Starting to Study About Federal Spending

Now that the new Congress is in session...along with the new administration...they are beginning to get down to crunching numbers and deciding how to spend our dollars...hopefully on our behalf.  Federal spending is an area that I admit to being pretty ignorant about...but that's about to change, for I am embarking on a self-education project over this extremely important subject.  You see, I have watched countless floor speeches over the years (using the C-Span channels) in both the U.S. Senate and House, as well as different committee hearings when they are debating legislation designed to direct money to different areas.  But rhetoric in of itself, while helpful in sorting out our priorities and values, does little to address the actual problem of making the numbers all fit together into a cohesive national fiscal policy that works both for the country at large and its individual citizens.  Therefore, I'm combing the Internet to try to make sense of it all.  One site I found seemed helpful for a novice like me: https://www.nationalpriorities.org/budget-basics/federal-budget-101/spending/, which explains basics about our federal budget, distinguishing between discretionary and mandatory spending and showing, in general terms using pie charts, where the money is going...or I should say went, in 2015...

Of course, federal spending is only one half of the process: after all, there must be revenue collection in order to be able to spend all that money, as well as a borrowing process that can account for deficit spending.  I'm going to look into all these areas...because I no longer feel comfortable just sitting there listening to my elected officials twisting around the English language in order to persuade each other...and you and me...to their positions.  I want a solid background and understanding on the topic...and to be able to discern when someone is speaking correctly to the point or is engaging in demagoguery or...using a newly coined term I'm starting to hear lately, employing "alternative facts", which to me just sounds like a fancy way of saying "lies"...

Of course, as I learn more and more about how our government goes about its fiscal policies, I'll share some of it on this blog.  And who knows, maybe some of you out there can help me to better understand this complex matter...