The Golf, Chess, & Cheese Society. . .

(The Golf, Chess, & Cheese Society. . .)

What ? Try the Government Code and Cypher School (GCCS). That had been the outfit based at Bletchley Park and elsewhere that broke the German Enigma encryption and the resulting intelligence, by definition some of the most sensitive of the entire War, had its own classification: Ultra.


Now, there is set to be a new agency to be headed by characters as eccentric as those at Bletchley Park. One is Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, Space X, and "X." The other is Vivek Ramaswamy, himself a businessman and also a billionaire, will unite in a new "Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)." The stated purpose of this department is to identify government waste, and one expects the total to be trillions of dollars. Musk has said he could identify some $2 trillion almost immediately.


That remains to be seen. The DOGE mandate amounts to line-item vetoes. Such an action would be ideal if one wishes to cut spending, with little to no political consequence. President Reegan had wanted the power during his Administration but the Democrat Congress at the time demurred. That was when the Faustian Bargain was struck where Reagan could spend on defense but Democrats wanted to maintain social spending. In addition, the Supreme Court ruled that the President did not have such power.


What about private individuals working on a President's behalf ? Musk and Ramaswamy will identify what can be cut and it will have to be worthwhile, and also subject to Congressional approval (Republicans have just secured a 218 Seat House Majority). That being said, the record of previous attempts to significantly reduce federal spending is not good. The Washington myth is that both Parties want to cut spending, but the necessity, much less the will, has always been lacking.


However, that was before the country was $36 trillion in debt. Interest payments have exceeded the Defense budget, and deficits are running at some one trillion a month. Reversing that trend would be a good place to start. Like what one says to an alcoholic.


Stop drinking.

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