Washington Fails To Stand By Your Side

Op-Ed

Washington Fails To Stand By Your Side

On Sunday, April 26, Washington will start paying for government programs by borrowing money rather than using its revenue. This means that all of the money spent by Washington the rest of this year will either be borrowed from other countries or borrowed from future generations, exacerbating our already mounting federal debt.

It is no secret that the American people are facing a very tough economic climate. Families and small businesses are cutting back on expenses, and millions of Americans have lost their jobs. As retirement accounts dwindle and economic uncertainty continues many are looking for their government to share the burden during this difficult time. Unfortunately, Washington seems either reluctant or outright opposed to doing their fair share.

Instead of supplying pro-growth solutions, President Obama and the Democrat-controlled Congress have responded to the call with unprecedented spending of taxpayers' dollars. The stimulus package that passed in February cost $787 billion, but to pay for the bill our government is going to have to borrow more money, bringing the total cost of the bill to $1.1 trillion. The alternative plan I supported would have provided twice as many jobs at half the cost.

In addition, Congress passed a $410 billion omnibus spending bill with nearly 9,000 earmarks ignoring calls by my Republican colleagues and I for a spending freeze in order to curb government growth. Both bills were passed by Congress and signed into law forcing our children and grandchildren to foot the bill.

Most recently, the President proposed a budget that will dramatically increase the amount of debt in America. According to the Congressional Budget Office, the President's budget will produce $9.3 trillion in deficits over the next ten years. The national debt will double in eight years, and by 2012, the American people will be paying $1 billion per day in interest. Even some of my Democrat colleagues have declared that these policies are unsustainable.

Sadly, the total debt borne by the nation as a result of Congress and the Administration will cripple America's future. Currently, each American is on the hook for about $35,000 due to the national debt. Under the policies initiated by this Congress, that amount will double to $70,000 in just eight years. Doubling the debt is not the solution to our economic woes, nor is it fair to the millions of hard working taxpayers.

The American people know that we can't borrow and spend our way back to prosperity. The path to our economic recovery starts with fiscal responsibility in Washington. I believe that the federal government should follow the example set by our nation's families – tighten the budget and eliminate wasteful spending. The future of America depends on it.

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