Summary: Spending on nothing?<br> In this episode, I talk about how the money spent on (literally) nothing will soon outpace defense spending, and not much later, non-defense spending as well. And no, it’s not some right-wing think tank making that prediction.<br> Also, is it possible to have a moral disagreement with someone, and yet not hate them? The Left seems to think that impossible, and Dana Bash questioned Mike Huckabee about it specifically. He schools her in the art of disagreeing without being disagreeable.<br> (OK, normally I don’t like it when someone says, “Hey, X really schooled Y!” when all X did is say something the speaker agrees with. Usually there’s not actual educating going on. But this time, there certainly is.)<br> Mentioned links:<br> <a href="http://blogs.wsj.com/economics/2015/02/03/the-legacy-of-debt-interest-costs-poised-to-surpass-defense-and-nondefense-discretionary-spending/">The Legacy of Debt: Interest Costs Poised to Surpass Defense and Nondefense Discretionary Spending</a><br> <a href="http://www.truthrevolt.org/news/cnn-confused-how-can-huckabee-oppose-gay-marriage-and-have-gay-friends">CNN Confused: How Can Huckabee Oppose Gay Marriage AND Have Gay Friends?</a><br> <br> <br> Getting some shopping done? If you're going to shop at <a href="http://considerthis.ctpodcasting.com/amazon">Amazon</a>, please consider clicking on my affiliate link. Thanks!<br> <br> You can subscribe to the podcast via <a href="http://considerthis.ctpodcasting.com/itunes">iTunes</a>. And please leave a comment letting them know how you like it. I really appreciate listener ratings on iTunes, which can also lead to having more listeners, and more ratings! Keep the ball rollin’!<br> <br> The <a href="http://considerthis.ctpodcasting.com/stitcher">Stitcher Network</a> is another possibility. You can find podcasts, add them to your favorites, and then either listen to them on the web site, stream them to your smart phone, or to some snazzy GM, Ford, and BMW car. If you do download Stitcher to your phone, please use the promo code “ConsiderThis” to let them know where you heard about it.<br> <br> You can listen on the <a href="http://considerthis.ctpodcasting.com/blubrry">Blubrry Network</a> if you like. You can find podcasts and save them to your MyCast list, and come back anytime and listen to the latest episodes.<br> <br> Similarly, <a href="http://considerthis.ctpodcasting.com/playerfm">Player.fm</a> allows you to subscribe to podcasts and play all the latest episodes from your browser.<br> <br> And if you have some other podcatcher or RSS reader, <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/ctpodcasting/considerthis">click here to get the direct feed</a> and paste it wherever you need it.<br> <br> I would love it if you would spread the word about the podcast! Click the Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Digg or LinkedIn icons below (or all of them!) to recommend "Consider This!" to your social media audience.<br> Show transcript<br> By the year 2021, federal spending just on interest on the national debt will exceed defense spending. Think about that; as much as we spend on “the war machine”, as some refer to it, we’ll be spending more on…nothing, just interest. And the following year, 2022, the interest payment will also exceed the amount for all non-defense spending.<br> This isn’t some right-wing think tank coming up with these numbers; it’s the White House and the Congressional Budget Office.<br> By 2021, the government will be spending more on interest than on all national defense, according to White House forecasts. And one year later, interest costs will exceed nondefense discretionary spending–essentially every other domestic and international government program funded annually through congressional appropriations. (The largest part of the budget is, and will remain, the mandatory spending programs of Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.
