RSC Update: Monday, December 14, 2009

From the Chairman

At every opportunity, the Democrats running Washington have taken the ‘government knows best’ approach to legislation dealing with the economy. Chairman Barney Frank’s financial regulatory bill passed by the House last week is no exception. Congress could have used the Republican proposal, H.R. 3310, as a starting point to implement appropriate reforms of the financial sector with little or no cost to taxpayers. Instead, the House passed a nearly 1,300 page bill that will make the notion that some institutions are ‘too-big-to-fail’ a permanent part of the American economy, while handing new power over to Washington.

Instead of ending the era of bailouts, Democrats are creating a permanent bailout fund that will ensure future government intervention. To paraphrase a famous movie line — if you build a bailout fund, bailouts will come.

Responsibility was once a cherished American principle, yet it has been absent from Washington for far too long. How else could Congress justify a permanent bailout bill, a much delayed 2,500 page appropriations bill with countless unnoticed provisions and earmarks, or the upcoming $1.8 trillion increase in the federal credit card limit? We need more conservatism in Washington demonstrating the understanding that when government runs wild, the entire country suffers.

Sincerely,

Congressman Tom Price, M.D.

Chairman, Republican Study Committee

Outlook – Here is a preview of upcoming Democrat proposals to advance their big-government, anti-taxpayer agenda.

· Although the bill has been ready for months, House Democrats have withheld the FY 2009 Defense appropriations bill until this week so they could use it to pass unpopular measures which either could not pass separately or on which they do not wish to take a separate vote. They will almost certainly use the troop funding measure to increase the federal debt limit by $1.8 trillion, and it is possible they could include other items as well.

· The Senate continues to debate health care, with Senate Democrat leaders seemingly ready to adopt almost any proposal whatsoever that can get 60 votes.

House Floor Activity – The following key legislation came through the House of Representatives last week.

· The House passed H.R. 4213, legislation that comes up every year to extend certain tax provisions, such as the ability to deduct state income or sales tax from one’s federal income tax burden. However, Democrats also included $32 billion in permanent tax increases to ‘pay for’ these temporary extensions of current tax policy.

· The House also passed H.R. 3288, a bill that contains six of the remaining seven FY 2010 appropriations bills. If this bill becomes law, Democrats will have increased non-defense discretionary spending by 85 percent in just two fiscal years.

· Finally, the House passed H.R. 4173, a nearly 1,300 page bill that will fundamentally remake the U.S. economy and ensure more bailouts in the future.