Congress refuses to cut spending even in dire times

Michael K. Casler, Las Vegas

Wednesday, Dec. 8, 2010 | 2:01 a.m.

It looks like Republicans in Congress and the president are going to trade extending unemployment benefits in exchange for extending all of the Bush-era tax cuts for two years.

Cutting spending? Nowhere in sight. Americans who hate the wealthy are angry that the wealthy get their tax cuts extended. Americans who believe the unemployed are all lazy are mad because unemployment benefits will be extended again.

I would ask this question of Americans: Why aren’t you angry at those in Congress who can always find a way to spend more of taxpayers’ money but can never find a way to cut spending? Extending unemployment benefits is fine with me. So is extending all the tax cuts.

All I ask is for members of Congress to actually target some spending to cut and actually cut that spending. If members in Congress (Republicans and Democrats) cannot do that, why do we have them there?

Contrary to popular belief, this cannot continue without bankrupting America. What do these members of Congress think is going to happen when California and several other states facing bankruptcy ask the federal government for a bailout? Don’t any of them think it would be wise to cut spending before that happens?

I feel like I am a participant in a movie that is so horrendous that it must be a dream ... but it’s not a dream.

Oh, my.