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From Akron to Ozark, Your Thoughts on Wasteful Spending and National 401k Plans

By Ramya Raghavan

YouTube News and Politics

Last Tuesday, Senator Claire McCaskill (D-MO) and Representative Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) launched Round 2 of YouTube Senator/Representative of the Week by asking you to offer your thoughts on two important issues facing Congress right now: how to eliminate wasteful spending and whether 401k plans should be nationalized.


On the Senate Hub, you put forth 77 insightful suggestions in response to McCaskill's question about how the United States could cut back on wasteful spending. Bill from Ozark, Missouri, suggested that the government "stop the 'cost-plus' arrangement that allows a contractor to name its own price for services rendered," while pbg22 advised,"Don't limit your search to the traditional military and R&D projects. I work in transportation and contract waste is everywhere." Here Senator McCaskill responds to the ideas you voted to the top of the pile:

Over on the House Hub, respondents overwhelmingly agreed that 401k plans should not be nationalized -- Trevor from Akron, Ohio, was so horrified at the idea of nationalization that "upon viewing this video, the Pepsi I was drinking came shooting out my nose and I began to cough." Meanwhile, Gary from Texas offered this rationale for why he didn't support nationalization: "Nationalizing 401k [plans] de-emphasizes the basic premise of our work ethic. It provides an avenue for 'Big Government' to impose additional administrative fees [tax] for earmark spending." For Representative McMorris Rodgers' response, watch this video:

If you have thoughts about either of these issues, but didn't submit them the House Hub or Senate Hub on time, you can still join the conversation by posting a video response or adding a comment to either McCaskill's or McMorris Rodgers' response video.