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Highlights the need for earmark reform and tax cuts

Washington, DC—U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx (NC-05) made the following statement after President Bush addressed a joint session of Congress for his 2008 State of the Union speech:

“The message to the American people tonight was clear. Congressional earmarking is a broken system. The president has proposed cutting the number of earmarks in half. I think we can and must do better than that. That’s why at the end of last year I decided to request no new earmarks.

“Earmarks represent spending that is often airdropped into legislation in the dead of night. Until the system is fixed, I call on all of my colleagues to put a moratorium on earmark spending.

“Take for example, recent reports that quote Pentagon officials saying that they have received funding for more than $20 billion worth of projects that they either didn’t ask for or didn’t need. Last year alone, there were nearly 12,000 separate earmarks totaling more than $19 billion. At a time when we are discussing how best to keep the economy strong, wasteful spending is the last thing America needs for a robust and growing economy.

“The best way to keep our economy strong is to cut taxes and encourage job creation. Congress must reign in runaway spending and return more tax dollars to average Americans. I believe we can build a future where the government spends less and wastes less and tax payers are more prosperous as a result.

“We must also pursue common-sense policies that make our nation safer and more secure. This evening President Bush rightly called on Congress to make the Protect America Act permanent.

“This legislation modernizes the outdated Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act and streamlines the way the U.S. intelligence community conducts surveillance on foreign targets. If the Protect America Act is not made permanent our intelligence community will start to lose its ability to track foreign terrorists. It’s that simple. We cannot continue to run our intelligence gathering on a month-to-month basis.

“I also applaud the President for calling on Congress to continue to take care of our Wounded Warriors and fulfill our duties and obligations to the families of the brave men and women of our armed forces.

“My hope is that this year is marked by the promise of bipartisan success that helps all Americans. Last week, the President and House leaders from both parties agreed on the principles for an economic stimulus package. I agree with the forward-looking perspective of low taxes and earmark reform articulated by the President tonight. By working together to ensure that Americans keep more of their hard-earned money we can create the best hope for our nation’s success."

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