How do we decrease the size of our government?

Question

And lower our taxes.Our government is too big and doing nothing for the economy

Answer 1

Decreasing the size of a bureaucracy depends on the political will of the state leaders.  It does not necessarily redound to the reduction in taxes if implemented across the board (and just for the sake of reduction), since if jobs are lost, there will be fewer incomes to spend and therefore (going through the chain of economics) would redound to a higher cost of living.  Also, the government, if it subsidizes a large part of education, welfare and health care, will eventually have to shoulder the costs and source its expenses elsewhere: taxes.

So, in a nutshell, it might not, in the final analysis, end up the way you want it.  

However, trimming the government size of excess fat is another matter.  It is common knowledge that political patronage is a common cause of a bloated government payroll.  Another, is the propensity of Congress to enact laws that requires humongous regulations and therefore, more people.  The latter will require hiring of more warm bodies in order to enforce the new law.

One possible way of reducing government size to its rightful functional size is to simplify laws for a reduction in enforcement requirements.

Another is for civil service to strictly fill up much needed vacancies with qualified individuals in order to save on redundant hirings in order to be able to provide the minimum basic services (but that would be wishful thinking).

Savings does not only mean people.

It can come in the form of other expenses as mundane as office supplies, utilities, gas and oil, or, serious expenditures like military materiel and the like.

So there you are.  I hope I have answered your question to your satisfaction.

Answer 2

Look at history and you will see that this is what happens when a country gets too big geographicly, economically and powerfully.  All the power  and money corrupt Governments and they go from doing for the people, to making themselves and their friends rich and powerful in order to maintain their power.  

As the government becomes more corrupted, they become less efficient and the nation becomes corrupted and weaker until it falls of its own weight,  another nation takes it over, or the people rally to a revolution and overthrow the corrupt government and institute another that may be better or worse than the preceeding government.

Our Constitution makes provision for Revolution.  Indeed, it makes Revolution MANDITORY when government becomes autocratic and no longer democratic - which, by the way - we are very close to becoming.   Over the years the President has gained more power until the Supreme Court and the Congress have become little more than errand boys and girls for the President.  

Our government has expanded with the growth of our country.  But Reagan expanded government and government debt to historic proportions.   Clinton and Gore were the first in modern times to actually shrink government (Not by much but still better than any previous) and balance our budget.  Now Bush/Cheney has expanded government and government spending exponentially further than Reagan.  Our government is now under the influence of China which holds a significant portion of our National Debt which is growing daily.

At the rate we are going, it won't be long before our debt reaches a point where others will not want to fund it and then, with a horrible trade imbalance and fighting wars which spill money OUT of the economy with far less coming in, we face economic collapse.  Likely the world is not ready to see us collapse and will hold us up - while they can and let us go when they can't.  At the very least, this means we become a debtor nation.  A nation on welfare if you will, a loss of prestige and influence in the world.  At worst we go broke and the nation falls into revolution or chaos or both.  Or another nation takes control, likely to get us in position to at least pay back what we owe them.

This is very close to what happened to Germany after WWI.

Can we turn this around before it's too late?  I don't know.  Possibly if Obama wins big he MIGHT turn things around.  He says he will - but it would be like turning the Titanic with a rowboat UNLESS - he can rally enough people to clean the corruption (lobbyists) out of government.  It would be a huge job, but possibly possible - if the people want it badly enough to work for it.

Answer 3

Did you know that paying tax is voluntary in the US. Perhaps if everyone stopped paying tax they might get the hint.