Uncle Bubba Reduces Fed, Returns Power To States

Uncle Bubba called and asked if I'd come over and give him a hand with some work, which I was happy to oblige. He had a small mountain of brush to clear and a couple loads of stuff that had been collecting in his barn of which he'd finally had enough of and was taking it to the dump. Since we had a stretch of mild winter days he figured that it was a good remedy for cabin fever to do some early spring cleaning, real early. The notion must have worked on his spirit as well because we had a great conversation as we rode along in his pickup truck along the wet, back country roads. In light of the new Trump presidency he told me that he could downsize the Federal Government and reduce spending a just a few simple moves.

"Take FEMA for example," Bubbie said, "That's nothing more than a closet stimulus package that's used to funnel money to states in the guise of disaster relief. Sure, there's legitimate disasters and we're fortunate to live in a country that helps it's citizens in such a way. But with a little research anyone can see that there is a lot of money allocated and spent that the Federal Government just doesn't have and ya have to wonder where the oversight is." Uncle Bubba expounded, "I'll tell ya why no one looks into this agency, because it's political suicide to question the legitimacy in assisting disaster victims: the press would have a field day!"

As we rode on he suggested something that I had a difficult time arguing with as I ran the idea over in my mind. He told me that FEMA spends a fortune in logistics that a friend of his who is a FEMA Reservist told him about. For example, they pay all travel expenses: airfare, rental car, fuel, lodging, and a food per diem for thousands of employees to travel from state to state to aid disaster victims. They set up temporary offices with furniture and office supplies and computer networks. They send people from Florida to work in Minnesota and people from Minnesota to work in Florida. They send people from California to work in Maine and people from Maine to work in California... As Bubbie says, "...it's idiotic!" So here's Bubbie's view of that solution, since we know an estimate of how much money each state gets in disaster relief each year, the Fed should set up an account for each state and distribute it on request. Like a PayPal account. They would only need a few people in Washington DC to manage the accounts. They can get rid of all of the other FEMA employees which the states can then hire. That way the travel and logistic expenses are reduced to nil for the Fed, and the states gain knowledgeable employees that make and spend money in their own state; and in states with a state income tax, they get money back on their investment.

"OK, now that that's fixed," said Bubbie, "let's try another agency. How about immigration, I think they call it ICE? We allocate money in an account to be distributed among the states and let the states handle their own difficulties of illegal immigration enforcement since, like disaster funds are different from state to state." He went on to say that the money has to be distributed without a lot of conditions imposed by the Fed, trusting the states because that would just build up a need for more Federal resources that equals more money; the thing we are trying to avoid. We need to get out of the old mentality and keep our eye on the prize: a smaller Federal Government, less cost, and less federal taxes.

I said that it seems to me that something would have to be done about the magnitude of deportation since there are so many illegal immigrants to deport. Uncle Bubba said that deportation should be swift and humane. He suggested having countries bid on building and managing deportation facilities outside of US boarders. They would be nice housing facilities that would buy time to transition people back to their rightful countries of origin. By putting the onus on the host countries we alleviate our duty to manage the care and coordination of the deportees and they would be outside of the US.

"The thing about making changes is that too many people are freaked out by it. They are used to something and are unwilling to move even if the current situation is horrible; it's what they're used to." Bubbie went on with his view, "We have too many people today that use that argument that the conservatives want to go back to old ways and nothing could be farther from the truth. As a nation we try things and try to improve on things. If something doesn't work then we should either drop it completely or learn from our mistakes and move in a new direction; not just run off of a cliff because of a grand ideal that failed. If'n ya had a knock in your car engine you wouldn't just put the hammer down and drive it hard until you threw a rod; you'd park it and fix it so that it's running smooth again." In Bubbie's view it's really all about the money. If that is what the Federal Government is turned into then so be it. Let them be the bank for the states until the states can become self sufficient. But the bank doesn't loan money and then show up and do the work. The states should be responsible for their own budgets, maintenance, and issues.

"Why wouldn't we want our state government stronger with less influence from the Fed? Do you think your voice carries further in a small room of a few people or in a stadium during a concert? Your voice is more likely to be heard and have influence on the smaller state level than at the vast Federal level."

He gave me lots to think about and we got a lot accomplished at the farm as well. The air turned cold in the evening and we sat inside by the wood stove with full bellies from Sweet Pea's delicious cooking. We chatted about the day's work and some hunting and fishing. Hard work and fixing the world's problems: just another day with my Uncle Bubba.