Category: Defund The Federal Beast

On August 1, 2023, Congressman Matt Gaetz (R-FL), joined by five other Representatives, announced they would be co-sponsoring a bill to defund and abolish the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).  That bill has now been officially introduced, designated as H.R. 5108, and referred to the House Foreign Affairs and Appropriations Committees.

For the last 18 months, the United States has been shoveling money to one of the most corrupt governments in the world — Ukraine — with no end in sight. At President Biden’s request, and with the support of the Uniparty in Congress, our country has handed the Ukraine government about $115 billion, or over $200 million of taxpayer money every day since the war began.

Most members of Congress seem to want to be known for the way they spend the taxpayer’s money.  They routinely issue press releases claiming credit for obtaining funding for their favorite projects.

Article I of the U.S. Constitution lists Congress’s enumerated powers, and then concludes with a final provision specifying that Congress has the power “to make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States, or in any Department or Officer thereof.”

The Constitution’s Appropriations Clause provides: “No Money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law….” This text clearly requires the enactment of a “law” — which requires the cooperation of the House, Senate, and President — to spend federal money.

The Constitution vests in Congress the power to appropriate funds. U.S. CONST. Art. I, Section 9, cl. 7. This provision clearly limits the amount of money the Executive Branch may expend each year, but it raises an interesting question: Does the amount of money appropriated operate only a cap on expenditures, or does it carry with it the requirement that the money be spent, making it both a floor and a cap on spending?

One of the many benefits of the members of The House Freedom Caucus having challenged Kevin McCarthy for Speaker was incorporating The Holman Rule into the House Rules for the 118th Congress (2023-2025). Very few have heard of The Holman rule, and even fewer could explain what it is, but this Rule could prove to be one of the most useful tools for House Republicans to defund terrible government programs and personnel.

House Republicans have the opportunity to end funding for the Biden Administration’s trafficking in the body parts of aborted babies for “scientific” research.

As of this writing, the national debt is approaching $32 Trillion. The actual number is about $31,912,753,000,000, but it is hard to be more specific as the amount of debt grows so fast, you cannot even discern the actual number at any point.

For decades, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF) has acted in a lawless fashion, including engaging in acts of violence against American citizens. For most of its existence, ATF was situated in the U.S. Department of the Treasury because federal control of alcohol and tobacco centered on the collection of federal excise taxes.