I wanted to share a recent article from AEIdeas, the American Enterprise Institute blog, further highlighting the destructive nature of the health care law.  The article notes that, according to a recent Gallup poll, 48% of small business owners believe that the law will be bad for their business.

The increased taxes and regulations are bad enough, but when you add in the uncertainty surrounding implementation of the health care law, businesses are not expanding. Even worse, they are closing their doors.  

Access to health care should not come at an unacceptable price to our small business community.  I will continue to support the repeal and defunding of this law, and promote policies that encourage, not stifle, economic growth. 

• 4 Americans dead in Benghazi  under the watch of Secretary Clinton
• U.S. Agent Brian Terry and over 150 Mexicans dead because of Fast and Furious under the watch of Attorney General Holder
• U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement released over 2000 criminal illegal aliens, some convicted of aggravated felonies under the watch of Director Morton
• IRS agents targeted conservative groups and used government positions to act as political operatives working to influence the electoral process under the watch of Commissioner Miller                 

Watch the exchange here: 

These senior officials have one thing in common – they all have said there’s nothing they could have done to prevent these things from happening. 

Now, the IRS is preparing to implement over 30 tax related provisions of the President's healthcare law.  I have introduced legislation - "The Prevent IRS Overreach Act"- to get the IRS out of healthcare. Read more about the bill and weigh in with your thoughts below.   

At the end of April, the Treasury Department announced that it would pay down $35 billion of the nation’s debt for the first time since 2007.  In February, the Congressional Budget Office estimated that the federal government would run a deficit of $845 billion this year, 24 times the amount the Treasury is paying down. 

Earlier this year, Congress passed the No Budget, No Pay Act, which required the House and Senate to pass a budget, but also suspended the debt limit until May 18th.  Last week, the Treasury Department said, “If Congress fails to increase the debt limit by May 19, Treasury can use extraordinary measures to create additional borrowing room."

Today, the House will consider the Full Faith and Credit Act, H.R.807, to direct the United States Treasury, in the event the debt ceiling is reached, to pay the principal and interest due on debt held by the public before making any other payments. 

As the Heritage Foundation said, “to see significant reductions in the national debt, lawmakers need to show greater fiscal discipline…” 

Paying off some of the debt is a good first step, but we cannot continue on the same path of reckless spending and repeated debates over further increasing the debt ceiling. I introduced the Congressional Accountability Pay (CAP) Act, H.R.284, to address situations like this.  The more Washington spends, the less Members of Congress should receive in their paychecks.  Read more here.

As Congress moves closer to considering immigration reform, an L.A. Times article discusses the different approaches the House and Senate are taking.  The House is planning to move individual bills; however, the Senate is poised to take up one large reform package. 

Which approach do you prefer?