Entitlements/welfare cost $129 Billion monthly
Seems the media acting on behalf of the anti-war crowd is determined to undermine America’s efforts against terrorism by constantly asking if we “can afford $12B per month” in Iraq. Unsuspecting pundits, bloggers and writers have picked up the line in their latest attempt to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.
Instead of regurgitating the soundbites put out by the DNC through their PR division…I mean the national media, let’s compare costs of war versus cost of welfare in America (all figures from 2007 budget):
Social Security — $586.1 billion or $48.83 billion per month
Medicare — $394.5 billion or $32.88 billion per month
Welfare/Unemployment — $294 billion or $24.5 billion per month
Medicaid — $276.4 billion or $23.03 billion per month
$1.551 Trillion of a $2.8 Trillion budget for entitlements/welfare or $129.25 billion per month
So while everybody in TV land tries to imply that we are irresponsibly wasting $12B a month in Iraq, the real problem is ignored despite being 10X the amount of war spending!
When will a ‘conservative’ respond to one of these idiot pundits by asking if he or she knows how much America spends on entitlements per month? War is not the fiscal problem….welfare is the fiscal problem.
John,
Since you won’t address the question yourself, here is a partial answer to how much is being spend by the U.S. on healthcare in Iraq and here at home.
Study of Iraqi healthcare right after the fall of Saddam — http://www.annals.org/cgi/reprint/141/10/825.pdf
According to that report, “the U.S. government
has allocated $1 billion to Iraq health care for 2004.”
America — “In 2006, people and the government spent $2.1 trillion on health care, an average of $7,026 a person.”
So John, it would appear that of the $12B per month spent in the war against terrorism, only a small portion goes to “free healthcare for Iraqis”.
Bart
I pay about $300 dollars a month in Medicare tax and receive no benefits until retirement age. If you take the $3600 a year I pay over a working life time the $7,026 I get back at retirement age is a rip off!
The money the Iraq people get for free healthcare is from U.S. tax payers dollars. The average citizen is getting a rip off deal with the current system and you want the government to give away more of my tax dollars. Do you not get the difference?
OK Bart,
You are totally wrong in your assessment of my position. I quite explicitly stated that SS is the ONLY govt. program I can support. It needs reform, and it should allow for personal accounts.
As for accepting personal responsibility, I am prepared to take care of myself. I do not see any problem with our nation helping to take care of the elderly. There is no possibility that the average person can provide for retirement under today’s tax system and perpetual property tax liability.
Those items must be addressed, but the poor and near poor will be living in the streets.