SOURCE: https://www.reddit.com/r/fednews/
**I only post the hottest 10 posts in the subreddit.**
Congress’ Budget Failure: America’s Silent Tragedy
Congress’s Budget Failure: America’s Silent TragedySince 1997, Congress has not passed a full set of appropriations bills on time. That’s nearly three decades of missed deadlines, short-term fixes, and political gamesmanship. While that may sound like routine Washington gridlock, the truth is far more serious: this failure is one of America’s greatest ongoing tragedies — and it represents the biggest form of waste, fraud, and abuse in the federal government.⸻A Broken System That Costs EveryoneEvery fiscal year, Congress is supposed to approve 12 appropriations bills that fund nearly every part of the federal government — from the military to Medicare to our national parks. The law is clear: those bills must be enacted by October 1, the start of the new fiscal year.That hasn’t happened — not once — since 1997.Instead, lawmakers rely on “continuing resolutions” (CRs) to keep the lights on temporarily, often for weeks or months at a time. Sometimes, they fail even at that, leading to government shutdowns that furlough hundreds of thousands of federal employees, freeze paychecks, and grind public services to a halt.This pattern isn’t harmless. It’s expensive, demoralizing, and deeply irresponsible.⸻The Real Cost of Political DysfunctionWhen Congress misses its deadline, the waste begins immediately: • Billions in lost productivity — Every shutdown or near-shutdown forces agencies to stop planning and start guessing. Workers lose time restarting programs, re-entering contracts, and catching up on backlogs. • Higher costs for taxpayers — Temporary funding measures prevent agencies from locking in long-term contracts, meaning they pay more for the same work. • Reduced efficiency — Federal workers can’t start new projects, buy needed equipment, or hire staff when they’re stuck under outdated budget limits. • Economic harm — The 2018–2019 shutdown alone cost the U.S. economy an estimated $11 billion, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. Around $3 billion of that was permanently lost.These are real dollars — not theoretical losses. They represent money that could have gone to national defense, border security, health research, or deficit reduction. Instead, they were squandered because Congress couldn’t agree on a budget in time.⸻Fraud, Waste, and Abuse — From the Top DownEvery year, federal employees are told to cut waste, root out fraud, and be good stewards of taxpayer money. They are held to strict accountability standards — and rightly so.But what about Congress?When lawmakers fail to pass budgets on time for 28 years straight, they waste more than money — they waste trust, time, and morale.They force agencies to run on guesswork. They treat dedicated public servants like pawns. And they let political theater replace the discipline of governing.If any federal agency behaved this way — missing deadlines for nearly three decades — Congress would demand hearings, audits, and resignations. Yet when Congress itself does it, the consequences are shrugged off.That’s not leadership. It’s institutional neglect.⸻The Human TollBehind every budget delay are real people: • Federal employees who go weeks without pay, even as they are told to keep working. • Families who can’t pay bills during a shutdown. • Veterans and small-business owners waiting for benefit checks or government loans that are frozen. • Local economies near national parks and bases that lose tourism and business when the government closes.For these Americans, Congress’s dysfunction isn’t an abstract policy problem — it’s a financial crisis that strikes without warning, often just before the holidays.⸻America Deserves BetterPassing a budget on time is not optional. It’s the most basic responsibility of the legislative branch — the cornerstone of responsible governance. When Congress fails to do it, it betrays the very people it represents.Fixing this doesn’t require a miracle. It requires discipline, bipartisan cooperation, and accountability. Lawmakers should face the same expectations they impose on federal employees: meet deadlines, manage resources responsibly, and deliver results for the American people.Until Congress restores the practice of passing timely budgets, it will remain guilty of the most damaging kind of government waste — the kind that happens right under its own roof.⸻In the EndAmerica doesn’t just have a budget problem.It has a leadership problem.The last time Congress met its most basic fiscal duty was in 1997 — before smartphones, before social media, before most Americans had internet at home. Since then, the nation has changed dramatically, but Congress’s inability to finish its work has not.If we want a government that works for the people, Congress must start by doing the simplest thing imaginable: pass the budget on time.Until then, the biggest “waste, fraud, and abuse” in America will continue to come from the one place we should least expect it — Congress itself.
------
https://www.reddit.com/r/fednews/comments/1oeevw2/congress_budget_failure_americas_silent_tragedy/?utm_source=ifttt
r/fednews is the main subreddit for US Federal government workers.
This robot is NOT affiliated with r/fednews. It merely rebroadcasts the top 10 hottest posts. Responses here are only seen in the Fediverse. YOU SHOULD GO TO REDDIT TO PARTICIPATE FULLY!
High volume posting robot - block me if irritating.
-----
#Coup #Activism #Reddit #subreddit #fednews #FederalWorkforce #FederalGovernment #USpol #Trump #Elon #Musk #DOGE
Alt Alt National Park Service
Alt FedNews Subreddit
ABC Feeds