Wednesday, August 23, 2006

Getting the Message Across




For those of you who would like to help but do not no what you can do I have written a generic letter that you can send to your member of Congress. Feel free to edit it if you'd like and be sure to put the name of the person you are sending the letter to in the space that reads "(name of your member of Congress)" and put your name in the space that reads "(your name) In addition to sending a letter it would also be helpful to call your representative's office. To find your district's representative in the House click here. To find your state's delegation to the Senate click here. If you are going to write a letter I would suggest you send it to one of the offices that your representative has in your state or district. These letters generally are given more attention than those that are e-mailed or sent to Washington.

Sunday, August 13, 2006

An apology to our youth

"The principle of spending money
to be paid by posterity is but swindling futurity on a large scale."
Thomas Jefferson


The following is an open letter from Ed Hinders of Canyon, Texas. The copy that appeared in Hinder's local newspaper was accompianied by charts and tables demonstrating the severity of the national debt.



I aplogize to the Youth of America for the failure of my generation to be responsible stewards of our financial status, as we are transferring our debt to you with less ability to pay for it. This is indicated by the rapid deterioration since 1982 of the twin deficits, which are: 1) gross federal debt / gross domestic product (GDP), and 2) international trade deficit.

At the end of the Carter administration and the beginning of the Reagan administration, our debt was $995 billion, and the GDP $3.061 trillion (or 32.5% of GDP). This was the lowest and best debt/GDP ratio since WWII.

Today, our debt is $7.905 trillion, and the GDP is $12.290 trillion (or 64.3% of GDP). This is the result of our debt increasing much faster than the economy during the Reagan, Bush 41, and Bush 43 administrations.

In the 12 years of the Reagan and Bush 41 administrations, the debt grew 437% while the economy grew only 214%. During the 1st term of Bush 43, the economy grew 123% while the debt grew 137%.

During the 8 years of the Clinton administration, the debt grew 133% while the economy grew 153%. The debt/GDP ratio declined during the clinton years as the ecenomy grew faster than debt.

In 1982 our international trade surplus was over $225 billion and we were the world's largest creditor nation. By 1986 we were the world's largest debtor nation, and today our cumulative trade deficit is $5.2 trillion. In 2005 our trade deficit was a record $782 billion.

Do these deficits matter? Yes. By the end of this decade it is estimated that our national interest cost will be more than all discretionary spending combined, meaning less government services and increased taxes. If we do nothing about our trade deficits, others will claim our assets and incomes. This means they will increase control over politics and our freedoms will be reduced.

Is this a moral issue? It should be. Why have many Christians been AWOL on this issue? It is high time that the American People regained control of America. We need to get the facts, get involved in politics, and vote for candidates who have the vision to honor, rather than burden, our Youth.

Our Youth are depending on us.


Ed Hinders
Canyon, TX
Thank you Mr. Hinders for your letter!

Friday, August 04, 2006

A reply from Sue Myrick

After waiting over six months and receiving no response I sent Myrick's office a letter voicing my frustration over her not responding. Guess what. They got back to me within three days! While this letter contained more empty promises and misrepresentations it was a response. It would be interesting to get the generic letters that other members of Congress send to people concerned about the debt. I'd bet that every one of them would say they supported reducing the debt. Of course none of them would follow up this claim but, that's just the way politics works.
Interestingly enough Myricks office put me on her mailing list and I am now receiving these generic letters on all kinds of issues that I never contacted them about now.

Dear Friend,
Thank you for contacting me to express your feelings on the direction
of the 109th Congress. I appreciate your taking the time to share your
thoughts on this important issue.

You are not alone in your frustration. Hardworking Americans like you
have every right to be upset about irresponsible government spending and
pork projects included in the budget, especially in times of financial
duress. I want you to know that I am just as frustrated as you are. As
a member of the House Republican Study Committee, I have been working
hard to promote fiscal restraint and to reduce wasteful government
spending.

With the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005, we were able to pass the first
ever reduction in mandatory spending, slowing the growth rate of
entitlement programs from 6.4% to 6.3%. This is a small step, but any
reduction is better than uncontrolled growth. Together with other provisions
in the bill, this change will help to reduce the federal deficit by
$39.7 billion over the next five years. The Deficit Reduction Act was a
major victory for fiscal conservatism, especially in light of the ongoing
War on Terrorism and devastating hurricanes in the Gulf Coast.

I assure you that my colleagues and I are trying to reign in the
out-of-control spending, and will continue to do everything in our power to
prevent uncontrollable debt from becoming the norm. This year, the RSC,
which includes approximately 100 House conservatives, introduced an
FY2007 Budget based on the 1995 Contract With America Budget. It balanced
the budget by FY2011, eliminated over 150 federal programs, reduced
discretionary spending and reduced the deficit by $392 billion over 5
years. I wholeheartedly supported this bill.

I truly believe in fiscal discipline and reform. I believe all of my
colleagues should support a bill that balances the budget, protects tax
relief, strengthens our national defense and continues the process of
reforming runaway entitlements. However, the reality is, most of my
colleagues do not support these goals. The RSC Budget failed 94-331 on May
11, 2006. This is what we're up against, and I hope you can understand
my frustration.

Besides budget reform, the House has also undertaken significant ethics
legislation to ward off future incidences of improper behavior by
Members of Congress. Like you, I believe that your representatives in
Washington must uphold a high standard of ethical conduct, and that we must
be held accountable for the actions we take while in office. The
appearance of corruption is not to be taken lightly, and Americans deserve to
know that their Representatives are serving the best interests of their
districts, not special interests.

To that end, last month the House passed H.R. 4975, the Lobbying
Transparency and Accountability Act. This bill takes some important steps
toward eliminating the possibility of questionable relationships between
lawmakers and lobbyists. It requires more frequent, electronic filing of
lobbying disclosure reports, and it makes these records available to
the public over the internet. It also increases the penalties for
violating lobbying disclosure regulations, and gives the House Inspector
General's Office the authority to randomly audit lobbying records to ensure
compliance. You can rest assured that my colleagues and I will continue
to explore options for ensuring ethical conduct on the part of every
Member of the House of Representatives.

Finally, the outcry over the recent search of Congressman William
Jefferson's office has led many to believe that Members of Congress are
above the law. I couldn't disagree more. I strongly believe that Members
should be held accountable to the same laws as every other U.S. citizen.
To that end, I have signed on as a cosponsor of Representative Ginny
Brown-Waite's Resolution expressing this very sentiment.

Thanks again for sharing your views with me. I hope you will continue
to do so. For more information on what we are doing for you in Congress,
visit www.myrick.house.gov and sign up for my eNewsletter.

Sincerely,

Sue Myrick
Member of Congress