Submitted by Tom on Sat, 2009-11-21 13:01
While Iowa’s middle class families struggle harder to live within their means during these tough economic times, the same can’t be said of Representative Tom Latham when it comes to spending the taxpayers’ money. Yesterday, Latham had an opportunity to back up his rhetoric about fiscal responsibility by voting to restore the pay-as-you-go principles that House Republicans let expire under George Bush. Latham’s response? No.
“When Republicans controlled Congress, they let pay-as-you-go become a thing of the past. Now, even as his own constituents are forced to pay as they go when it comes to affording gas, groceries, and health care, Representative Tom Latham says no to restoring pay-as-you-go in Washington,” said Ryan Rudominer, National Press Secretary for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. “Iowa’s children and grandchildren deserve better than Representative Latham’s ‘do as I say but not as I do’ approach to restoring fiscal responsibility.”
Background
· The Medicare Physician Payment Reform Act will reestablish “Pay-As-You-Go” (PAYGO) policy as federal law by requiring future tax cuts and mandatory spending legislation be budget neutral, enforced by automatic across-the-board spending cuts for federal programs [H.R. 3961, #909, 11/19/09].
· PAYGO was federal law in the middle 1990s, under President Clinton, when record deficits were turned into three straight years of budget surpluses.
o Under President Bush and Congressional Republicans, PAYGO was allowed to expire, resulting in policies that eliminated the Clinton surpluses and created massive new deficits.
· Representative Tom Latham on the need for fiscal responsibility:
* “I’ll continue to push for fiscally responsible policies based on sound economic principles that will lead us through this time of economic uncertainty and back toward prosperity. I look forward to working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to chart a course forward and prove to the American people that Congress can put progress before partisanship.” [Source]
· Earlier this year, Republican Leader John Boehner cited the need to restore fiscal discipline. Leader Boehner said, “President Obama has called for both parties to get serious about fiscal responsibility. With our budget deficit potentially reaching $3 trillion this year, Republicans stand ready to work with him, and we believe we should start right now.” [CNBC; 2/23/09]