Yeah, you know the next line. It looks like the corrupt party has once again outfoxed the stupid party (as Democratic strategist Pat Caddell likes to characterize them) once again up on Capitol Hill.

For example, the final cuts in the deal are advertised as $38.5 billion less than was appropriated in 2010, but after removing rescissions, cuts to reserve funds and reductions in mandatory spending programs, discretionary spending will be reduced only by $14.7 billion.

White House officials said throughout the process that the composition of the cuts was more important than the top-line number, and that including mandatory cuts allowed that top-line to grow while limiting the immediate impact of the cuts.

So, the vast majority of the “cuts” were monies that weren’t going to be spent in the first place.

I don’t know whether to laugh or cry.