud,and abuse” won’tcut it anymore. Both partiesneed to step up with specific and substantial cuts. Asastart, they can
consultDownsizingGovernment.org,where the Cato Institute has begunpostingthe results of our page
bypage,linebyline review of the federalbudget.With theConstitutionas our guide,we’veidentified scores ofagencies to eliminate and programstozero out, puttingAmerica on the path toward fiscalsanity:
Monumental
There’s something for every taste at
The Washington Post Photo Store. Browse through an amazing array of display-worthy photographs for
purchase, selected from The Washington Post archives.
Education Subsidies Education is astate, local, and private matter—and that's where
the Constitution left it. Federal K-12 education programs have cost American taxpayers $1.85 trillion since 1965 without noticeably im- proving outcomes. Eliminating them will save $40 billion annually.
Farm Subsidies Far from “saving the family farm,” federal agricultural subsidies
are environmentally destructive corporate welfare, with more than 70 percent of aid going to the largest 10 percent of agribusinesses. Zero- ing out farm welfare will save $25 billion annually.
Military Overreach The Constitution envisionsaU.S. military that “provide[s] for the
common defence” of the United States, not one that serves as the world's policeman and nation-builder.Bywithdrawing our troops from Iraq andAfghanistan, we could save at least $125 billion next year.Eliminating other unnecessary overseas missions would allow for aleaner force structure and defense budget, saving at least $100 billion ayear without undermining U.S. security.
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Transportation Programs The federal government has no business funding the state and local proj-
ects thatmakeup the bulk of federal transportation spending. Federal in- volvement results in pork-barrel spending, excess bureaucracy,and costly one-size-fits-all regulations. Moving funding for activities such as high- ways to the states and air traffic control to the private sector would spur greater innovation while also saving $85 billionayear.
Housing Subsidies Federal interference in housing markets has done enormous
Gift items too!
damage to our cities and the economy at large.HUDsubsidies have concentrated poverty and fed urban blight, while Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac stoked the financial crisis by putting millions of people into homes they couldn’tafford. Getting the government out of the housing business will save $45 billion annually.
FederalWorker Pay Federal workers enjoy far greater job security than their private-
sector counterparts—and far better total compensation: an average of $120,000 ayear in wages and benefits. Cut federal compensation by 10 percent to save $20 billion annually.
Energy Subsidies The 30-year legacy of federal energy subsidies is replete with corporate
cronyism and failed “investments.” Entrepreneurs with theirowncapital have incentives to develop viable alternative energy sources. Ending federal energy subsidies would save $20 billionayear.
Government-run Health Care Medicare and Medicaid are driving the explosion in federal debt. The
2010 health care law should be repealed, but the same level of Medicare cost savings can be realized by moving toaconsumer-driven health plan through vouchers, which would protect the elderly from government ra- tioning. Medicaid should be converted to afixed block grant to save money and encourage state innovation. Total savings would be more than $1 trillion over the next decade.
DrugWar Since the start of the federalWaronDrugs in 1970, we’ve spent hun-
dreds of billions on afutile crusade that’sdone little to curb drug use and much to impair our civil liberties.Infact,aCato study showed that Portugal’sdecriminalization of drugs actually lowered drug-related problems. Returning drug policy to the states—where it belongs— would save at least $15 billion annually.
Social Security As the BabyBoomgeneration retires, our largest entitlement program
lurches toward crisis. Social Security should be phased out asamanda- tory program and an alternative voluntary system of private accounts, providing for ownership and inheritability,should be offered. Current obligations can be reduced by tying annual benefit growth to price infla- tion rather than wage growth, saving $50 billion annually by 2020.
pagebypage,lineby line–eliminating thoseprogramswedon’tneed.
—PRESIDENT-ELECT BARACK OBAMA,NOVEMBER2008 Withallduerespect
t’sbeen nearly two yearssince you madethat pledge, Mr.President. Since then,you’vesignedinto law an $800 billion “stimulus” packageand amassivenew healthcare entitlement—adding trillions of dollars in unfunded liabilitiestoour
stockpile as the number of weap- ons declines. One Lugar solution is to re-
quire a president to report to Congress if projected future funding falls below needs. Lugar included a reference to a possible withdrawal fromthe treaty if the lack of money threatens U.S. security. Lugar also dealt with GOP
worries that the treaty inhibits U.S. missile defense programs. He makes clear that it doesn’t
and that the Bilateral Consulta- tive Commission, set up to han- dle issues raised by terms of the treaty, cannot deal with missile defense issues. On the continuing issue of
Russia’s overwhelming number of tactical nuclear weapons com- pared with those of the United States, Lugar said the two na- tions should work together to determine the number of weap- ons on both sides and cooperate in securing them from possible
theft. The draft also protects the
United States’ ability to develop Prompt Global Strike, a land- based or submarine-launched system designed to use intercon- tinental ballistic missiles armed with conventional warheads rather than nuclear. Committee passage of the rati-
fication resolution does not guar- antee that the Senatewill take up the treaty this year.
pincusw@washpost.com
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VisitDownsizingGovernment.org for afree download of the Cato Institute’s acclaimed book The Struggle to Limit Government.
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