Article 2: Better Government Spending Structure
In Article 1: Introduction to Better Government I discussed how the government interacts with each citizen and defined some of terms that I will use in discussing government and politics. In this article I will expand on Article 1 by discussing the problems with the current government structure and what needs to be done to improve the structure of government.
It is said that “All politics is Local” but is that true? Local government provides most of the government services that matter to you in everyday life but your Local government is only a small portion of your total government.
Government__________U.S. Federal_ Wisconsin___My Local
_____________________________________ (Glendale, Milwaukee County)
Annual Budget ________$3 Trillion___$27 Billion___ $34.3 Million
Population___________ 300 Million__5.5 Million___ 13,400
Spending Per Person____$10,000____ $4900______$2560
% of Total Government___57%_______28%_______15%
* - All of these numbers are approximate and are available on the Web from many sources.
The reality of our current government structure is that you and I are One in 300 million.
The combined government spending per person is about $17,500 per man, woman, and child, do you think your family is getting its money’s worth? The centralization of power and spending to the Federal and State governments reduces the responsibility and accountability of your elected representatives over spending. The Local representative is the easiest to contact but he or she only controls a small portion of your government. Local solutions to Local problems always work better than one-size-fits-all solutions from Washington, D.C. or your state capitol.
If you visit Washington, D.C. or your State capitol you will quickly realize that a large portion of your tax money never makes it back to your community. Government representatives and their staffs have control over large sums of money that go to lavish offices, large homes, and large expense accounts. The ridiculous opulence of these capital cities shows that many are getting rich off of your tax money but that does not translate into help for you and the needs of your community.
Your representative in the Federal government is your U.S. Congressman but if he or she is junior and/or in the minority party, they control very little and in turn are responsible and accountable for very little. The power in the United States Congress is concentrated in the most senior incumbent members that are in leadership positions or that sit on appropriation committees. If your Congressman is not in a leadership position or if the leadership does not like your Congressman, Federal money will not be appropriated for your district. Please refer to the official Congressional websites of Congressman Sensenbrenner - 5th District of Wisconsin who has been in office for 29 years and Congressman Gwen Moore - 4th District of Wisconsin who has been in office for 3 years to compare legislative initiatives and current committee positions for an perfect example of incumbent benefits.
This structure also gives great preference and privilege to the incumbent representative over the challenger, especially a third party challenger. The day before the election and the day after the election, the district has the same number of citizens with the same needs, but if you elect someone new, he or she will have no power because they have no seniority. Control over spending should be based on the number of citizens represented and spending authority and responsibility should be given to the Congressman of that District whether he or she has been in office for one day or twenty years.
The 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution provides that each United States citizen has the right to Equal Treatment Under Law and the 10th Amendment of the U. S. Constitution provides that each United States citizen has the right to a Localized form of government. This means that each United States citizen should receive an equal share of the Federal budget for Local needs and an equal say in how money is spent for Federal government needs. The citizens in one part of the nation are worth no more or less than citizens in another part of the nation. The needs of citizens in one part of the nation are completely different than the needs of citizens in another part of the nation but the needs of each are of equal importance.
Centralized government has been tried in many nations throughout history and has always failed; only distributed government can work to solve Local problems. The solution to this upside down government is to return control of per capita spending to your representatives in the Federal and State governments. It is time to make the expression “All politics is Local” meaningful once again. In future articles I will continue to develop how better government is possible. In the next newsletter the topic will be Article 3: Better Taxation.
I am very interested in your feedback but I ask that your criticism be constructive and non-personal. Please recommend any issues or topics about politics and government that you would like to be discussed in future articles. Email: TheOneLaw@wi.rr.com
It is said that “All politics is Local” but is that true? Local government provides most of the government services that matter to you in everyday life but your Local government is only a small portion of your total government.
Government__________U.S. Federal_ Wisconsin___My Local
_____________________________________ (Glendale, Milwaukee County)
Annual Budget ________$3 Trillion___$27 Billion___ $34.3 Million
Population___________ 300 Million__5.5 Million___ 13,400
Spending Per Person____$10,000____ $4900______$2560
% of Total Government___57%_______28%_______15%
* - All of these numbers are approximate and are available on the Web from many sources.
The reality of our current government structure is that you and I are One in 300 million.
The combined government spending per person is about $17,500 per man, woman, and child, do you think your family is getting its money’s worth? The centralization of power and spending to the Federal and State governments reduces the responsibility and accountability of your elected representatives over spending. The Local representative is the easiest to contact but he or she only controls a small portion of your government. Local solutions to Local problems always work better than one-size-fits-all solutions from Washington, D.C. or your state capitol.
If you visit Washington, D.C. or your State capitol you will quickly realize that a large portion of your tax money never makes it back to your community. Government representatives and their staffs have control over large sums of money that go to lavish offices, large homes, and large expense accounts. The ridiculous opulence of these capital cities shows that many are getting rich off of your tax money but that does not translate into help for you and the needs of your community.
Your representative in the Federal government is your U.S. Congressman but if he or she is junior and/or in the minority party, they control very little and in turn are responsible and accountable for very little. The power in the United States Congress is concentrated in the most senior incumbent members that are in leadership positions or that sit on appropriation committees. If your Congressman is not in a leadership position or if the leadership does not like your Congressman, Federal money will not be appropriated for your district. Please refer to the official Congressional websites of Congressman Sensenbrenner - 5th District of Wisconsin who has been in office for 29 years and Congressman Gwen Moore - 4th District of Wisconsin who has been in office for 3 years to compare legislative initiatives and current committee positions for an perfect example of incumbent benefits.
This structure also gives great preference and privilege to the incumbent representative over the challenger, especially a third party challenger. The day before the election and the day after the election, the district has the same number of citizens with the same needs, but if you elect someone new, he or she will have no power because they have no seniority. Control over spending should be based on the number of citizens represented and spending authority and responsibility should be given to the Congressman of that District whether he or she has been in office for one day or twenty years.
The 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution provides that each United States citizen has the right to Equal Treatment Under Law and the 10th Amendment of the U. S. Constitution provides that each United States citizen has the right to a Localized form of government. This means that each United States citizen should receive an equal share of the Federal budget for Local needs and an equal say in how money is spent for Federal government needs. The citizens in one part of the nation are worth no more or less than citizens in another part of the nation. The needs of citizens in one part of the nation are completely different than the needs of citizens in another part of the nation but the needs of each are of equal importance.
Centralized government has been tried in many nations throughout history and has always failed; only distributed government can work to solve Local problems. The solution to this upside down government is to return control of per capita spending to your representatives in the Federal and State governments. It is time to make the expression “All politics is Local” meaningful once again. In future articles I will continue to develop how better government is possible. In the next newsletter the topic will be Article 3: Better Taxation.
I am very interested in your feedback but I ask that your criticism be constructive and non-personal. Please recommend any issues or topics about politics and government that you would like to be discussed in future articles. Email: TheOneLaw@wi.rr.com
posted by TheOneLaw | 9:24 AM
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