Speech outlines plans to save money
When President Barack Obama announced his budgets for the remainder 2009 and 2010, he promised he would cut wasteful spending inherent in the previous budgets.
Today he gave a speech focusing on the specifics of those cuts. He also promised the government will be “more efficient, more accountable and more responsible.”
Contract spending reform
Government auditors have said there was $295 billion in wasteful spending on defense-related contracts last year. To eliminate this waste, Obama has ordered “dramatic” reform in the way contracts are awarded.
“We are spending money on things we don’t need and we are paying more than we need to pay,” Obama said.
Obama promises better discretion
In his speech, Obama emphasized that his budgets drastically cut non-defense discretionary spending as well.
According to a fact sheet the White House released:
“The President today signed a Presidential Memorandum that reforms how the government does business and that will save taxpayers billions of dollars each year.”
Details on contract spending reform
The Presidential Memorandum addresses outsourcing and awarding no-bid and cost-plus contracts. It also vows to “end the long delays and extra costs common to defense contracting.” The government won’t hand over cash advances to contractors without rigorous scrutiny.
Republican Sen. John McCain and Democratic Sen. Carl Levin designed the new goals for reforming the way the government secures contracts for defense.
All the gory details
The fact sheet addressing Obama’s contract reform plan specifies that government spending on contracting more than doubled during the eight years the Bush administration was in control of the White House.
From 2000 to 2008, government spending on goods and services increased from $200 billion in 2000 to more than $500 billion.
Contracts inherited from previous administration
The Office of Management and budget has been directed to issue guidelines for how agencies must review existing contracts and identify waste and inefficiency. Those guidelines must be completed by July 1.
At first, I was hopeful about Obama. I thought he really was going to bring the change that we so desperately needed, and that a new day was about to dawn. I’m not so sure anymore. I really want him to succeed, and I would love to see him accomplish the goals he has stated for his administration – I certainly am not in the Rush Limbaugh camp – but I am getting worried about the amount of spending he has lined up. We’re getting deeper into national debt, and the role of government is beginning to get too expansive.