Saturday, November 23, 2024

Can Elon Musk cut $2 trillion from US government spending?

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After taking control of the House of Representatives in 2022, Republican lawmakers have struggled to pass legislation to deliver considerably smaller cuts of $130bn, external in discretionary government spending after meeting opposition from other Republicans.

It’s also important to note that Donald Trump campaigned on a platform of making Social Security more financially generous, not less, by removing the income tax payable, external on it. And, on defence, Trump said, external he would build an β€œiron dome missile defence shield” around America, implying greater spending in this area, not cuts.

Total US federal government spending as a share of the US economy in 2024 was around 23% according to the US Treasury, external.

That’s a considerably smaller share than national government spending in other developed countries.

However, a large share of government spending in the US, including almost all school spending, external, is done at a state rather than a federal level, and states are funded, external by local sales and property taxes.

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