Got this email from Senator Bayh:
Getting out of the red – Usually, politicians use their email newsletters to tout the benefits of government programs they voted to create, fund or continue. Today, I am emailing to tell you about the overstuffed appropriations bills I’ve voted against in 2009, because we can’t afford business as usual during this economic recession.
As you will see from the chart below, I have voted against thousands of earmark spending projects this year, including projects to study Monk Seals, combat Mormon crickets, renovate the Hoover building and recover oysters from Chesapeake Bay.
Indiana deserves to have an independent voice in the nation’s capital who will stand up for what’s right. I was one of only three members of my party to vote against the omnibus spending bill because it raised spending at three times the rate of inflation. I was one of only two to vote against the federal budget, because I believe it’s irresponsible for America to keep spending money we do not have.
Before the year is out, Congress will vote to raise the federal debt ceiling again, authorizing Washington to borrow even more than the record $12 trillion we already owe. I won’t do it…not unless Congress commits to a strict new, non-political process to start getting our country’s fiscal house in order.
Enough is enough.
Each citizen’s share of the debt now exceeds $38,000. When our deficits grow, we are forced to spend more and more taxpayer money on interest payments. That money would be better spent on health care for our citizens, education for our kids and tax relief for middle-class families.
We can’t keep charging to the national credit card. Washington needs a credible plan to pay its bills. Last week, I stood up in the Senate and told my colleagues so. (Watch my testimony here.)
Tags: earmarks, Evan Bayh, National Debt