Yesterday the Trump White House released a proposed 2018 federal budget. The Trump budget is titled, “A New Foundation For American Greatness.” Trump inherited a $20 trillion deficit and, frankly, a huge, steaming pile of a mess from his predecessor, His Eminence, BH Obama. (The deficit doubled under Obama.) The Trump budget calls for spending $4.1 trillion next year–which is still (disappointingly) higher than this year’s $4 trillion and last year’s $3.8 trillion budgets. As in all budgets, some items are getting the ax, and some are getting more love. On the ax side, Trump plans to trim 31.4% of the Environmental Protection Agency’s budget next year (from this year). The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), on the other hand would get a 15.2% increase in its budget. But don’t be deceived. FERC’s increase amounts to $48.4 million–a rounding error in the budget. EPA’s budget next year will be $5.7 billion (down from $8.2 billion this year). In talking about the budget, the main architect, Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney, said that much of the EPA’s “crazy” spending on climate change will be scaled back. However, what is missing from most media accounts about Mulvaney’s comments, is that not all spending on so-called climate change is gone. Mulvaney said they are rightsizing the budget–spending money on real research, not on lunatic things like the National Science Foundation spending money to fund a climate change musical. That kind of crap is out in Trump’s no-nonsense budget. Finally, an adult in The White House!…
