BRAC to balance the budget!

With all the debate these days over the debt ceiling and the need to cut spending, I’ve been pondering new, innovative, and relatively politically-palatable ideas for cutting federal spending. I can’t help but to keep coming back to the Base Realignment and Closure Commissions (BRAC) that have saved hundreds of billions of dollars for taxpayers by shutting down unneeded military bases.

I’d be interested in readers’ thoughts, but I’d be hard-pressed to come up with a more effective tool for cutting spending than BRAC. So, why not use similar commissions to build political support for (and overcome regional and special-interest objections to) spending reductions.

Specifically, I’m thinking that something along these lines could easily be used to sell off and dispose of federal lands and buildings and to close unnecessary military bases overseas. I also wonder if something similar could be used by the US Post Office which — although theoretically private — is still very much burdened by federal rules and regulations that cause it to lose billions of dollars annually.

I’d be very interested in reader input on this issue. I think it could be a real winner, but I’d like to hear thoughtful suggestions from all sides. What other areas of the federal (and state) budget could this procedure be used for? I’m thinking higher ed and closing branch campuses, but am open to other ideas.