Overspending by Washington has put our country on an unsustainable fiscal path. We are now faced with tough decisions to stop record-breaking deficits and out-of-control spending.

Our nation currently carries nearly $16 trillion in debt. That is equal to more than $50,000 per American. We are borrowing more than 40 cents of every dollar, much of it from foreign countries. We cannot continue to spend money we do not have.

Since I came to Congress, the House has voted to cut roughly $6 trillion in government spending over the next decade. We have also voted to cut discretionary spending for two years in a row for the first time since World War II.

This represents progress in the right direction, but there is still much more to be done to get the federal budget under control. We need to prioritize our spending in order to protect the financial future of our nation. One step toward this is a balanced budget amendment, which would stop the federal government from spending more than it receives in revenues. I co-sponsored and supported this amendment because it is a clear and simple way to institute some fiscal discipline in a place that often repels common sense.