Four Florida Republicans in Congress, led by U.S. Rep. Connie Mack, unveiled a proposal this week that they maintain will reduce the size and scope of the federal government and balance the budget by 2019.
Mack -- joined by fellow Florida Republicans Jeff Miller, Dennis Ross and Allen West -- is sponsoring a plan that would mandate a 1 percent reduction in federal spending from 2012 until 2017, before imposing a mandatory spending cap in 2018. That cap would mandate the total cost of the federal government not to exceed 18 percent of the total Gross Domestic Product.
Every time Washington spends more money, they harm our freedom and security, insists Mack.Like an albatross, our deficits and our debts hang around us, and last November American voters sent a clear message to their elected officials that enough is enough when it comes to Washingtons appetite for spending.
Mack maintains that his proposal will reduce the maximum cost of all federal operations from $3.382 trillion in 2012 to $3.184 trillion by 2018. While Macks plan will establish spending caps that the federal government cannot exceed, he also calls for Congress and the president to team up to find solutions to produce the 1 percent reductions before imposing the 1 percent spending cuts across the board.
At a press conference Wednesday, Mack was joined by Bruce Cook, chairman and CEO of the One Cent Solution, a group with ties to Citizens for Restoring Americas Financial Future, which is looking to reduce the national debt and balance the budget. Cook maintained that Macks plan will reduce federal spending by $7.5 trillion over the course of a decade.
Congressman Macks legislation embraces the broad parameters of the One Cent Solution, said Cook. The congressman is showing great leadership on the most important domestic issue of our time, and we are asking all of our supporters to tell their representatives in Washington to sponsor --and vote for -- the 1 Percent Spending Reduction Act of 2011.
We need to act quickly to solve our budget crisis, which is burdening our children and grandchildren with massive amounts of debt, added Cook. To simply stand by and do nothing would be a moral failure on the part of our generation, and introduction of the 1 Percent Spending Reduction Act of 2011 represents an important milestone in the debate over protecting Americas financial future.
Other co-sponsors, besides the Republicans from Florida, include a host of GOP congressmen: John Campbell of California, Steve King of Iowa, Roscoe Bartlett of Maryland, John Duncan of Tennessee, Marlin Stutzman of Indiana, Reid Ribble of Wisconsin, Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming and Scott Garrett of New Jersey.
Mack stressed that his proposal will help with the urgent problem of federal spending.
Chairman of the Joint chiefs, Admiral Mullen, even stated, The single biggest threat to national security is the national debt; the fiscal conservatives in Congress are left to make the tough decisions the president and, dare I say, members of my own party have refused to make through the years, said Mack.For the sake of freedom, prosperity and security, Congress can either make the necessary 1 percent cuts, or the bill as written will do it automatically. We simply can no longer afford to ignore the warnings.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or at (850) 727-0859.
