Ron Paul has a point.

Does anyone know what the Department of Energy does? My gas prices go up every year. Oil prices go up at the whim of OPEC. We still have heavy restrictions on domestic oil exploration. Solar power goes where the tax benefits are highest. So What does DOE do? Have they acted to keep gas prices down? No. The 2009 Recovery Act gave DOE  $16.8 billion to promote energy efficiency. I have turned my home thermostat down to 69 and they have not sent me a check. The solar power companies, in the bankruptcy news, may have received  at least a $billion.

What does the department of education do? It still takes eight years for grade school and four years for high school. No progress there. College still takes four years and there is not a single college graduate I know that does not agree that at least two years are wasted. And colleges still grant degrees for which there are no jobs. A little trick that we play on students. "Congratulations, you have graduated with a degree that is of no value to securing yourself a job in today's job market. Have you considered graduate school?" Government regulations compel parents to send their children to schools that provide no education. Next time you get your tax bill, try not paying the education component. The Federal Government discourages homeschooling as if parental teaching could be worse than a teacher paid regardless of performance.

What does the fed do? The federal reserve has provided billions to foreign banks. They can not be audited by congress and the Fed chairman refuses to disclose who it provides money too. As Americans we are powerless to stop them and we have a president and most POTUS candidates who can not do any better.

Spencer Tracy starred in a 1948 movie, State of the Union, where he ran for president on the republican ticket. His cigar-smoking political advisor was asked,"What is the difference between democrats and republicans?" The advisor replied, "They are in power and we are not."

I fear that 64 years later, the response is still valid.

Ron Paul has a point. We could do away with many government departments and life would go on anyway. A sure acid test for the unessential.