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Dear
Dr. Sucsy:
Thank
you for contacting me regarding the federal budget and efforts to reduce the
size of government. I appreciate your comments and share your frustration with
Washington’s inability to restrain spending.
On
March 1, 2013, an across-the-board reduction, or sequester, of $85 billion for
Fiscal Year 2013 went into effect. This sequester amounts to 2.4 percent of the
federal budget. Although the federal budget is on an unsustainable path,
President Obama’s failed tax-and-spend agenda continues to sink us deeper and
deeper in the red. Instead of trying to scare the American people into
believing that government is not big enough, he should immediately put forward a
plan that addresses this issue and launch serious, transparent budget
negotiations. After all, the American people deserve a reliable and honest
budget that holds Washington accountable for its reckless spending habit.
And
on March 23, 2013, for the first time in almost 100 years, the Senate passed a
budget (S.Con.Res. 8) prior to receiving the President’s own budget proposal for
the upcoming fiscal year. Unfortunately, S.Con.Res. 8���the Senate’s first
budget in over 1,400 days���raises taxes by $1.5 trillion, increases spending by
60 percent, and adds $7.3 trillion to a national debt that already eclipses our
entire economy. S.Con.Res. 8 grossly exacerbates Washington’s spending problems
and therefore I voted against the proposal.
I
am also disappointed that the President again failed to comply with the law,
which requires him to submit a budget by the first Monday of February. In fact,
the President has failed to timely submit a budget four out of five times. For
these reasons, I introduced the No Budget, No OMB Pay Act of 2013 (S. 620).
This legislation would withhold the pay of the Administration’s top budget
officials for every day the President’s budget is late. Texans do not get paid
for not doing their job; neither should Washington bureaucrats.
I
recognize the importance of funding programs that support our national defense,
protect our borders, and care for our veterans and the need to make sure that
each dollar is spent wisely. Our national debt is now over $16
trillion���making it larger than our entire economy���and it has increased by
more than 50 percent since the beginning of the Obama Administration. We are
spending more than $30,000 per household and borrowing more than 40 cents of
every dollar we spend. Like you, I am worried about how excessive government
spending and regulations dampen job creation and I am more determined than ever
to implement the spending cuts and structural entitlement reforms that are
needed to secure the long-term fiscal integrity of our country. After all,
every dollar borrowed today means higher taxes tomorrow if Washington does not
reduce its appetite to spend recklessly.
The
biggest fiscal problem in Washington is excessive spending. If we do not reduce
spending and reform our three biggest entitlement programs���Medicare, Medicaid,
and Social Security���then we will strangle economic growth, destroy jobs, and
reduce our standard of living. With annual deficits of more $1 trillion, and
with more than $100 trillion in unfunded liabilities hanging over us, our
toughest fiscal decisions cannot be postponed any longer. The President does
not deserve another blank check to spend Texans’ hard earned money, which is why
I opposed House Resolution 325 (H.R. 325; P.L. 113-3), which temporarily
suspended the debt limit until May 19, 2013, adding approximately $400 billion
to the national debt. This is unacceptable.
Because
of Washington’s runaway spending, I support adding a Balanced Budget Amendment
to the United States Constitution. I have introduced Senate Joint Resolution 7
(S.J. Res. 7), a bill that would require the federal government to balance its
budget each year unless two-thirds of each House of Congress decided otherwise.
In addition, S.J. Res. 7 would require a supermajority vote to increase taxes
and the debt limit. I am also a cosponsor of the Dollar-for-Dollar Deficit
Reduction Act (S. 43), which would require that any debt limit increase also
include an equal amount of spending cuts. Families across Texas have to balance
their budgets and make tough choices to live within their means. There is no
reason Washington should operate any differently. The American people want
fiscal discipline, and the Balanced Budget Amendment and the Dollar-for-Dollar
Deficit Reduction Act would deliver it.
I
am honored to represent Texas in the United States Senate, and you may be
certain that I will keep hardworking taxpayers in mind as I fight to curb
excessive government spending. Thank you for taking the time to contact
me.
Sincerely,
JOHN
CORNYN
United
States Senator
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