Mick Mulvaney: Washington D.C.’s Definition of a ‘Budget Cut’ Is a Joke

Mick Mulvaney: Washington DC's Definition Of A 'Budget Cut' Is A Joke (RealClearPolitics)

Office of Management and Budget director Mick Mulvaney vents about the idea that a 6% year-by-year increase in spending is considered a "freeze" in Washington D.C. budgets. 
 

QUESTION: So, President Trump sticking to his campaign promise not to touch Medicare, Social Security retirement benefits, but not Medicaid. So how does he intend to square that with his supporters?

MULVANEY: Yeah, a couple of things about Medicaid, and this is one of my favorite stories to tell about Washington spending; keeping in mind, and I know that you all probably get this, but if you're watching this at home -- in Washington, D.C., if you spent $100 last year on something, OK, and we spend $100 on it this year on that same thing, in Washington people call that a cut. OK? $100 last year, $100 this year, y'all call it a cut.

In fact, I've seen several occasions where we spent $100 last year and $102 this year and many people will still call that a cut because the budget is hardwired by the Congressional Budget Office to go up every single year. And if the Congressional Budget Office says we spent $100 last year and we're supposed to spend $106 this year, for a lot of people anything less than $107 is a cut. In fact, I've actually heard $106 referred to as a freeze because it simply stays in line with the Congressional Budget Office.