Rep. Nathan Deal’s Fiscal Responsibility Act is a simple proposition: if Congress runs a budget deficit, Congress should take a pay cut. That’s right, NOT a limit or freeze, but a pay CUT.
We need this bill more than ever!
And it’s one of the six pieces of the Downsize DC Agenda.
You may copy from or borrow this letter . . .
H.R. 4336, the Fiscal Responsibility Act (FRA) would trigger a Congressional pay cut for every year the federal government runs a deficit.
This is only fair. After all, when the country runs a deficit, that’s proof Congress isn’t doing a very good job. The FRA would give you a personal incentive to get federal spending under control.
In other words, the FRA will force you to DO YOUR JOB BETTER.
In the 1990’s, Democrats and Republicans worked together to limit the growth of government. The result was budget surpluses.
But both parties abandoned spending restraint in the 00’s. Because of a decade’s worth of irresponsibility, we can’t afford to merely limit spending anymore.
We need spending CUTS!
The United States simply cannot afford a government of this size. As economist Veronique de Rugy reports, our structural deficit is almost as large as that of Greece! http://reason.com/archives/2010/07/14/spending-can-be-cut
Raising taxes won’t work. If we gradually raised taxes to meet the $100 trillion in long-term, unfunded obligations, the economy might fall into a permanent depression. Certainly, the revenue targets would never be met.
History tells us that the ONLY way to permanently balance the budget is to reduce, reform, and cut government programs.
The FRA will give you credibility when you cut spending. You won’t be criticized for making hard spending cuts if the public sees you are willing to take a pay cut yourself.
Moreover, supporting the FRA will be politically beneficial, as the voters would be impressed that you are “putting your money where your mouth is” to get deficit spending under control.
And as Dr. de Rugy argues, voters LIKE spending cuts! http://reason.com/archives/2010/07/14/spending-can-be-cut
* There is no evidence that spending cuts reduce support for an incumbent government
* In Ireland (1987), Sweden, and Canada (both, 1994), governments drastically slashed spending . . . and were re-elected!Do your part to get America’s fiscal house in order. Pass the Fiscal Responsibility Act TODAY and get to work on balancing the budget!
It will prove to be one of the wisest moves of your political career.
END LETTER
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Jim Babka
President
DownsizeDC.org