Government Spending Cuts

I e-mailed Rep. Neugebauer suggesting that the Federal debt limit should not be raised. Our problem is government overspending. He replied with a form letter concerning details of the Cut/Cap/Balance bill passed by the House. My latest e-mail covers the futility of that bill

Randy,
I am opposed to your Cut/Cap/Balance bill for the following reasons:

The bill requires a spending cut of $111 billion per year. The government is now overspending by $4 billion per day. That's $1.46 trillion per year. $111 Billion per year is 7.6% of what is needed to create balance. Is this a joke or have I missed something?

The "Cap" portion requires a reduction from 25% to 19.7%, and that only after seven years. This is an absolute reduction of 5.3%. US GDP is $14.7 trillion. 5.3% Of that means a spending cut of $779 billion per year. Since we are overspending by $1.46 trillion per year, we will still be overspending after seven years at the rate of $681 billion per year or almost $2 billion per day. Is this another joke?

The Balanced Budget Amendment sounds good. If I take it at its apparent meaning, it would mean that we would be overspending zero dollars per day. My only hesitation is the meaning of "budget". That term has come to mean a hoped-for situation, which can be easily ignored depending upon apparent circumstances.

-----Original Message-----
Sent: Monday, July 25, 2011 8:51 AM
To: 'Arthur Sucsy'
Subject: RE: No Reason to Raise Federal Debt Limit

Thank you for contacting me regarding the debt ceiling. I share your concerns about the future of our country if Washington fails to make significant spending cuts. We have a government that spends too much, borrows too much, and taxes too much. As your Representative, my top priority in Congress is to rein in spending and clean up this mess before it is too late.

As you know, Washington continues to grapple with the need to raise the debt limit, which currently stands at $14.29 trillion. Earlier this year, the Treasury Department sent a letter to Congress indicating that August 2nd would be the last day the U.S. government would be able to pay all of its bills without an increase in the debt limit. Washington has maxed out its credit card and it is time for serious and significant change.

To shift the direction our country is headed, my colleagues and I have created a responsible plan that would require fundamental change before any increase in the debt ceiling could occur. This legislation, called Cut, Cap and Balance, would put our country back on a sustainable fiscal path and bring Washington back to reality. The House of Representatives passed Cut, Cap and Balance on July 19th by a vote of 234 to 190.

Here are some of the details of this bill:

CUT- The bill requires $111 billion in spending cuts in the 2012 fiscal year. These cuts would happen now, not years in the future. Now. Additionally, while ensuring that wasteful spending gets weeded out, this legislation makes absolutely no changes or cuts to Social Security, Medicare, veterans, or national defense spending.

CAP- This legislation also caps government spending as a percent of GDP, eventually lowering it to 19.7% in 2018 compared to approximately 25% today. Most importantly, breaking the caps set in place triggers automatic spending cuts. By using spending caps, we would lock in $5.8 trillion in budget savings over the next ten years.

BALANCE- Finally, this legislation grants President Obama's request for an increase in the debt limit, but only after Congress has cut up the credit cards by passing a Balanced Budget Amendment. It would require the passage of a Balanced Budget Amendment to the Constitution before allowing any increase in the nation's debt limit. Basically, the debt limit will only be increased for the short term if a Balanced Budget Amendment gets our fiscal house in order for the long term.

For too long, Congress spent your hard-earned tax dollars without thinking about the consequences. With this legislation, Washington would finally have to do what families and businesses do every day - balance the budget.

Please be assured that I will continue to fight for a stronger America which includes reducing spending and balancing the budget.

Again, thank you for contacting me about this issue. As your Congressman, I value your input and I hope that you will always contact me with your concerns. Hearing your views helps me be sure that I represent you and your family even better while I have the honor of representing you in Congress.