Rand Paul’s Modest Proposal
The Kentucky senator’s proposal would first roll back almost all federal spending to 2008 levels, then initiate reductions at various levels nearly across the board.
Cuts to the Departments of Agriculture and Transportation would create over $42 billion in savings each, while cuts to the Departments of Energy and Housing and Urban Development would save about $50 billion each. Removing education from the federal government’s jurisdiction would create almost $80 billion in savings alone. Add to that my proposed reductions in international aid, the Departments of Health and Human Services, Homeland Security and other federal agencies, and we arrive at over $500 billion. My proposal, not surprisingly, has been greeted skeptically in Washington, where serious spending cuts are a rarity.
