Shipping an empty container overnight? Funding the Website of a folk music ensemble? Or how about the daily printing of the Federal Register that can reach thousands of pages and is already available online?
All examples of “pointless waste” that will be cut as part of the Administration’s new Campaign to Cut Waste announced Monday by President Obama in an effort to create a more efficient and transparent government and help the nation’s deficit.
“Getting rid of the deficit require some difficult decisions that includes cutting back on billions of dollars on programs that a lot of people care about,” Obama said, “but what should be easy is getting rid of the pointless waste and stupid spending that doesn’t benefit anybody – waste we should be getting rid of even if we don’t have a deficit.”
Vice President Biden will lead the effort that Obama said has already identified $33 billion in savings for this year. That includes thousands of buildings the government owns, but has been unable to sell because of red tape and Washington politics, Obama said.
“There is a new standard by which the government is going to function from this point on,” Biden said. “The American people are entitled to transparency, by that I mean, they are entitled to find out where their dollars are going and to accountability – to make sure we are using the dollars for what we said it’s for.”
Biden said he hopes to install a new culture that this administration and future administrations will follow.
“We want to give you the government you expect and deserve and we’re ready to get to work,” he said.
