U.S. spending is out of whack - San Diego North County Times

[question everything]

http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2004/01/25/opinion/editorials/1_24_0419_44_19.txt

President George W. Bush is spending the nation into deep financial trouble. He is following the same disastrous course that led California into disaster, and he's doing it on a far grander scale.

(snip)

Bush promised Tuesday night to hold the growth of discretionary spending to 4 percent next year, but discretionary spending accounts for less than one-sixth of federal spending, and it's the growth of these programs ---- Social Security, Medicare and the military, above all ---- that are throwing the budget out of whack. And an analysis by the conservative Heritage Foundation ---- a Bush ally ---- shows that discretionary spending actually will grow by 9 percent next year. That's because Bush is basing his numbers on budget "authorization" rather than actual spending ---- and Bush's 2004 budget reported that outlays for fiscal year 2002 exceeded authorization by $368 billion.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

1. This is one of the big reasons Republicans plan to vote Democrat

I've talked to many Republicans from this very Republican part of Arkansas, and they are vehement on this point. I've even talked down Shrub supporters by pointing out that the deficit is hurting national security (foreign countries hold many of the bonds, and lack of credit could hamper us if we are attacked again).

[JoblessRecovery]

2. We simply cannot afford another 4 years of Bush. That's all.