Noted nineteenth-century economist Frédéric Bastiat once wrote that “people are beginning to realize that the apparatus of government is costly. But what they do not know is that the burden falls inevitably on them.”   With the introduction of the President’s enormous $3.7 trillion FY2012 Budget on Monday, I believe people are finally realizing that the burden does, in fact, fall on them and on future generations to come.

The federal budget is an important economic and moral choice.  We must decide if we want to place even more of our money under the control of politicians and bureaucrats, or if we wish to leave more resources with families and businesses that grow the private sector.  The president has chosen to continue placing his trust in big government.  I am placing my trust in families, small businesses and job creators. 

The President’s bloated, deficit-increasing budget is the exact opposite of what this country needs in order to grow the economy and foster job creation.  His budget spends too much, taxes too much, and borrows too much.  Instead of cutting spending and reining in government as the people demanded in November, the President’s budget puts the federal government on track to nearly double in size since the President first took office.  Most commonsense Americans realize that a record-breaking $1.6 trillion deficit is fiscally destructive, especially to the next generation.  Just like many hard-working American families and businesses, the federal government should learn to live responsibly within its means, and the President must end his job-destroying spending spree.   Unfortunately with this budget proposal, the President has decided to punt on many fiscally responsible budget choices, just as he and his fellow Democrats did when they failed to even pass a budget last year.  This is unacceptable.  It’s time for real leadership.

Since the President is unwilling to lead, I plan to work with congressional leadership to pass a budget that cuts spending, stops tax increases, and reforms government so that the private-sector can create jobs and grow the economy again.

My priorities for the upcoming budget are simple:  Do the will of the people and cut spending.   We are at a critical juncture, and tough decisions will need to be made.  Our current budget trajectory is simply unsustainable.  We can no longer continue to accumulate crushing debt year after year. 

Since 2008 alone, non-defense discretionary spending has increased by 24%, and many federal programs have received funding increases that have outpaced both inflation and cost of living.  What other parts of the economy have increased by 24% since 2008?  The answer is none.   While a greedy government continues to grow, private-sector businesses have done what is necessary to cut their costs in order to stay in business.

To do what is necessary to cut spending, we must get realistic and look at every area of the budget.  We must systematically look at all areas of the federal government, get rid of waste, fraud, and abuse; end programs that are duplicative or ineffective; and reduce spending across the board.  The President’s budget proposed just $33 billion in terminations and reductions out of a $3.7 trillion budget.  That’s less than 1 percent.  This proposal does not go far enough.  So this week I plan to introduce and support a number of amendments to the Continuing Resolution that will begin to eliminate or reduce unnecessary programmatic funding levels.

However, we can no longer simply rely on identifying small areas of waste, fraud, and abuse—even though that is a part of the solution.  We must evaluate our current defense outlays and determine if there are funds that could be better utilized.  We must also have an adult conversation about entitlements.  Just as I proposed in the 110^th Congress, we need to put Social Security on a sustainable path for the future.  And we must look into real reform of Social Security to allow younger workers more options and more control over their future.

I’m ready to stand firm and not waver on these issues.   And in November, I believe the American people said they were too.

This editorial was published in The Hill on February 15, 2011.