Budget never lie but people do. Like SkyGuy and as a manager for over 26 years for a large Department in a large corporation, I had to prepare a budget every year and make revisions to them at least two times during that year.

In order to prepare a budget you need to write out your plans and programs first. You need to include a rationale as to the what where why and how. You understand that if you miscalculate that you will have to live wth that mistake. So the natural tendency is to add redundancy to the budget. Your are then faced with the unpredictable (changes in market, a catastrophe, etc). Your budget then is incorporated into the coroprate budget so politics enters into your thinking....You get the picture.

The government is not a business and they don't think like businessmen. Further they are using an inexhaustible supply of funds (aka/taxes). and if they miss or misapprproiate they can't get fired. Now add to that mix the fact that lobbyist keep waving money under their noses and organization arrange quid pro quo arrangements and you can see why the budget is not worth the papers (thousand upon thousand of pages, And since there is no one hold politician feet ot the fire the misuse and fraud of these programs goes undetected since there are no built in conrols.

So I laugh everytime a politicians says he/she will.......... because they won't or can't do squat.

Referring back to the brief budgeting procees above there is step actually needed before writing plans and programs. You must ask yourself why is Item A in this budget (its purpose) and is that purpose still viable i.e. beneficial and profitable,

If you think politicians will bother with any of this I own a bridge in Brooklyn.........................