EDITORIAL: Omnibus bill affirms Congress’ budgeting practices that spiked the national debt

OPINION:

The Christmas season of 2022 has come to a close, and in keeping with tradition, some wishes have been realized and others deferred. Visions of sugarplums that danced in congressional heads virtually have been realized in the form of a $1.7 trillion spending bill. For Americans, though, Washington’s holiday binge pushes financial security into the realm of wishful thinking. Prudent economic policy — the hallmark of stable governance — will not come to pass until the day voters demand it.

The fiscal 2023 omnibus appropriations bill sent for President Biden’s signature affirms the same government spending practices that pushed U.S. national debt above a record $31 trillion milestone in October. Included are $858.4 billion for defense — a 9.7% increase over 2022 — and $787.4 billion for nondefense discretionary programs — 7.9% above last year’s amount.

Rolling 12 appropriations bills into one 4,155-page monstrosity, Congress loaded the federal ATM with goodies ranging from a 20.9% boost in spending for military construction in the Veterans Affairs appropriation to a 1.4% hike for the Department of Agriculture. Faced with a take-it-or-leave-it choice, lawmakers — including a number of Republicans reputed to be fiscally responsible — took it.

To be sure, Democrats are known for their skill at making a virtue of pecuniary vice. Rep. Rosa DeLauro, Connecticut Democrat, boldly wrote that the bill “fulfills 98 percent of Democratic Member requests in the House, with $5.4 billion for 3,213 Democratic projects.” Notably, she pointed out that the Department of Defense is to receive $100 million above its budget request for a “Energy Resilience and Conservation Investment Program.” Copping gifts not even dreamed of is a Christmas miracle, indeed.

Eyeing $47.4 billion for military, humanitarian and economic assistance for Ukraine, U.S. taxpayers can at least be grateful that their own sons and daughters have not been dragooned onto the battlefield — yet — to help the Ukrainians ward off Russia’s invasion.

Congress’ Christmas giveaway has coincided with the release of “The Festivus Report 2022,” Sen. Rand Paul’s annual compilation of government waste aptly named after the make-believe holiday that honors both modern anti-commercialism and old-fashioned caviling. The $482.3 billion in pointless spending Mr. Paul highlights, though, is no joke. “In an ill-conceived and hasty effort to combat the pandemic,” he writes, “Congress spent $4.55 trillion across 43 agencies with little to no oversight or accountability.”

Among useless 2022 expenditures that run from the stupid to the silly are $28 million the Pentagon spent for military uniforms unfit for the environment of Afghanistan, $17 million the Department of Homeland Security paid for unused hotel rooms to house illegal immigrants, and $187,500 the National Institutes of Health shelled out to verify that children love their pets.

All in all, Congress continues to spend beyond the nation’s means. The federal budget deficit for fiscal 2022 reached $1.38 trillion, and with interest rates rising, annual interest on the debt alone has reached $475 billion. Further, the Congressional Budget Office has calculated the figure would skyrocket to $1.2 trillion annually by 2032, and that was before Congress’ year-end spree.