Mike on the Issues

*Economy

It will be some time before our nation fully recovers from the economic problems now plaguing American families and businesses, and I will continue working to rebuild our ailing economy. In the last session, we raised the federal minimum wage, enacted an economic stimulus plan that put recovery rebates in the hands of 130 million American households, and extended unemployment insurance for the millions of workers who continue to search for new jobs in these difficult economic times.  Serious action will be required in this Congress and Democrats and Republicans must come together to create jobs through target public investments and ultimately help bring relief to working families.

*Education

Last Congress, I was proud to help pass the College Cost Reduction Act (H.R. 2669) helping millions of students and families pay for college.  This Congress, we will consider the reauthorization of the No Child Left Behind law.  As the son of two public school educators, I recognize that providing America’s children with a world class public education is critical to our nation’s future.  However, I also believe that the No Child Left Behind Law has become nothing more than an unfunded mandate and we must make the necessary changes to this law as we work to ensure our children receive the best education possible.

*Energy Independence

I have been working in Congress to lower the price of energy for Arkansas's working families and will continue to do so.  As a member of the House Energy & Commerce Committee, I was proud to help pass in the last Congress the largest expansion of domestic drilling in our nation’s history, as well as one of the largest investments in alternative and renewable energy.  We must enable our country to access more of our domestic energy resources and invest in alternative energy sources like cellulosic ethanol, biodiesel, solar, wind, nuclear, and clean coal technologies.  

*Fiscal Responsibility

Last Congress, as a leader of the fiscally conservation Blue Dogs, I helped reinstate pay-as-you-go budget discipline, known as “PAYGO.”   PAYGO rules facilitated a balanced budget in the late 1990’s, and bringing them back will help us restore fiscal responsibility to government after years of irresponsible deficit spending.  As our nation’s financial crisis and the war in Iraq continue, our national debt will continue to rise.  While I recognize we may have to invest in the short term to bring our economy out of a recession, we must maintain fiscal discipline and restrain spending as best we can so that we do not pass along an historic, unmanageable debt to our children and grandchildren.

*Health Care Reform

As a member of the Health Subcommittee, I am committed to providing affordable and accessible health care for all Americans.  Last session, I was proud to help pass legislation reducing the cost of drugs for seniors and people with disabilities.  In the first two weeks of this session, I led efforts to pass legislation that will reauthorize and strengthen the State Children’s Health Insurance Program providing health coverage for an estimated 11 million American children, inlcuding almost 90,000 in Arkansas through AR Kids First.  On Feb. 4, I was proud to watch President Barack Obama sign this important  legislation into law.  In the years ahead, I will work closely with my colleagues to fix the insurance problem in this nation ensuring that all families receive the adequate support needed to live healthy lives.

*Immigration

Immigration is a national security matter and remains an important issue we cannot ignore.  I will continue working to pass comprehensive immigration reform that strongly prohibits illegal immigration and secures our borders in this post 9-11 era. Last year, I cosponsored the Secure America through Verification and Enforcement Act of 2007 (H.R.4088) which addresses border security by increasing manpower, technology, and infrastructure needs on our borders and protecting American workers and law-abiding businesses from the unfair competition created by a massive illegal workforce. 

*Infrastructure

We learned a tragic lesson on Aug. 1, 2007, when the I-35 West bridge collapsed in Minneapolis.  We have also since learned that numerous other structures across our nation could face similar fates if left unaddressed.  We need a bold response to our nation’s crumbling infrastructure problem that includes significant new investments and thousands of new jobs.  Infrastructure is vital to our local and state economies and we must continue repairing and expanding Arkansas’s infrastructure network.

 *Iraq

After almost seven years, it is past time for the Iraqis to step up and take responsibility for securing their own country.  The government estimates that the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan may cost $2.4 trillion over the next decade. Spending in Iraq alone has reached $16 million per hour. We should be investing in our towns and communities throughout America and that can only begin when our troops begin to come home.

*U.S. Image Abroad

Finally, I am hopeful that this new Congress and our new President will help improve our nation’s image abroad.  Over the last eight years, our foreign relations priorities and policies have led to a decline in our national image and I am committed to working with our allies to improve that view. It is important we rebuild our international alliances because we must work with our allies to help contain threats of nuclear and biological weapons and seek treaties and partnerships that will help us find and stop the terrorists that seek to harm us.  As a member of the House Foreign Relations Committe and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Parliamentary Assembly, I am committed to working with my colleagues to improve our relations with NATO and our allies around the world.

*Veterans Care

Since entering Congress, I have made veterans a focus of my work in our nation’s capital.  Throughout the last Congress, I worked with both Democrats and Republicans to ensure we kept our promises of health care and other services to our veterans.  I helped pass in the House the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Act of 2008, which represented the largest investment in veterans’ health care funding in the 77 year history of the VA.  We also modernized the GI Bill for the first time in over 20 years to help cover the cost of college and allow soldiers and veterans to transfer these education benefits to their spouses and children. I worked particularly hard to ensure Reserve and National Guard soldiers also qualified for this new college benefit when they return from Iraq and Afghanistan.  I remain committed to serving the needs and concerns of the more than 60,000 veterans in the Fourth Congressional District ensuring our veterans have the support they deserve from their government.