President Trump’s agenda calls for one big, beautiful budget bill. Congress deliberately uses shenanigans like ten-year projections to confuse the public. Despite the political BS, in the end the government spends trillions, further increasing the deficit.

For the last half-century our debt, as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product, has grown 400%. If things continue, we will soon be bankrupt.

Congress recently passed “budget resolutions” moving toward Trump’s “One big, beautiful bill.” Both chambers authorized $100 billion+ increases in the military budget.

The Washington Post reports:

“Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered senior leaders at the Pentagon…to develop plans for cutting 8 percent from the defense budget in each of the next five years…— a striking proposal certain to face internal resistance and strident bipartisan opposition in Congress.”

The Pentagon hasn’t passed an audit, accounting for their spending in years. The DOD wants to cut spending, yet Congress wants them to spend more???

Newsmax’s Carl Higbie asked if members of Congress even walk over to the DOD and talk to them.

The 2024 military budget was $884 billion. If Defense Secretary Hegseth hits his target, in five years the budget should be around $583 billion, something most Americans would welcome.

I don’t get it!

I contacted Richard J. Maybury. Richard writes the U.S & World Early Warning Report, and is a true expert on worldwide events; particularly as it relates to war.

DENNIS: Richard, thanks for your time to help educate our readers.

This is political nonsense. No Democrat voted for the budget resolutions, allowing their opponents to label them as supporting out-of-control spending.

The Republicans (theoretically) support DOGE, yet want to spend more on defense (dare I say war?), despite the new Secretary of Defense calling for cuts. Cutting the defense budget is “certain to face bipartisan opposition in Congress.”

In the private sector, budgets start from the bottom up, with each department putting together their budget; not the top down. Richard, can you help our readers understand what the heck is going on?

RICHARD: It’s always great to hear from you; rational minds are so rare these days.

So, what’s going on?

As explained in my March 2025 Early Warning Report, American founders like Thomas Jefferson, James Madison and others understood that government is inherently evil, because it is political.

DENNIS: Political means bad?

RICHARD: Yes, political – crammed with waste, fraud and abuse, with little concern for taxpayers. All governments have behaved that way throughout history.

Thomas Paine warned in his 1776 pamphlet, Common Sense, “Society in every state is a blessing, but Government, even in its best state, is but a necessary evil; in its worst state, an intolerable one.”

DENNIS: In my 85 years, that seems accurate. But why?

RICHARD: Because they have political power, which I describe as, “The legalized privilege of using brute force on persons who have not harmed anyone.” No other group has that privilege.

DENNIS: Mao Zedong said, “Political power grows out of the barrel of a gun

RICHARD: Exactly, political power is corruption. Government is the only kind of organization with the legalized privilege of hurting the innocent, many times governing against the will of the majority of their citizens.

Dennis, your readers are much more intelligent than average, and I suspect most understand this. What is sad, is very few others do – the government-controlled schools teach the solution to every problem is “more government.”

In next month’s Early Warning Report I discuss that governments cannot be made better; they can only be made smaller, something they inherently resist.

DENNIS: Trump’s DOGE is meeting a lot of resistance.

RICHARD: Yes, their intended attack on waste, fraud and abuse is an attack on the fundamental nature of politics. Making government smaller reduces their power to control. Cutting spending is not in their DNA.

DENNIS: I was surprised when the Post said “bipartisan” opposition to Pentagon spending cuts.

Bill Bonner said, “Meanwhile, Republicans and Democrats keep spending more and more money on their fake wars, intended chiefly to shift wealth and power to the military/industrial/Deep State cronies.”

The defense industry spends millions “lobbying” Congress.

Investopedia differentiates between bribes and lobbying:

“Bribery and lobbying are often conjoined in the public mind: Critics of lobbying suggest that it’s bribery in a suit. …. Bribery is considered an effort to buy power; paying to guarantee a certain result; lobbying is considered an effort to influence power, often by offering contributions.

…. Bribery is considered illegal, while lobbying is not.”

We constantly hear about family members of prominent politicians holding high-paying jobs at businesses which Congress oversees. While technically it may be legal, it is certainly questionable.

Does the military/industrial complex really have that kind of power and control over Congress?

RICHARD: In my mind, no doubt! It’s why President Eisenhower, a five-star general with deep experience dealing with politicians, coined the term, “military/industrial complex.”

Back in the 1940s Eisenhower understood how corrupt the government is. He realized power-hungry politicians are for sale to the highest bidder. That’s a component in how they achieve power, by being for sale.

As I see it, government-controlled schools are the root cause of the problem. Until they, and their brainwashing are abolished, little can improve.

DENNIS: I was in the Marine Corps during the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis. Russian ships with long-range missiles were heading to Cuba. We damn near had WWIII until the ships turned around.

Trump is widely criticized for saying Russia is an enemy, but he understands why Putin does not want NATO on Russia’s border. NATO agreed not to expand when the Berlin Wall came down.

Trump feels Americans are fed up with spending billions propping up Zelinsky’s, known to be very corrupt, government.

In your recent issue, you mention:

“In 2023, DEFENSE NEWS12 reported that British politicians agreed to ‘stand shoulder-to-shoulder’ with Ukrainians ‘for years to come,’ providing combat jets and training to Ukrainians to defend British ‘interests.’

There’s that word again, interests. I mention it occasionally because no one seems to know what an interest is, or why it is worth killing and dying for.

All we can be sure of is, when the word ‘interests’ comes out of a politician’s mouth, deceit and death follow.”

What are our “interests” in Ukraine?

RICHARD: I doubt our country – America, the land of the free and home of the brave – has any interest in Ukraine.

Ukraine is just another excuse for the power junkies in Washington and Moscow to acquire more power, and – a key point – feel the thrill of using it on someone. Watch bullies on any playground; you will see politics in action.

DENNIS: Investopedia defines a “peace dividend:”

“A peace dividend is an economic boost that a country will get from a peace that follows a war. In theory, at that time the government can afford to reduce defense spending and reallocate the money to domestic policy priorities.

This assumes that the money recouped from defense spending is generally used for the good of society.”

We should use any “peace dividend” to reduce the deficit, not spending money elsewhere. At current rates, every trillion we cut would save $45 billion in interest – definitely good for our society.

Do you feel a “peace dividend,” honest government reduction in the Pentagon budget can really happen?

RICHARD: I think it can happen and, believe it or not, it will happen. And maybe it’s already beginning.

While “lobbying” may influence Congress, there will be an interesting showdown. Americans are fed up with wasting money on senseless wars.

Political philosopher Randolph Bourne (1886-1918) showed the way, saying “War is the health of the state.” State meant the government. The federal government lost the Vietnam war, due to lack of support from the population. Politicians campaigning as anti-war got elected. We are starting to see this play out again.

DENNIS: One final question.

The Congressional Research Service lists all our wars and recent conflicts.

Since Vietnam, the list is long; Lebanon, Grenada, Panama, Persian Gulf, Afghanistan, and Iraq. It appears we are sending billions in military equipment, but no troops to Ukraine.

Here’s what I’m realizing:

1. Politicians want to flex their worldwide muscles.
2. The military/industrial complex lobbyists provide encouragement.
3. The government-controlled media jumps in.
4. Congress allocates money to buy weapons, (in some cases authorizes troops), to protect our “interests” – but never formally declares war.
5. As you said, “deceit and death” soon follow.
6. The military/industrial complex profits handsomely, and politicians grin.
7. The public finally gets fed up and pushes back.
8. The war is lost due to lack of public support.
9. Politicians find another spot to repeat the cycle.

Richard is this a never-ending cycle?

RICHARD: Yes, I think so, in both cases. Until the government-controlled schools are abolished. Government will contract and then start growing once again. Soon after Ukraine is resolved, another area of “interest” will appear. It’s profitable!

Sadly Dennis, this has gone on for centuries. The solution is an educated, not brainwashed, population.

DENNIS: Thank you again for your time.

RICHARD: My pleasure.

Dennis here. Will Rogers said, “America has the best politicians money can buy.” I’m hoping DOGE exposes the kickbacks and corruption, enraging the public.

If we want to cripple the process in the future, those who sold their votes must face severe punishment. I’m pulling for a real showdown, representative government versus political corruption. I hope to leave a somewhat better, significantly smaller government for future generations….
 

On The Lighter Side…

In 1962 Astronaut John Glenn became the first American to orbit the earth aboard Friendship 7. Some pilots in our unit flew with him, he was a fellow Marine.

The US paused and watched as he launched into space, breaking the Russian record with three orbits, and prepared for return.

Then, our earth stood still…. Smithsonian explains:

“Glenn’s heroic flight ended with a scary reentry, when flight controllers thought that the heatshield on his Friendship 7 capsule might be loose.”

As Glenn began his reentry, experts explained if his heatshield failed, he would burn up in space; a terrifying thought….

He ignited his rockets moving out of orbit, back into the earth’s gravitational pull, speeding up, hurtling toward the ground.

NASA explained there would be a communications blackout, no radio contact for a few minutes. Would we ever hear from him again? You could feel the tension. Absolute silence, you could hear a pin drop. The seconds counted down – the clock hit zero. Nothing for a few more seconds, then the radio crackled, Friendship 7 was back on the air communicating with NASA.

The nation was euphoric, jumping, hugging, crying and cheering. I was hooked!

When we lived in Florida, Jo and I would regularly watch NASA launch astronauts into the sky. We watched several from our front yard, with the rocket looking like a giant cigar with a huge flame.

Jo and I were driving with young grandchildren on US 19, about 50 miles north of Tampa. I knew a launch was ready to go and pulled off to the side of the road. We got out and I pointed toward the southeast, telling the kids to watch. I turned up the car radio. 5-4-3-2-1, we have liftoff. It was clear as a bell, a huge rocket followed by a long bright flame. While the kids are now grown, the memory will last forever.

I was watching from my front yard when space shuttle Challenger exploded. I ran into the house and watched a replay of the horror – and I’m not ashamed to admit I shed a tear.

A few years later, the space shuttle would return over our home in Lakeland. The house would shudder from the sonic boom. We never complained.

Last Friday Jo and I asked friends to turn on their tv to watch the SpaceX rocket lift off on their voyage to rescue the astronauts who have been stranded in space for months. I found a live YouTube feed of their mission as it unfolded.

Jo and I watched the Saturday night docking. The hatch was open, waiting for the new crew to enter in their cool, blue uniforms. The commentator said, “The astronaut’s excitement you see in the space station is real.” Jo looked at me and grinned, saying, “So is ours.”

We watched the descent and splashdown of Crew 9 just like we did generations ago. We were cheering along with the NASA crowd when we saw the parachutes deployed for their splashdown. The improvement in technology watching the event is amazing.

“Crew 9 is back on earth!” – NASA spokesperson…

To which I add, “Welcome home, we missed you.”

We’ve come a long way with technology, but let’s never forget just how amazing the idea of space travel really is.
 

Quote of The Week…

I’ll share what I’m thinking – out loud….

“In my 85 years, I cranked the handle of a wall telephone to summon the operator, pumped drinking water and lugged it into the kitchen, and shivered while sitting in an outhouse.

I’ve flown at twice the speed of sound, seen the curvature of the earth, and a man walked on the moon. I regularly get on a machine that shoots radiation into my body to kill microscopic-sized cancer nodules to keep me alive.

No matter how hard I try, I can’t imagine what my great-grandchildren will say when they are my age.” — Dennis Miller
 

And finally…

Facebook wisdom – Jo sent me some clever alternative definitions:

• Coffee – The person upon whom one coughs.
• Flabbergasted – Appalled by how much weight you have gained.
• Esplanade – To attempt an explanation while drunk.
• Negligent – The condition when you absentmindedly answer the door in your nightgown.
• Lymph – To walk with a lisp.
• Gargoyle – Gross olive flavored mouthwash.
• Flatulence – Emergency vehicle that picks you up after you have been run over by a steamroller.
• Balderdash – A rapidly receding hairline.
• Rectitude – The formal, dignified attitude adopted by proctologists.
• Pokeman – A small child sitting behind a tired businessman on a late flight home.
• Circumvent – An opening in front of underwear worn by Jewish men.
• Frisbeetarianism – The belief that when you die, your soul flies up on the roof and gets stuck there.
• Fomosapien – A person with an innate fear of missing out.

And my favorite:

• Abdicate – To give up all hope of having a flat stomach.

---

More By This Author:

What Happens When The Music Stops?
Will The Tariff Sheriff Be Able To Revive The Economy?
What Should We Expect? What Should We Do?