The Lonestar Weekly: April 21, 2011

The Budget Debate

Just as the federal government was set to shut the lights off because of an impasse on budget discussions, Senate Democrats, House Republicans, and the President reached an eleventh hour agreement on how much federal spending to cut from this year's budget. It's important to take a step back to remember how we got into this situation. Last year Democrats controlled the House, Senate, and White House, yet failed to pass a federal budget and not even one appropriations bill. In contrast, the House Republicans have shown leadership by passing a budget for the next fiscal year that addresses the long-term fiscal challenges we must face. But aside from the short-term measure that kept the government from shutting down, the Democrat-controlled Senate has refused to pass anything else. Not only are they unwilling to act, many have begun calling proposed Republican cuts "extreme.'

In his first major speech since announcing his reelection campaign, President Obama outlined his "vision' for reducing our debt. The first step towards fixing a problem is admitting you have one, and the President finally did this. Unfortunately this country is in dire need of a leader who will put forward a concrete plan to cut federal spending - not a visionary tale. This speech comes five months after the President's own fiscal commission provided evidence of the debt crisis, and after he put forth a budget proposal of his own that would triple the debt in ten years. Instead of demagoguing responsible proposals that reduce spending, I hope President Obama will withdraw his flawed budget and replace it with a detailed plan that focuses on spending cuts and facilitates economic growth. The President should seize this opportunity and come to the table with Republicans so that we can engage in a constructive debate and work together to get our nation's fiscal house back in order.

Rising Gas Prices

President Obama recently held an "Energy Town Hall" in Philadelphia to try and demonstrate he is working to alleviate rising gas prices and our reliance on foreign oil. I too share these goals; however, Texans already know that the answer to this problem lies in our ability to unlock America's vast energy resources here at home. Unfortunately the Administration is bent on pursuing backdoor policies that adversely affect energy prices for American families and businesses. The Senate recently voted on a critical amendment by Senators McConnell and Inhofe that would have prohibited the EPA from implementing backdoor cap-and-trade regulations. As many Texans know, administrative overreach by the EPA has taken over critical portions of our state's emissions program, threatening jobs in Texas and across the nation. Senate Democrats blocked this amendment, which ultimately failed to garner enough votes for passage. I have sent a letter requesting the President to examine the impact his damaging energy policies are having on the economy. Taking the boot off the neck of U.S. energy producers will over time lower prices, create jobs, and reduce our reliance on foreign sources.

I was thrilled to vote to repeal the Doggett Amendment -- the measure that cut our state off from $830 million in education dollars it was otherwise entitled to -- in the final budget agreement passed by Congress last week. Recently Senator Hutchison and I had introduced legislation to remove the extra requirements imposed on Texas by the Doggett Amendment, and I have been working with Education Secretary Arne Duncan to resolve this impasse to ensure that resources owed to Texas remain in Texas schools. Following a united effort from Texas Republicans in Washington and Austin, it is welcome news for our students and teachers. Politics have no place in what should be a simple equation that fairly distributes federal education dollars to each state. Texas schools would have been unfairly penalized during one of their most challenging budgeting years, and I hope these resources make their way to Texas classrooms as quickly as possible.

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