# Perry Johnson (Republican presidential candidate) - anyone know anything about him? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [May 7, 2023, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/perry-johnson-republican-presidential-candidate-anyone-know-anything-about-him/983689 "2023-05-07T02:36:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2023, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/perry-johnson-republican-presidential-candidate-anyone-know-anything-about-him/983689/1 "2023-05-07T02:36:27Z")
The library I volunteer at has received, to my knowledge, 3 copies of his book, “Two Cents To Save America.” We cannot resell them, nor can the library put them into circulation, because the copies we have received so far have been uncorrected proofs, and they appear to be part of a mass mailing because one of them showed up at the library in shrinkwrap, with a mailing label. What do Dopers know about him, or think about this? ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2023, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/perry-johnson-republican-presidential-candidate-anyone-know-anything-about-him/983689/2 "2023-05-07T02:48:01Z")
Perry Johnson is a businesses exceutive/consultant who spent $1.5 million of his own money to run for Governor of Michigan last year, only to fail to get enough signatures to even get on the ballot. His “two cent” idea is to cut Federal spending on discretionary programs by two percent every year until the deficit is wiped out. The idea has gotten some support in conservative circles. He’s been spending his time in Iowa and New Hampshire so far, trying to build some early momentum. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2023, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/perry-johnson-republican-presidential-candidate-anyone-know-anything-about-him/983689/3 "2023-05-07T03:26:10Z")
Thanks. Since I live in Iowa, that all makes sense - that he’s promoting himself so easy, not his policies as you have described them. ---
**Author:** ![ekedolphin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ekedolphin/32/10003_2.png) [@ekedolphin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ekedolphin)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2023, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/perry-johnson-republican-presidential-candidate-anyone-know-anything-about-him/983689/4 "2023-05-07T03:46:01Z")
> [@Kent\_Clark](#): > > His “two cent” idea is to cut Federal spending on discretionary programs by two percent every year until the deficit is wiped out. The idea has gotten some support in conservative circles. What discretionary programs? The usual GOP suspects such as Social Security, Medicare, and EBT? ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2023, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/perry-johnson-republican-presidential-candidate-anyone-know-anything-about-him/983689/5 "2023-05-07T05:12:49Z")
> [@Kent\_Clark](#): > > His “two cent” idea is to cut Federal spending on discretionary programs by two percent every year until the deficit is wiped out. The idea has gotten some support in conservative circles. Compared to the usual Republican plan to decrease the deficit by cutting taxes, this one seems almost sensible. I don’t for a moment think they’d follow through on this plan. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2023, 5:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/perry-johnson-republican-presidential-candidate-anyone-know-anything-about-him/983689/6 "2023-05-07T05:38:34Z")
In what possible way does 2% equal 2 cents? ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2023, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/perry-johnson-republican-presidential-candidate-anyone-know-anything-about-him/983689/7 "2023-05-07T05:47:38Z")
> [@ekedolphin](#): > > What discretionary programs? The usual GOP suspects such as Social Security, Medicare, and EBT? Social Security and Medicare aren’t, in fact, classified to be “discretionary spending” by the Federal government. This site shows how the Federal budget breaks down; for the current fiscal year, 63% of the budget is allotted to “mandatory” (non-discretionary) spending, spending for which is authorized by specific laws. This includes Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, CHIP, SNAP, federal and military retirement payments, veterans’ disability compensation, some farm price support programs, child care assistance, highway and transit assistance, and some community health programs. Of the remaining budget, 14% is discretionary defense spending, 16% is non-defense discretionary spending, and 8% is interest payments on the government’s debts. > **[Policy Basics: Introduction to the Federal Budget Process | Center on Budget...](https://www.cbpp.org/research/policy-basics-introduction-to-the-federal-budget-process)** > > No single piece of legislation establishes the annual federal budget. Congress makes spending and tax decisions through a variety of legislative actions in ways that have evolved over more than two centuries. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2023, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/perry-johnson-republican-presidential-candidate-anyone-know-anything-about-him/983689/8 "2023-05-07T05:51:17Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > Compared to the usual Republican plan to decrease the deficit by cutting taxes, this one seems almost sensible. Given that only 30% of the total budget is “discretionary spending,” and nearly half of that is defense spending, even if it were enacted (unlikely – can you picture Congress actually agreeing to cut defense spending by 2% every year), I’m not sure how well it would work to significantly decrease the deficit. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2023, 5:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/perry-johnson-republican-presidential-candidate-anyone-know-anything-about-him/983689/9 "2023-05-07T05:56:10Z")
I can see defense spending being exempt quietly behind the scenes, and the rest being 2% to death. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2023, 6:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/perry-johnson-republican-presidential-candidate-anyone-know-anything-about-him/983689/10 "2023-05-07T06:06:28Z")
I could see that, too, though it’d take a very long time, at that rate, to erase the deficit. [The Federal budget for last fiscal year was $6.27 trillion](https://fiscaldata.treasury.gov/americas-finance-guide/federal-spending/). Discretionary non-defense spending is ~16% of that, or roughly $1 trillion. Cutting that 16% by 2% this year would cut about $20 billion – but the federal deficit is [currently projected to be ~$1.4 trillion for this fiscal year](https://www.cbo.gov/topics/budget); cutting $20 billion in discretionary spending would only reduce the deficit by about 1.4%. Even if you cut discretionary non-defense spending to zero, today, that would _still_ not wipe out the deficit. This reminds me a bit of the “[9-9-9](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/9%E2%80%939%E2%80%939_Plan)” tax plan that Herman Cain championed when he ran for president in 2012 – it’s catchy, it’s simple, and it probably won’t actually work in real life, but a lot of people like the idea of a simple solution to a complex problem. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2023, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/perry-johnson-republican-presidential-candidate-anyone-know-anything-about-him/983689/11 "2023-05-07T13:45:19Z")
Two cents out of every dollar. Catchy, right? ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2023, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/perry-johnson-republican-presidential-candidate-anyone-know-anything-about-him/983689/12 "2023-05-07T13:51:43Z")
I weigh 200 pounds. I won’t miss a pound (or two) of flesh. ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2023, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/perry-johnson-republican-presidential-candidate-anyone-know-anything-about-him/983689/13 "2023-05-07T13:59:45Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > the copies we have received so far have been uncorrected proofs > [@Czarcasm](#): > > In what possible way does 2% equal 2 cents? It was clearly a typo, and should have been “Two 'cents”. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2023, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/perry-johnson-republican-presidential-candidate-anyone-know-anything-about-him/983689/14 "2023-05-07T15:51:57Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > Cutting that 16% by 2% this year would cut about $20 billion – but the federal deficit is [currently projected to be ~$1.4 trillion for this fiscal year](https://www.cbo.gov/topics/budget); cutting $20 billion in discretionary spending would only reduce the deficit by about 1.4%. Even if you cut discretionary non-defense spending to zero, today, that would _still_ not wipe out the deficit. In his defense, every year there would be an _additional_ two percent cut. So, over time, it would have more impact. And perhaps tax revenues would continue to increase as the economy grows, and viola! ---
**Author:** ![Stratocaster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stratocaster/32/16393_2.png) [@Stratocaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stratocaster)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2023, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/perry-johnson-republican-presidential-candidate-anyone-know-anything-about-him/983689/15 "2023-05-07T17:50:40Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > Of the remaining budget, 14% is discretionary defense spending, 16% is non-defense discretionary spending, and 8% is interest payments on the government’s debts. How are interest payments on the debt discretionary? Not questioning you, just the logic… ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2023, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/perry-johnson-republican-presidential-candidate-anyone-know-anything-about-him/983689/16 "2023-05-07T17:53:12Z")
> [@Stratocaster](#): > > How are interest payments on the debt discretionary? Not questioning you, just the logic… I don’t think they are (and, they aren’t listed as “discretionary” spending on that website); it’s just that interest payments are in a different bucket from the non-discretionary spending that is (a) spending on a particular program, and (b) dictated by law. “Discretionary” spending appears to be spending which is covered under appropriations legislation. ---
**Author:** ![Stratocaster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stratocaster/32/16393_2.png) [@Stratocaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stratocaster)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2023, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/perry-johnson-republican-presidential-candidate-anyone-know-anything-about-him/983689/17 "2023-05-07T20:12:02Z")
Got it. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![crowmanyclouds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crowmanyclouds/32/19884_2.png) [@crowmanyclouds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crowmanyclouds)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2023, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/perry-johnson-republican-presidential-candidate-anyone-know-anything-about-him/983689/18 "2023-05-07T20:14:04Z")
> [@Horatius](#): > > > [@nearwildheaven](#): > > > > the copies we have received so far have been uncorrected proofs > > > [@Czarcasm](#): > > > > In what possible way does 2% equal 2 cents? > > It was clearly a typo, and should have been “Two 'cents”. It’s two cents cut from every dollar of ‘’‘’‘spending’‘’‘’. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2023, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/perry-johnson-republican-presidential-candidate-anyone-know-anything-about-him/983689/19 "2023-05-07T21:55:23Z")
He’s putting his two cents in.