Today's National Debt:  $9,192,424,893,791.82
Your Share:  $30,308.26  

This week in Congress I have been working with my colleagues in the House of Representatives to craft an economic stimulus package to help our working families and small businesses who are being affected by our nation’s current economic downturn and mortgage crisis. While I believe that an immediate shot in the arm is most needed at this time, we must also consider solutions to maintain the vitality of our economy so that it remains strong and on a path of prolonged growth for the long term.  We can accomplish this by investing more in biofuels research and development and by improving our nation’s infrastructure by expanding roads like U.S. Highway 82 and 167 to four lanes, completing the Hot Springs Expressway and building I-49, I-69, and I-530.  For every billion dollars spent on road construction, 42,000 new jobs are created.

I believe that we are in our current economic mess due to years of irresponsible fiscal policies by President Bush and the Republican controlled Congress, which include record deficit spending, doing nothing to reduce our dependence on foreign oil and providing tax cuts to only benefit the wealthy. Therefore, as the President prepares to deliver his final State of the Union address to the nation Monday, I very much hope that he will show a willingness to work with members of Congress on both sides of the aisle to develop a meaningful economic stimulus package that will truly provide economic relief to our working families and small businesses and help them keep from losing their homes.

I will fight to ensure that this bill is timely by quickly enacting a focused package that puts money in the hands of Arkansans who will immediately put it back into the economy by purchasing things they need but haven’t been able to afford. We can accomplish this by giving hard working taxpayers some of their money back in the form of a rebate check. We must also help those homeowners faced with unexpected high interest rates from losing their homes. This plan should also include accelerated depreciation for our businesses so they can invest in new technology that will enable them to remain competitive and protect the jobs they provide our working families. As co-chair of the fiscally conservative Democratic Blue Dog Coalition, I am also committed to making sure that any economic stimulus package does not include unnecessary or wasteful spending.

Unfortunately, there is no silver bullet to stop this economic downturn, but by implementing a timely plan, Congress can take a huge step to aide our economy, and most significantly our working families and business owners who are hurting because of inflation, the mortgage crisis, job loss, and the rising costs of health care, groceries and gasoline. I will continue my work in Washington with the goal of quickly passing a package that will be a much-needed boost to help Wall Street, but more importantly to protect Main Street.
 

Sincerely,

Mike Ross

Please remember that if you have issues related to the federal government such as Social Security, Medicare and veterans benefits, you can visit with staff from my office in a community near you. My office will host community office hours at the following locations, dates and times:
Fouke  - January 30th at 9:00 a.m., at the Fouke Community Center located at 203 E. Redcut Rd.;
Bradley - January 30th  at 11:30a.m., at the Bradley City Hall located at 410 Pullman St.;
Stamps - January 30th  at 2:00 p.m., at the Stamps City Complex located at 207 E. Antigo.

*** As a Member of the United States House of Representatives, I take pride in keeping residents up-to-date on the issues facing our nation.  This is why I believe it is vital for me to regularly send out email newsletters to help keep you informed on my work in Congress. These newsletters cover all topics including:  our nation's energy crisis, education, agriculture, veteran’s affairs, as well as the ongoing conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.

I am writing to inform you that due to rules within the U.S. House of Representatives concerning communication during an election year there will be a blackout period in which I will be limited in the ways that I can communicate with you. 

In order to keep receiving my email newsletter during the blackout periods and stay informed on the current issues before the United States Congress, you will need to officially subscribe to receive my email newsletter. To do this, just click the box to the right.  
 
Please know that if you choose to subscribe to the newsletter, you can unsubscribe at any time.

For more information, please feel free to visit my web site at ross.house.gov or call my office at (800) 223-2220.