Once again Congressman Ford is showing us why we need him as our next U.S. Senator.On Thursday Congressman Ford joined with the Blue Dog Democrats in writing a letter to House Speaker Dennis Hastert calling on Congress to stay in town until our federal budget is fixed.
In a press release Ford and the Blue Dogs exclaimed, "Congress should not adjourn for its district work period until it has more honestly addressed raising the nation’s credit limit, U.S. Reps. Jim Cooper, Lincoln Davis, Harold Ford Jr. and John Tanner wrote in a March 15 letter to House Speaker Dennis Hastert, along with – other members of the fiscally conservative Blue Dog Coalition.
After borrowing record amounts of money to fund the federal government, the Bush administration has asked to raise the federal debt limit to $8.9 trillion to allow for more borrowing. House leaders have refused to hold a true debate or vote on the issue and have not exercised Congressional oversight of how the executive branch is spending taxpayer dollars, the Congressmen said.
“While Blue Dogs recognize the necessity for approving an increase in the debt limit, we believe it would be irresponsible to continue providing a ‘blank check’ for increased borrowing authority absent a meaningful commitment to protect taxpayers from even further increases in the national debt,” the Blue Dogs wrote.
The pending increase would raise the federal debt limit – similar to the credit line on a credit card – to $8.9 trillion, a $3 trillion hike since 2002. The national debt was $8.2 trillion at the time the Blue Dogs sent their letter to Speaker Hastert.
Blue Dogs have expressed support for a debt limit increase if it includes three provisions that would help ensure a similar increase is not needed again: pay-as-you-go rules that require all new legislation is paid for; a balanced budget; and a prohibition on using retirement money to pay for day-to-day government operations.
“Congress has abdicated its responsibility to hold hearings and allow a full debate on this important matter,” they wrote. “Together, we can leave the nation more secure for our children and grandchildren.”
The Blue Dog Coalition is a group of 37 moderate to conservative House Democrats known for their focus on fiscal responsibility."
The Republican Congress should be ashamed of themselves.
Instead of doing the right thing and addressing ways to help pay down our debt and being fiscally responsible, the Republicans once again took the easy road and raised the debt ceiling.
The Congressional Republicans do not care what consequences their actions bring to future generations.
They have made that crystal clear.
I am proud Congressman Ford is fighting for fiscal sanity in Washington D.C.
This is yet another reason why we need him in the U.S. Senate starting in 2007!
Read about Congressman Ford's brilliant fiscal record here!
