“Government spends too much” is back We know how this goes. When Republicans lack the ability to control the fate of legislation, they are born-again, small-government fundamentalists. Government is too big. Government spends too much (on the Irresponsibles). Deficits must be brought under control! Then when they hold the White House, they backslide. Tax cuts : GOOD. Deficits : MEANINGLESS. But the push-pull budgeting conversation is too wonky for the general public to wrap its brain around. To default or not to default is an inside-the-Beltway drama. Or one for G7 leaders to fret over. Until it tanks your retirement fund or hammers the dollar. The remoteness makes it difficult for the left to effectively exploit the shameless flip-floppiness of conservative lawmakers on spending. The only people paying attention are the people already paying attention. Speaker Kevin McCarthy issued one of his “stubborn aphorisms” on the subject on Friday: “Washington has to spend less.” “And indeed, Washington could spend less,” responds Prem Thakker at The New Republic. “For instance, America’s 2024 proposed military budget is some $842 billion—$100 billion more than 2022, and $26 billion more than 2023.” But the ratchet in Republican brains only turns one way under a Democratic administration. And on military spending under virtually any administration. It’s so well-understood that it’s almost a medical condition. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) nevertheless tried pushing back (for the benefit of those already paying attention): Thakker continues: The most outlandishly rich have long benefited from tax breaks and loopholes that…