100 Programs are Getting the Ax

President Obama said today after his first full Cabinet meeting that 100 federal programs are going to be cut in the next several weeks, and he's asked his Cabinet Secretaries to identify $100 million in savings. He pointed to a couple of examples of what he considers good moves to save money:

Veterans Affairs has cancelled or delayed 26 conferences, saving nearly $17.8 million, and they're using less expensive alternatives like videoconferencing. The USDA, under Secretary Vilsack, is working to combine 1,500 employees from seven office locations into a single facility in 2011, which we estimate will save $62 million over a 15-year lease term. Janet Napolitano at the Department of Homeland Security estimates that they can save up to $52 million over five years just by purchasing office supplies in bulk.

All of these things sound like reasonable moves to make. But amortizing the savings over multiple years overstates their value. And cutting $100 million isn't remotely a meaningful reduction in the budget. Obama said:

None of these savings by themselves are going to solve our long-term fiscal problems, but taken together they can make a difference, and they send a signal that we are serious about changing how government operates.

That first statement is correct. The second one--well, that's a lot more questionable.