Many presidents taking office have promised to bring government spending under control by cutting the size of government and eliminating waste, those being the Reagan, Clinton and Obama administrations of recent memory.

Guess what though? All the big talk never went beyond the talk before special interests across the political spectrum started whining and moaning.

This noise is usually heard first on the local level. Sometimes it begins with phony groups supposedly made up of members of the party in power voicing their complaints as Democrats are alleged to have done recently. However, mostly it comes from people who fear that their special interest, their piece of the pie will be taken away whether it be a new dam, bridge or even sidewalk replacement.

The shouting and whining becomes an absolute din when states and big cities join in, fearful that their shares of federal funding that includes grants that help pay for a variety of public services, including health care, education, infrastructure, and social services will be cut. 

The din finally reaches Washington where it shakes the foundations of the Capitol and Senate and House office buildings as holders of federal contracts, members of the notorious military industrial complex, business groups. Unions and every other kind of group call, email, text, or telegraph to complain about possibly losing funding for whatever special interest they represent. Added to this are the cries of those who have fallen for the bald faced, fear mongering lies of one party that Medicare and Medicaid benefits will be cut.

Washington is both the linchpin and the weakest point in our spending and debt mess. The sad fact is the legislative branch — whether Republican, Democrat or independent — can’t control themselves when the folks back home start worrying that the flow from the federal spigot will be reduced to a mere trickle. Like far too many legislators, their main concern is re-election and that requires “bringing home the bacon.” Perhaps term limits would also help cut spending.

This time President Trump really meant it when he pledged to reduce federal spending, waste and over staffing. That was the purpose of DOGE and Elon Musk’s appointment to report back to him on its activities. The Trump administration and DOGE are treating the federal workforce in the same way private businesses do. They are looking for results and accomplishments. If your sole activity is occupying space or “working from home” where your only activity might be just turning on your computer you are wasting taxpayer money and will be terminated which is how it works in the private sector.

Aside from vilifying both Trump and Musk, Democrats have offered virtually nothing to the conversation about eliminating fraud, waste and inefficiency in government and in fact seem to deny that it is a problem. They offer the same old talking points including that change must occur in a more disciplined manner and cannot be led by an unelected billionaire born in South Africa who must by definition be evil and probably supported Apartheid from the time he was in his mother’s womb.

Democrats are aided and abetted by their powerful allies the federal employee unions. These unions are major donors to Democrats and are enemies of any effort to streamline government because their power is based on the dues collected from federal employees. Fewer federal employees means fewer dues, less power, and less influence. These unions see a way of life that has existed since the “New Deal” endangered by DOGE, Musk and President Trump.

Recently we have been hearing sad stories about the plight of federal employees who have or will lose their jobs. I was a federal employee for 10 years and the atmosphere was very different from the private sector. As long as you come to work and don’t break the law you are set. I remember well the time when the person who was the national director of our department said in a meeting at our location that ours was a great job because you had to do something really terrible to lose it.

The 77,000 federal employees who accepted the buyout will leave their jobs now but be paid through the end of September. Others who are at least 50 years of age with 20 years of federal service or any age with 25 years of federal service may opt for early retirement. They will also have funds from their Thrift Savings Plan, an account that the employee’s agency sets up and contributes 1% of their base pay to which employees can also contribute with the government matching up to 4%.

Those federal employees who chose to leave and even those who might be downsized will have far more going for them than I did when I lost my private sector job along with others when our employer was sold. Our severance packages consisted of our last paycheck and accrued vacation pay that we had to threaten the new owner with legal action to get. I survived, so will they.

Our large government deficit is a serious concern because it significantly increases the national debt, which can lead to reduced economic growth, higher interest rates, decreased investor confidence, and limits the government’s ability to respond to future economic crises or national emergencies by forcing a larger portion of the budget towards debt servicing instead of new programs and investments. Finally, it is an unfair burden we place on our children.

Thomas Kirkpatrick Sr. is a Silver Creek resident. Send comments to editorial@observertoday.com.