Federal Budget Basics
Where the Money Really Goes (And Why Everyone’s Mad About It)
Free-Range Advocate Series: Advocacy 101
Every year, politicians argue about the federal budget like it’s a household checking account.
“We’re broke.”
“We’re overspending.”
“We just need to cut waste.”
Cue dramatic music and a 2,000-page bill no one actually reads.
But here’s the truth:
Most of the federal budget is already spoken for before Congress even starts debating.
So let’s translate the chaos into something civilians can actually understand.
No spreadsheets. No policy-speak. No smoke.
Just reality.
First: Who Actually Controls the Budget?
The budget is written, negotiated, and passed by United States Congress.
The President proposes.
Congress disposes.
Every agency then operates inside what Congress approves.
So when people say “the government” spent money, what they usually mean is Congress authorized it.
Important distinction. Accountability matters.
The Budget Has Two Buckets (And One Is Huge)
Think of the federal budget like your monthly bills.
1. Mandatory Spending (The automatic stuff)
This is money that goes out by law, no yearly vote needed.
Examples:
• Social Security
• Medicare & Medicaid
• Veteran benefits
• Interest on the national debt
About two-thirds of the entire federal budget lives here.
Translation: Congress can’t easily “cut” most of it without changing major laws.
2. Discretionary Spending (The part everyone fights over)
This is what Congress debates every year.
Examples:
• military funding
• education
• infrastructure
• research
• border security
• disaster relief
This is only about one-third of the budget, yet it gets 100% of the drama.
Where the Biggest Chunks Actually Go
Here’s the rough reality in plain English:
Social Security & healthcare programs
The single largest share.
Retirement, disability, healthcare for seniors and low-income Americans.
Run mainly through agencies like the Social Security Administration.
This alone eats a massive portion of federal spending.
Interest on the national debt
Yes, we pay interest like a giant credit card bill.
And it’s growing fast.
This money funds absolutely nothing helpful. It’s the penalty for past borrowing.
Defense & national security
Managed primarily by the United States Department of Defense.
This includes:
• military pay
• operations
• equipment
• overseas bases
• training
Big number, but still smaller than social programs combined.
Veterans benefits & healthcare
Run through the United States Department of Veterans Affairs.
This covers:
• disability compensation
• survivor benefits
• healthcare
• education benefits
Despite popular belief, it is not the budget buster people think it is.
It’s a fraction compared to major entitlement programs.
The Great Budget Illusion
Here’s where the public gets misled.
When lawmakers argue about:
• veteran benefits
• education funding
• housing programs
• research grants
They’re fighting over slices of the smallest bucket.
Meanwhile, the biggest spending drivers operate mostly on autopilot.
So when someone says:
“We can’t afford survivor benefits increases”
But the government pays hundreds of billions in debt interest?
That’s not lack of money.
That’s political priority.
A Simple Pie Analogy (Because Everyone Understands Pie)
Imagine 10 slices of federal budget pie:
🥧 6–7 slices = mandatory spending + debt interest
🥧 3–4 slices = everything Congress debates
Now imagine arguing viciously over crumbs while the biggest slices never move.
That’s federal budgeting in action.
Why This Matters for Advocacy (Especially Military & Survivors)
When you hear:
“Benefits reform is too expensive”
“We can’t afford improvements”
“There’s no room in the budget”
What it really means is:
“We chose not to prioritize it.”
Budgets are moral documents.
They reveal what a nation values.
And right now, survivor families are often told to live within “fiscal responsibility” while trillions flow elsewhere without blinking.
Where Waste Actually Hides
Real budget problems usually come from:
• outdated programs that never sunset
• poor oversight
• bloated contracts
• interest from endless borrowing
• systems built decades ago
Not from helping veterans, survivors, or working families survive.
Cutting modest benefits rarely fixes trillion-dollar math.
The Advocacy Power Move: Speak Budget Fluently
When you understand this structure, you can push back intelligently.
Instead of:
“They say it costs too much.”
You can say:
“This program is a fraction of discretionary spending while mandatory spending drives most federal costs.”
That changes the conversation fast.
Final Thought from the Free-Range Advocate Desk
The federal budget isn’t a mystery.
It’s a priorities list.
And every time lawmakers say they “can’t afford” something that helps real people, ask:
Compared to what?
Because money always exists for what government truly values.
The rest is just narrative.
