Where Has the Money Gone
The below, under the heading, "Scott Hagan is in Washington D.C. is a posting by Scott Hagan on Facebook (click his name for his FB account or search @jefferyscott88 for his X account). They are not my words. They are his words. I simply felt they were well written and thought they were worth sharing.
Scott is an Army vet and works in the United States House of Representatives as a Director of Veterans Affairs for a representative from Montana. I do have one issue with what he says I don't think it is just the elite liberals but it is many on both sides of the aisle that have taken advantage of our tax dollars.
What we are seeing is drastic. For many of my family and friends it seems a bit frightening as there is some uncertainty. Yet this is not the first time drastic measures have been taken by the executive office. It has been done by both Democrats and Republicans in the past. Is this more drastic than the past, likely, but we are further down the road of debt and thus more drastic measures are needed to save this Constitutional Republic we call the United States.
There is no way we would be able to manage our households the way the government has managed the country. It was not too many years ago when I was a Resource Manager for the Religious Support Office at Fort Drum and I was managing the money in the way I had learned in order to be fiscally responsible. I got in trouble for not spending at least 5% more than I was budgeted. The reason is, "they can always print more money." If we do not spend all the money plus we will get less money next year. I was also held accountable for the money we spent. Should not those above my level then be held accountable for the money they spend.
I was shocked and amazed but quickly understood why our country was in the financial situation we were in. We cannot sustain our households continually piling up debt. Our country cannot maintain if those in D.C. continue to pile up our national debt. How many of you are unaware of where your money is spent. We must be accountable personally why shouldn't our government be accountable to us how they spend the money. I guess the difference is the our tax money is like a rental car, it is not theirs so what does it matter drive it like you stole it.
For those who are fearful of what is happening I can tell you in the moments of my greatest fears I have always found peace in my faith. It doesn't change the situation often times but in the midst of the storm I can be in peace. The Bible tells us 1. God does not give us the spirit of fear 2 Tim 1:7, 2. When we are concerned or worried we are to give everything our worries and concerns over to God in prayer Philippians 4:6 - 9 says,
“Never worry about anything. But in every situation let God know what you need in prayers and requests while giving thanks. Then God’s peace, which goes beyond anything we can imagine, will guard your thoughts and emotions through Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers and sisters, keep your thoughts on whatever is right or deserves praise: things that are true, honorable, fair, pure, acceptable, or commendable. Practice what you’ve learned and received from me, what you heard and saw me do. Then the God who gives this peace will be with you.”
I do not want to seem unsympathetic to anyone that is feeling stress or fearful of what may happen. I have faced fear. Fear of when my family will have their next meal, fear of survival in combat, fear of an investigation over false allegations. I get it. What I also get is the one who knows all, who I call my Lord and Savior, is faithful to carry me through those times of fear. In the midst of those times I can have peace. The situations did not change. I had to walk one step in front of the other through those storms I faced but on the other side was great celebrations. So I am both sympathetic and empathetic to the situations. What is happening is happening to people very close to me so I do not take those concerns lightly.
The uncertainty of the times you are feeling right now will bring about a celebration because our country will be stronger in the end. More importantly we will still have a country. My prayer is what is happening will cause you to dig deeper in your faith and pray for wisdom in our leadership. We are instructed in scripture to pray for those in civil authority. It also says in 2 Chronicles 7:14,
“However, if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves, pray, search for me, and turn from their evil ways, then I will hear ⌞their prayer⌟ from heaven, forgive their sins, and heal their country.”
Scott Hagan is in Washington D.C.
"The phone lines to Congress are still melting down, and the calls have only intensified this week. What are we to expect? The cuts are likely to hit everyone in some way. Where will the next major layoffs be? Our universities. The shutting down of grants is about to wreak havoc on college campuses. Is all this beneficial to America? Have we ever gone through something like this before? Yes, in the words of Margaret Thatcher, “Yes, the medicine is harsh, but the patient requires it in order to live.”
DOGE, Trump, and Elon Musk are the only defenders of our rights. Human rights, gay right's, women’s rights, ect…Let me explain…
Take a hard look at how our system operates. The lavish lifestyle of DC’s elite liberals is sustained by you, the taxpayer, all without your say-so. Thanks to the transparency provided by Musk, we now have the receipt's.
This is how we’ve learned DC operates: The non-profit pays a liberal $300,000 or more. A married couple takes in $750,000 together, and often much more. Off of your back! If they want a free ski vacation in Aspen? Well there's a conference being held annually. The non-profit will of course fly them there and provide accommodations. Every meal is of course non-profit related. Eat well. Take Chelsea Clinton’s NGO, which received a jaw-dropping $84 million in taxpayer funding, and paid her a staggering $1.3 million solely for her “travel.” Yes, that was her “travel budget!”
In 2000, 30% of nonprofits took in federal dollars—by 2023 it was 68%. The number of nonprofits has DOUBLED in 20yrs.
Washington DC has the highest median household income in America (outside of San Francisco tech bubble 126k) at 122k a year. It’s not a financial center, like New York City ($95k) or Chicago (87k). It’s not the home of any large ports, New Orleans ($61k) or Boston (98k) It doesn’t even have nice weather, like San Diego or Honolulu (both 101k)
But what does Washington excel in? Extracting value from the federal government through your tax dollars! Astonishingly, 26% of households earn over $200,000 per year, more than any other city in the United States. In fact, five of the seven wealthiest counties are nestled within the DC Beltway.
Yet, rampant government corruption looms large. The head of the Social Security Administration stepped down after 30 years because she refused to let DOGE employees in. She earned $225,000 a year while the average SSA employee makes $99,000. Remember, all 42,000 government employees protested and convinced Biden that they needed to work from home until 2029 for their COVID safety. Which company has its entire workforce working remotely? Why do government employees earn, on average, $20,000 more than the average taxpayer? Once DOGE finally gained access to the building, we uncovered over 20 million people on the Social Security benefits system who are over the age of 100! Shouldn't we be purging these rolls? Is this really efficiency?
And the DISGRACE continues! The White House is unable to track $6.2 billion dollars sent to Ukraine.
California is unable to track $24 billion dollars to combat homelessness.
The Pentagon is unable to track $2.3 trillion dollars of military spending.
The U.S. Treasury is unable to track $5 trillion dollars of pandemic spending.
In just the first four months of our current fiscal year, we’ve racked up an $838 billion deficit—a staggering 15% increase from last year—as Democrats continue to block Trump and DOGE’s efforts to cut down on federal spending.
The statistics are staggering: Interest payments on our national debt now eclipse military spending, with the total debt skyrocketing to a staggering $36 trillion. Yet Schumer and Jeffries are committed to “choking off” any chance of budget cuts.
Unless we alter our course, guess what awaits us? Bankruptcy.
It’s a unique time to be a Republican; I often hear murmurs within the halls of Congress that “Elon Musk is moving too fast,” or that “some Republicans are about to lose their fortunes.” The reality, though, that we’re merely a decade away from government insolvency. This is the dark secret within DC no one would dare speak publicly.
It’s alarming that this grim reality is an open topic in Congress, and yet there’s no political will from either side to confront it. Is Musk really moving too fast? Let’s not forget that Bill Clinton famously fired 12% of the federal workforce to bring balance to the budget. Is he now branded as a villain? The left is merely frustrated, caught in a tide of emotion and manipulation.
How is Trump and Elon protecting our rights? This is the cold, harsh, pragmatic truth of the world. There are no rights. No one has rights—rights are an illusion. They are a luxury enjoyed by the citizens in a thriving society.
Our government has grown too massive, and our spending is utterly unsustainable. Musk and Trump, both successful businessmen, understand money in stark black and white. It’s about profit and growth (let’s expand into Canada!) versus the risk of bankruptcy (think K-Mart, Blockbuster, or the Soviet Union).
On the global stage, equality and human rights are mere façades. You’re either a superpower dictating terms or you’re at the mercy of those who are stronger. The voices and lives of Ukrainians are but whimpers; Russia and America will ultimately decide their fate without their input. Is Israel’s war in Gaza ethical or just? It’s of no consequence—Israel holds the military might, while the Palestinians do not. Was the U.S. invasion of Iraq justifiable? It doesn’t matter; one million Iraqis—alive in March 2003—fell by March 2004.
If we collapse like the Soviet Union, when the lights go out and the water stops running, the results will be dire. If we lose our super power status, and are unable to properly defend ourselves, it’s not going to be pleasant.
I would much rather engage in frivolous debates over trivial matters—like bathroom access based upon gender or egg prices—than face the dystopian reality of bread lines, rampant sanitation diseases, or the ominous presence of Chinese bombers dominating the skies over Los Angeles.
Trump’s idol, Teddy Roosevelt, imparted an essential truth: “The curse of every ancient civilization was that its men, in the end, became unable to fight. Materialism, luxury, and safety weakened the fiber of each civilized race until they became pacifists, easily overrun by those with the virile fighting power that ultimately makes all other virtues irrelevant.”
We either do away with the bread and circuses now and get our house in order, and confront the reality of our situation, or some other power, one that shares none of our values, will step in and do it for us. The great historian Thucydides warned us 2,500 years ago—“the strong do as they will, the weak suffer as they must.”
The billionaire who cut his teeth and made his wealth in one of ruthless buisness cities in the world—grasp this harsh reality. 🇺🇸"
Blessings, Ric
