Mick Mulvaney Quotes

Cost effectiveness and effectiveness are not always the same thing in government.

Venezuela’s state oil company routinely spends more on social programs then it does on exploration and production.

Prioritizing spending and maximizing the effectiveness of taxpayer dollars is absolutely essential. We must draw the line, realigning programs when necessary and also eliminating failed programs.

Economy does not lie in sparing money, but in spending it wisely.

It is not possible to spend on one thing and then not have consequences on something else.

I believe the only measure of government response shouldn't be how much we spend on a situation, but rather how well we spend.

We have a responsibility to make sure that the limited resources we have are spent efficiently and effectively and that programs achieve their mission.

America has to ask itself not what it wants, but what it can afford.

Individuals can spend their money more wisely, efficiently and more humanely than can government.

Looking at the high cost of occupation in Iraq and the needs we have in this country, would it not have been better to have smaller tax cuts in order to keep down the deficits.

It's a terribly hard job to spend a billion dollars and get your money's worth.

When you talk about entitlement programs, it's not just about - it's not about cutting those programs. It is about saving those programs. Those programs are on a path of fiscal unsustainability.

There is no escape from the cost of public needs.

Government can’t deliver a free lunch to the country as a whole. It can, however, determine who pays for lunch.

Not all spending initiatives were designed to be immortal.

[The] up-and-down pattern of [defense] spending over the last 18 years averages out to below zero percent real growth. In other words, if defense spending had followed a path of zero percent real growth, the U.S. probably could have obtained more defense for its dollar.

The Democrats want to save more on defense so they can spend more money to buy votes through the welfare state.

It is a terribly hard job to spend a billion dollars and get your money's worth.

To deal with entitlements we must either raise taxes, cut benefits, or borrow inordinate amounts of money.

Every dime spent is a political decision made.

A budget must be more than a ledger sheet. It should have a heart and serve as a blueprint for a better quality of life for all residents.

The necessities of a nation in every stage of its existence will be found at least equal to its resources.

If you don’t have the budget, you can’t get anything done. That’s why bureaucrats are always fighting about budgets.

Government spending is not wasteful. The question is, “Is it necessary?”

We don’t care what the cost-benefit is. We’re going to build it somehow because Congress says it’s going to be built.