jimmy
03-04-2009, 05:33 AM
So, I emailed my Indiana Congressman to find out what he thought of the stimulus bill. This was his response:
Dear Mr. jimmy kool d:
Thank you for contacting me in regards to H.R. 1, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. It is a pleasure to hear from you.
Our nation is confronted by a financial crisis of a magnitude many of us never expected to see in our lifetimes. As I write you this letter, the unemployment rate in Indiana has increased above 8 percent, leaving far too many Hoosiers without a job and many others worried that they will be next. Americans are concerned about how the government is confronting this challenge, and they are right to expect their elected representatives to act decisively.
It will take time and a willingness to pursue solutions consistent with the principles that make America great: personal responsibility, fiscal discipline, and a belief in free markets. By following these time-honored principles, we can put ourselves back on the path toward economic growth.
Presidents John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan - members of different political parties - followed these principles and brought our nation back from the economic brink. Following the devastating attacks of September 11, 2001, President George W. Bush applied these principles to ease market tension and stimulate economic growth.
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act does not make the tough choices required of the government in these difficult economic times. Under the guise of a stimulus, this bill was brought forth to fund the spending priorities of the majority in Congress. What Hoosiers need in these tough economic times is a bill that will stimulate the economy by creating more jobs, not legislation that creates more government and more debt. It has become painfully obvious that the spending prerogatives of some in Congress will not put our nation back on the path towards a growing economy, and working Americans on Main Street will be expected to foot the bill.
Here are just a few of the questionable, non-stimulative funding priorities that are found in the legislation signed into law by President Obama:
o $2 billion for the Neighborhood Stabilization Fund, providing funds to organizations such as ACORN, which has been accused of practicing unlawful voter registration in recent elections;
o $1.1 billion for health care effectiveness research, which may eventually lead to be used to sanction government rationing of health care; and,
o $90 million to provide one-on-one education to those needing assistance hooking up a digital television converter box
I have respectfully asked my colleagues many times: what do these programs have to do with creating job growth?
While I believe the president and Congress were right to call for swift action, I did not believe this legislation was the right solution. I did not come to Washington to expand the size and scope of the federal government, and I did not come to Washington to place a burden of debt on future generations of Americans.
Swift action also must not come at the expense of transparency and good government. The select few who took part in writing the one thousand page bill did not make the text available until a few hours before the House was to vote on its contents.
It is important that the federal government do something, but it is even more important that it do the right thing. For these reasons, I could not support the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Instead, I am proud to support an alternative which would have brought immediate help to every American through fast acting tax relief, not slow and wasteful government spending.
Under this alternative proposal, the lowest individual tax rates would be reduced from 15% to 10% and from 10% to 5%. As a result, every taxpaying family would see an immediate increase in their income; a married couple filing jointly could save up to $3,200 a year in taxes. Small businesses, which employ about half of all Americans, would also be able to take a tax deduction equal to 20% of their income. This would immediately free up capital for these businesses to retain and hire new employees. This plan, according to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), would be the most effective way of stimulating job growth in the short term while costing the American taxpayers approximately half the amount of H.R.1.
Furthermore, when using the economic model for job growth developed by President Obama's senior economic advisors, this alternative proposal would create 6.2 million new jobs within the next two years. On the contrary, the CBO projects that 60% of discretionary "stimulus" spending in H.R.1 will occur after 2010.
By ignoring the time-honored methods of promoting economic growth, I believe Congress missed a crucial opportunity. As the 111th Congress considers further economic rescue measures, I remain hopeful that we will turn to remedies based on releasing the power of our free enterprise system.
Again, thank you for contacting me. It is an honor to serve in the United States House of Representatives and have the benefit of your advice. If you would like more information on this or any other issue, please visit my website at http://mikepence.house.gov.
Letter Number: 2401209
Warmest regards,
Mike Pence
Member of Congress
---------------------------
I will hold off with my criticism of it for the moment. I mostly want to know what you guys think of it. Is he right? Or is he just playing politics?
Dear Mr. jimmy kool d:
Thank you for contacting me in regards to H.R. 1, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. It is a pleasure to hear from you.
Our nation is confronted by a financial crisis of a magnitude many of us never expected to see in our lifetimes. As I write you this letter, the unemployment rate in Indiana has increased above 8 percent, leaving far too many Hoosiers without a job and many others worried that they will be next. Americans are concerned about how the government is confronting this challenge, and they are right to expect their elected representatives to act decisively.
It will take time and a willingness to pursue solutions consistent with the principles that make America great: personal responsibility, fiscal discipline, and a belief in free markets. By following these time-honored principles, we can put ourselves back on the path toward economic growth.
Presidents John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan - members of different political parties - followed these principles and brought our nation back from the economic brink. Following the devastating attacks of September 11, 2001, President George W. Bush applied these principles to ease market tension and stimulate economic growth.
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act does not make the tough choices required of the government in these difficult economic times. Under the guise of a stimulus, this bill was brought forth to fund the spending priorities of the majority in Congress. What Hoosiers need in these tough economic times is a bill that will stimulate the economy by creating more jobs, not legislation that creates more government and more debt. It has become painfully obvious that the spending prerogatives of some in Congress will not put our nation back on the path towards a growing economy, and working Americans on Main Street will be expected to foot the bill.
Here are just a few of the questionable, non-stimulative funding priorities that are found in the legislation signed into law by President Obama:
o $2 billion for the Neighborhood Stabilization Fund, providing funds to organizations such as ACORN, which has been accused of practicing unlawful voter registration in recent elections;
o $1.1 billion for health care effectiveness research, which may eventually lead to be used to sanction government rationing of health care; and,
o $90 million to provide one-on-one education to those needing assistance hooking up a digital television converter box
I have respectfully asked my colleagues many times: what do these programs have to do with creating job growth?
While I believe the president and Congress were right to call for swift action, I did not believe this legislation was the right solution. I did not come to Washington to expand the size and scope of the federal government, and I did not come to Washington to place a burden of debt on future generations of Americans.
Swift action also must not come at the expense of transparency and good government. The select few who took part in writing the one thousand page bill did not make the text available until a few hours before the House was to vote on its contents.
It is important that the federal government do something, but it is even more important that it do the right thing. For these reasons, I could not support the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Instead, I am proud to support an alternative which would have brought immediate help to every American through fast acting tax relief, not slow and wasteful government spending.
Under this alternative proposal, the lowest individual tax rates would be reduced from 15% to 10% and from 10% to 5%. As a result, every taxpaying family would see an immediate increase in their income; a married couple filing jointly could save up to $3,200 a year in taxes. Small businesses, which employ about half of all Americans, would also be able to take a tax deduction equal to 20% of their income. This would immediately free up capital for these businesses to retain and hire new employees. This plan, according to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), would be the most effective way of stimulating job growth in the short term while costing the American taxpayers approximately half the amount of H.R.1.
Furthermore, when using the economic model for job growth developed by President Obama's senior economic advisors, this alternative proposal would create 6.2 million new jobs within the next two years. On the contrary, the CBO projects that 60% of discretionary "stimulus" spending in H.R.1 will occur after 2010.
By ignoring the time-honored methods of promoting economic growth, I believe Congress missed a crucial opportunity. As the 111th Congress considers further economic rescue measures, I remain hopeful that we will turn to remedies based on releasing the power of our free enterprise system.
Again, thank you for contacting me. It is an honor to serve in the United States House of Representatives and have the benefit of your advice. If you would like more information on this or any other issue, please visit my website at http://mikepence.house.gov.
Letter Number: 2401209
Warmest regards,
Mike Pence
Member of Congress
---------------------------
I will hold off with my criticism of it for the moment. I mostly want to know what you guys think of it. Is he right? Or is he just playing politics?