Letter to the editor
President Trump is trying to reduce federal spending by firing people. That is not likely to be very effective because the payroll is a relatively small part of the federal budget (about 7%). To really cut federal spending, you have to go after the big 3: military spending, debt service, and entitlement programs such as Medicare. However, any significant cuts to these programs would not be politically popular. An alternative approach would be to increase taxes, which would not be politically popular either. And cutting taxes, as Trump has proposed, would only increase the deficit. The reality is that it’s very difficult to balance the federal budget, which is probably why it’s so rarely done.
Sanford W. Wood
Eunice