Restoring the Land of Opportunity

Job creation is one of the biggest challenge facing America and Missouri. The national unemployment rate now is more than 10 percent, the highest unemployment rate in decades. In early 2009, the President and the one-party Congress passed a "stimulus" plan they couldn’t take time to read before they voted.

The first important decision of the one-party Congress was to “stimulate” the economy with nearly one trillion dollars in new government spending, spiraling deficits and a big new load of national debt. The spending primarily enlarges existing programs, most of which have nothing to do with private job creation. There were some good things in the bill, but not many. And we didn’t have the first dollar to pay for any of it.

In passing the now-failed stimulus, one-party Washington promised that joblessness would level off at 8.5 percent this year. But it got worse. Washington has proven what Missouri common sense already knows and teaches. We cannot “borrow our way of debt.” People can’t. Governments can’t. It doesn’t work for the nation's budget. It doesn’t work, because it can’t work.

The foundation of American greatness is a vibrant prosperity based on economic freedom. Federal and state government can play vital and positive roles in many ways. The practical genius of American freedom is that it works. For two centuries, the American economy has delivered more and better self-sustaining jobs, and the highest standard of living in human history.

Roy Blunt believes the way to real prosperity is to count on free people to make their own decisions – what to buy, how much to save, when to borrow or lend, and how much. In the present crisis, for example, if we want more consumer spending and job creation, then let’s reduce people’s taxes.

While we do this, Washington must get control of government spending. Revving up the printing presses to create new one-dollar bills? This is nothing better than paving the way to much bigger problems, starting with a heavy wave of price inflation in a year or two.

Roy Blunt consistently votes for the most conservative budget offered in the House. He supports a Balanced Budget Amendment to impose honest accounting, no matter which party is in charge. He wants the President to have a line item veto, so the President can find wasteful projects and stop them.

One-party liberal Washington has abandoned what America has followed for two hundred years. The government doesn’t “create” freedom or prosperity or solid private jobs or a future of opportunity. The government can help, and must. But the American people will do the rest, given half a chance.