Corresponding with Carol…

As a general rule, I’m not one to fire off a letter to my Member of Congress.  Typically, I feel it doesn’t do a whole lot of good.  They haven’t represented us in years and most letters are typically answered by staffers using form letters.

April
16, 2009
 
The Honorable Carol
Shea-Porter
United States House
of Representatives
1330 Longworth
House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
 
Dear
Congresswoman Shea-Porter:
 
I
was quite dismayed when I heard your reaction to the “Tax Day Tea Party
Protests” on WGIR AM610 this morning.  In
your interview, you stated that you were sure that those gathering to protest
yesterday would agree with a recent poll that stated a majority of Americans
agree that we needed to spend this money now. 
 
That
assertion could not be further from the truth. 
With all due respect, you could not be any more wrong.
 
People
are angry with their Government and they have every right to be.  Washington
stopped listening to us decades ago.  Americans
are struggling right now, and this new Congress and this new Administration
have just added trillions more in spending that we just can’t afford.
 
You
also said that President Obama inherited a trillion dollar deficit.  While that is absolutely true, you failed to
mention that President Obama and this Congress have added trillions more.  The President’s stimulus plan, which went unread
by every member of Congress–including you–contained
items such as:
 

 
I
ask you, Congresswoman Shea-Porter : How could we need to spend this money when no one in Washington even knew what
was in the bill to begin with? It is precisely this kind of spending that the
Tax Day Tea Party protests were rallying against.
 
The
people who rallied yesterday not only believe this spending to be unnecessary,
we also believe it to be irresponsible.  All
Congress does is take a larger percentage of our money and never once do they
tighten the belt and reduce spending.
 
In
the last year I’ve lost my home and my job. 
How do I get you folks in Washington to see that you already get enough money?  I have to scale back my spending and draw clear priorities. 
 
Why
can’t you?
 
Sincerely,
William
E. Smith

Dear William:

Thank you for contacting my office regarding government spending.

The 111th Congress and President Obama have inherited a massive budget deficit and the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. Over the past few months, Congress has passed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the Fiscal Year 2009 Appropriations bill, and the Fiscal Year 2010 Budget Resolution.  All of these bills are intended to help the country recover from the economic downturn and fund programs that will help the economy grow in the future.

The goal of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act is to create jobs and help jumpstart the economy in the short-term.  By investing in critical infrastructure needs, providing a tax cut for 95% of working Americans, and helping businesses create new green jobs, Congress puts a specific emphasis on helping working men and women during these tough economic times. While this legislation did have a significant cost, the losses that our economy could have suffered had we not taken action would have cost the country far more. In addition to the Recovery Act, Congress had to enact legislation, the Fiscal Year 2009 Omnibus Appropriations bill to keep the federal government operating through the 2009 Fiscal Year.

On April 2, 2009 both the House and Senate passed separate budget resolutions for Fiscal Year 2010. These bills were slightly different and will have to be negotiated and passed gain in order for the budget to be finalized. However, the budget does not require the signature of the President and therefore does not have the rule of law. The budget is an outline of what the Congress believes are the priorities we must address. This is why this budget makes investments in modernizing education, making college more affordable, and fixing our broken health care system. In order to address the serious problems of the future, we must take action now and make investments that will control costs and make our economy more competitive.

I continue to be extremely concerned with the debt of our country. As Congress works to restore our economy and make investment in our future, I will continue to advocate for fiscally responsible policies.

Sincerely,

Carol Shea-Porter
Member of Congress