JOHN CARTER

I am told the Canadian Northlands experience only two seasons, winter…and July. As the back roads begin to thaw, they become muddy and vehicles traveling through the backcountry leave deep ruts. The ground freezes hard during the winter months, and the highway ruts become part of the traveling challenges. For vehicles entering this undeveloped area during the winter, there is a sign which reads, “Driver, please choose carefully which rut you drive in because you’ll be in it for the next 20 miles.”

I often tell this story when talking about budget season in Washington. Every year, Congress passes a budget resolution that sets the spending levels for the year. The budget is a sizeable document, funding everything from agricultural to veterans’ affairs. Like Central Texas families, I am mindful that some things in the budget are “needs,” while others are “wants”. As a fiscal conservative, I have worked to eliminate wasteful government spending and keep taxes low.

Unfortunately Washington Democrats don’t see things the way common sense Central Texans see them.

This week, the Majority introduced their yearly budget plan. Much like last year’s budget proposal, this one includes major tax hikes. In fact, it nearly doubles the tax hikes from last year totaling a whopping $683 billion in new taxes for working families and small business owners. On top of this, the Democrats’ budget once again refuses to address the looming crisis in the Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid entitlement programs.

Families in Texas are feeling the strain of sky-rocketing gas prices, decreasing home values, and increasing health care costs piled high on the back of a slowing economy. The last thing they need is to pay more taxes. If this budget passes, Texas families and small business owners will once again pick up the check for billions in new wasteful Washington spending -“wants” if you will. How can this happen you might ask? Simple, Democrats will allow the Republican tax relief, such as the repeal of the death tax and the marriage penalty to expire over the next four years. While you won’t see your tax bill rise substantially immediately, in a few short years, 116 million taxpayers will see their taxes increase an average of $1,833-the largest single tax increase in American history.

According to The Heritage Foundation, between now and January 1, 2001 many critical tax provisions will expire, “Tax rates will rise substantially in each tax bracket, some by 450 basis points; Low-income taxpayers will see the 10-percent tax bracket disappear, and they will have to pay taxes at the 15-percent rate; Married taxpayers will see the marriage penalty return; Taxpayers with children will lose 50 percent of their child tax credits; Taxes on dividends will increase beginning on January 1, 2009; Taxes on capital gains will increase, also beginning on January 1, 2009; and Federal Death taxes will come back to life in 2011, after fading down to nothing in 2010.”

As irresponsible as the enormous amount of unnecessary spending and reinstated taxes, the deliberate refusal to address the entitlement crisis is equally as irresponsible. It’s been said too many times without being heard-the Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid entitlement programs are quickly dying. Without immediate action by Congress, these programs will go belly-up in the next few decades, leaving millions of Americans without the Social Security and Medicare benefits they earned through years of hard work.

The Democrats’ budget will leave Americans with nothing but empty pockets and a crushed economy. As we officially begin the budget debate, we must remember that the choices we make today will affect our nation for years to come. The last thing we should do is make a choice that will leave our country in a rut. You can bet that I will be working with Republicans and fiscally responsible Democrats to fight for a fiscally responsible budget resolution that balances the federal budget without raising taxes and keep this country out of a rut.

This week marks the fifth anniversary of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Over the past five years, Iraq has become a nation that lives in freedom, not fear. The efforts of our men and women in uniform serving in Iraq have made the World and America safer from terrorists.

I have had the opportunity to visit Iraq four times since the beginning of the war. During my visits, I have had the great honor of visiting with our troops from Fort Hood, and I have been able to see first hand the progress we have made. We owe eternal gratitude to the brave men and women fighting for the safety of America and the freedom of the Iraqi people.

Violence has declined throughout Iraq, particularly in Baghdad and al-Anbar Province. Total civilian deaths and coalition deaths have dropped by more than 70% since July of 2007, according to the House Armed Services Committee. Coalition forces have captured or killed thousands of extremists and key al-Qaeda leaders. This major reduction in violence has been made possible by the troop surge and the Sunni rejection of al-Qaeda.

A neighborhood watch program called the “Sons of Iraq” movement is now 90,000 strong and has been the inspiration for other Iraqis to take up the fight. This neighborhood watch program has helped protect communities from terrorists and insurgents. During the past year, the Iraqi government has added its own surge of 100,000 new Iraqi soldiers and police officers, and the Iraqi government is now responsible for the security in nine of Iraq’s 18 provinces. The increase in Iraqi forces has also enabled them to become more capable of executing their own missions.

Political progress is also taking place in Iraq. The Iraqi Council of Representatives and the Presidency Council are working through key pieces of legislation that will balance the central government in Baghdad with the strong local governments. They are also working to pass election laws and legislation that would set the framework for foreign investment in Iraq’s energy sector.

While the surge has enabled us to reduce the amount of violence, the stakes in Iraq are still great. We are witnessing the first large scale Arab uprising against Osama bin Laden and his terror network. Defeating al-Qaeda in Iraq will show that we are capable of defending liberty and defeating terrorists.

In the past five years, we have learned that when we pull our forces out too fast terrorists and extremist step in and spread violence. General Petraeus has warned that too quick of a withdrawal could result in a surge in violence again. I believe that we must listen very carefully to our experts on the ground in Iraq and trust that their advice to Congress is in the best interest of America, our troops, and the people of Iraq.

I cannot talk about the success in Iraq without mentioning our troops. Brave American men and women have fought and sacrificed for the freedom of the Iraqi people and the War on Terror. Back home, many families are sacrificing while their loved one serves in Iraq. We should all remember our military families and be thankful for their contribution to our freedom. This has been a long struggle – frankly, longer than many of us realized. But we owe it to the Iraqi people, and to the memory of those who have made the ultimate sacrifice, to finish the job. Our military needs to leave Iraq in victory under the American flag, not in defeat under a white flag. I ask that the residents of the 31st District continue to show support for these brave souls by flying your flag, thanking a troop and their family, and letting them know that you stand behind them.

The American economy, as resilient as it is, is charting rough waters, while soaring cost of living have forced working families to tighten their belts in order to make ends meet.

So why isn’t the federal government doing the same thing?

Many of you have heard or read about the budget which recently passed Congress. What you may not realize is the impact this budget will have on you as an individual and on families across Central Texas.

Between now and 2011 there are a number of tax cuts that are set to expire unless Congress extends them, including the Death Tax, the Child Credit Tax and the Marriage Penalty Tax.

Unfortunately Texans know far too much about the effects of the Death Tax. Under a 2001 tax relief law, the federal Death Tax is gradually being phased-out until it is eliminated completely in 2010. Because of Senate procedural roadblocks, however, the Death Tax will only be gone for one year, coming back to life in 2011. That means when small business owners, farmers and other American working families wake up on New Year’s Day 2011, they’ll be subject to one of the more burdensome taxes on the books today. It also means that it is nearly impossible for families to make long-term financial decisions related to the Death Tax because they do not know when they are going to die.

Across the street from my church is a 400 acre farm. Right now, the second generation of that family is farming the land, and someday they hope to pass it down to their children, the third generation. Due to the growth in the area, the value of the land has increased dramatically since the family first started farming the land. This is not an extremely wealthy family, but the value of their land has increased so they will be required to pay the Death Tax once it is passed down, which, from 2010 to 2011, will jump from 0 to 55 percent. The Democrats FY 09 Budget will resurrect the Death Tax in 2011 for families such as this one.

It wasn’t too long ago when almost half of married couples found that on April 15th, because they were married, they were required to pay more in taxes. This so called Marriage Penalty Tax showed up in 1969 to equalize what used to be an unfair tax advantage for married couples. In 2003, Congress passed the Jobs and Growth Relief Reconciliation Act in order to reduce the crippling impact of the tax on married couples. The problem is this reduction wasn’t permanent, and the Democrats new budget has no plans to keep this critical tax provision in place. Since this tax cut won’t be extended, roughly 23 million taxpayers will see their taxes increase, on average, $466 in 2011, simply because they are married.

Over the past few years families have received welcomed tax relief thanks to the Child Tax Credit, which allows many families to reduce the amount of federal taxes owed by $1,000 for each qualifying child under the age of 17. The Child Tax Credit is an actual reduction of your taxes, not just a deduction from your taxable income. In 2005, the Child Tax Credit was set to be reduced to $700, but recognizing the need to maintain the current amount, Congress passed the Working Families Tax Relief Act of 2004 in order to keep the credit at $1,000 per child through 2010. Unfortunately, the new Democratic budget will slash this credit by 50 percent in 2011 raising taxes on families who benefit from the tax credit by $500 per child. Across the country, approximately 31 million taxpayers with children will see their taxes increase, on average, $859 in 2011.

While these three tax provision will affect many Central Texans, they are not the only tax increases that Democrats have in store for Texans. On top of reinstating the Death Tax and Marriage Penalty, and rolling back the Child Credit Tax, the FY 2009 budget will raise the 10-percent tax rate bracket to 15 percent, affecting more than 6 million individuals and families who previously owed no taxes.

All in all some 116 million taxpayers nationwide will see their taxes increase, on average, $1,833 in 2011 alone. In Texas and District 31, taxpayers will see an increase of $2,100 to their tax bill. Elderly couples with $40,000 in income will see their tax bill rise by 156 percent in 2011, from $583 to $1,489 and a family of four earning $60,000 will face a 70 percent tax hike, with their income tax bill rising from $2,733 to $4,634, an increase of $1,900.

Last year’s budget was bad, but this year’s budget breaks all the records by imposing the largest tax increase in American history, roughly $683 billion, mainly to finance the Majority’s hundreds of billions in new spending. The Democrats’ economic policies today bear a striking resemblance to the failed tax-and-spend policies of the 1970s.

Back then, it took a Republican president and the conservative revolution he founded to do away with those high-dollar, high-tax liberal policies. In a 1986 radio address, Ronald Reagan said, “You know, our Founding Fathers considered the power of the purse the most important responsibility of the legislative branch. If that power is abused, it can have very serious consequences for our nation, not only threatening our prosperity with huge budget deficits but, ultimately, undermining the economic foundations of our safety and national security.”

President Reagan was absolutely right-a budget is much more than a set of numbers on a slate, it is a reflection of our national priorities. It is a test of whether we have a strategic vision for America’s future. On that score, Washington Democrats have failed the American people.

It is fiscal priority debates like these that so define the difference between House Democrats and Republicans. I will to work on behalf of Texas families to implement forward-looking fiscal policies that hold the line on spending and keep taxes low for hardworking Americans.