I remember when talking about billions of dollars was a deal. Anything that cost hundreds of billions was a really big deal. Using a term like “trillions” was as rare and apocryphal as “zillions.”
Now, with a gargantuan national debt and higher interest rates, it’s been said we’re looking at $1.5 trillion a year just on interest on the debt.
President Joe Biden made it plain all this year that he had no interest and no intention of meeting with anyone regarding raising the national borrowing limit. Congress was supposed to just OK it and go on with finding ways to spend more money.
The general media made it out to be a big deal when the House Republicans took days of wrangling and caucusing to select a speaker. They were right. It was a big deal—because it made the bunch focus on what was most important, made them more determined to take advantage of the opportunity a horrendous national political situation afforded them and made them spell out on paper what they expected of Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA-23).
So, when the House passed a bill spelling out the conditions for them to accept a debt ceiling increase, it put Biden and the Senate on their back foot. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) had not even managed to get a bill introduced in the Senate. Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) actually signed a letter with 40 GOP senators saying they would not back any bill “without substantive spending and budget reforms.”
That forced Biden into a corner and a meeting recently with congressional leaders that produced no movement. We hope Republicans hold their ground. We need serious hobbles on the government’s ruinous spending binge.
An agreement to cut spending would reduce inflation, reduce pressure on our banks with lower paying bonds and cut the money supply that’s putting pressure on supplies and prices.
The Secure the Border Act may have received a vote in the House by now. This bill would end asylum fraud and catch and release, finish the border wall, boost support for the Border Patrol, mandate E-Verify and prohibit amnesty. This would slow down the flow of illegals, drugs and hundreds of those on the terrorist list.
Agriculture needs more legal workers but not the security risks, expenses to local governments and harassment of border ranchers and farmers the Biden administration’s wide-open border allows.
The left in Congress is going after the Supreme Court because they are quite upset they are no longer able to get via high court rulings what they could not get through Congress. Most voters felt like regardless of everything, including lower taxes and fewer regulations, the most important long-term effect of Trump’s term was nominating Supreme Court justices who held to the original meaning of the Constitution.
So, the left is trying to find something scandalous on Justice Clarence Thomas, pushing for unprecedented oversight over the conduct of the justices, in the past or present, as well as making up recusal rules that would hamper the court’s ability to even field a quorum on major cases.
This amounts to revising the Constitution without a vote of the people and violating the independence of the branches of government.
FDR failed to pack the court with “his” justices long ago. The Democrats want to try again. That would give us more big government, more business harassment and more infringement on our liberties and rights.
Of the 243,000 jobs added in April, 25,000 workers were hired in food service and drinking establishments, according to a restaurant industry trade publication. That still is 2.4% below pre-pandemic levels but staffing levels have improved in 2023, with 99,000 folks added in January, 70,000 in February and 50,000 in March.
That is good news for the beef industry, as after beef and overall food quality, service is a key factor in providing an enjoyable eating experience. We will get an objective reading on the public’s feeling on beef quality in the soon-to-be released 2022 National Beef Quality Audit report. But judging by retail movement and the busy restaurants and steakhouses, customers must be pleased with the quality of beef and beef preparation. After all, these are not bargain-basement prices they are paying. Busy airports and hotels indicate people’s willingness to travel and spend money at this point. If the incredible retreating recession keeps moving back, this could be an unusual summer for beef prices and none too soon for the cattle industry. — Steve Dittmer, WLJ columnist
(Steve Dittmer is the author of the Agribusiness Freedom Foundation newsletter. Views in the column do not necessarily represent the views or opinions of WLJ or its editorial staff.)
