Lansing State Journal: Spending Cuts Include Tough Choices

Our nation is drowning in $14 trillion of debt, and we are adding another $1.5 trillion in deficit spending next year alone. According to the Congressional Budget Office, the federal government reported the largest monthly deficit in its history last month, $223 billion. That's right; we have never had a monthly deficit this large in the history of the United States...EVER. This is a record that we should not be proud to break.

Something's got to change. I ran and was elected to Congress because I am committed to being a part of that change, which requires cuts in unnecessary spending. But this is not as easy as it sounds. We are going to have to make responsible and temporarily difficult decisions if we want to realize the gain of a stable federal budget and growing, job-producing economy. These crucial choices will not be easy, but they're certainly necessary.

I have already supported a repeal of the healthcare law that saves $700 billion and cuts in annual discretionary spending of over $100 billion. And I have started to take the necessary but difficult steps to cut spending in areas that affect me.

In February, I passed through the House an amendment to save taxpayers $20 million by cutting the FY2011 budget of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). As a patron and former finance chair of a local arts organization, I appreciate and support the arts, but believe this was a necessary cut in these tough times. The funding cut would return the NEA to the 2006 funding levels yet allow it to remain an active participant in supporting the arts.

Recently, some people, including this newspaper, have expressed concern over the changes in funding for Michigan Works! programs. While I value job assistance programs like Michigan Works!, we must realize that this budget requires us to look at the need and effectiveness of every program. According to a recent non-partisan Government Accountability Office report, not all job training programs are as effective as they should be. In fact, the report stated that there is overlap in 44 out of the 47 federally-funded job assistance programs, including the program associated with Michigan Works! And according to statistics kept by one Michigan Works! affiliate, only 15% of the participants who went through their entire program obtained a job. We can and must do better. We need to cut unnecessary spending to help grow the economy because all the training in the world will not help if there are only limited job opportunities. There are many Michigan organizations, businesses, and families who have had to make difficult choices and cut their own budgets by upwards of 25% in order to survive. Government-supported programs should be no different.

If we are going to overcome these difficult economic times and bring jobs back to Michigan, we must then make some tough choices and cut spending even on programs we like. The resulting growing economy will ultimately make it all worth it.

This editorial was published in the Lansing State Journal on March 17, 2011.