The Importance of Reducing Wasteful Government Spending

Press Release

Reducing government waste has been a top priority for me since arriving in Congress. Congress is charged with the power of the purse and that is a responsibility we cannot take lightly. As we face significant expenditures, such as the passage of the recent $700 billion Wall Street bailout bill, which I voted against, we have a responsibility to ensure that American tax dollars are being spent responsibly and do not get lost in wasteful spending.

It is common sense to American families that they cannot spend more than they have - yet far too frequently, this fundamental principle has been lost on a Congress that is too busy spending to pay attention to the bottom line. That is why I introduced the balanced budget amendment to the Constitution, H. J. Res. 1. Forty-nine out of fifty state governments, including Virginia, have a balanced budget requirement and it is long past time that the federal government does as well. I am pleased that over 160 Members of the House, both Republicans and Democrats, have signed onto my legislation, which ensures that the money our citizens work so hard to earn is not squandered on wasteful spending and programs.

My bipartisan legislation would amend the Constitution to require that total spending for any fiscal year not exceed total receipts and require the President to propose budgets to Congress that are balanced each year, while also providing an exception in times of national emergencies. This Constitutional amendment would force Congress to rein in government spending and make the tough choices among priorities.

In addition to balancing the budget Congress must make cutting wasteful government spending a priority. We must support measures to rein in the federal budget and reduce the national debt, including earmark reform, passing tighter budgets, reforming the budget process and giving the President the line item veto. These reforms will help us eliminate wasteful spending, increase Congressional accountability, and shrink the deficit. We must uphold the principles of fiscal responsibility and ensure that the hard-earned dollars of taxpayers are spent responsibly. We must continue to support these pro-growth policies which will strengthen our workforce, grow our economy and keep America competitive.

Congress has a clear choice. We can control spending, paving the way for a return to surpluses and ultimately paying down the national debt, or we can allow big spenders to lead us further down the road of chronic deficits and in doing so leave our children and grandchildren saddled with debt that is not their own. In these challenging times it is even more important for government to be fiscally responsible.

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