Country deserves a real change in the status quo

Simpler, Fairer, Flatter
There is widespread consensus that the current tax system is a complicated failure. It hinders the nation’s growth and allows the well-connected to manipulate the system for special breaks that are not available to everyday workers and small-town businesses. Our country deserves a tax code that is simple, fair, and good for growth. We should discard our needlessly complex and manipulative tax code, and replace it with a simplified system that promotes work, saving, and investment.

{mosads}Tough on China
But if we say we’re going to get tough on China, it’s about time we actually do it. Congress’ unwillingness to do anything about China is unacceptable. The public is angry at China, and for good reason. Economists say the yuan is undervalued by up to 40 percent — a distortion that likely explains the massive trade imbalance between the U.S. and China, and the loss of American jobs as manufacturers move overseas. Economic sanctions against China would show how seriously we take these concerns, stimulate American industry, and give our economy a much needed boost. China’s intentions are explicit: to be the world’s preeminent superpower.

Sticking to a budget: Our most fundamental responsibility
April 29, 2009 was the last time the United States Senate passed a budget. Since then, the national debt has increased by over $4 trillion to a staggering total of $15.2 trillion. The nation’s expenditures have been made without the most basic of plans, and without even the common sense found in a responsible family budget. The Senate must not continue to abandon their official duty: to prioritize the use of American’s hard earned tax-dollars. It is time for accountability and responsibility.

We have gone over 1,000 days without a blueprint for America’s priorities, and it has lead to more irresponsible spending and record-setting annual deficits. On the discretionary side of the ledger, there are literally billions of dollars of sheer waste that continue to be shouldered by American taxpayers while the Senate does nothing. This is an essential responsibility of governing, and we sincerely hope 2012 will not mark the third consecutive year that Senate Democrats skip the budget process altogether.

Importantly, the government faces its fourth year in a row of trillion-plus deficits in 2012, according to the Congressional Budget Office. Unfortunately, the numbers show little relief in the future unless Washington comes to grips with the size and scope of the debt threat. The CBO’s latest alarm bell couldn’t be more clear.

Our country deserves real reforms, real spending control, and a real change in the status quo. In these times of uncertainty and distress, our elected leaders have an obligation to manage their budgets. It is time for serious leaders to put aside politics and start forging solutions. The failure to do so, especially in a period of soaring deficits, is a dereliction of duty.

Rep. Cravaack (R-Minn.) sits on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, the Homeland Security Committee and the Science, Technology and Space Committee.