E-Newsletter

Budgeting for the Future

John Adams once said, "There are two ways to enslave a nation. One is by the sword. The other is by debt."  With our nation's debt quickly approaching $16 trillion, America must heed the advice of John Adams and avoid being financially enslaved.
 
I was elected to help change the way we do business in Washington and to make tough decisions – not just the politically easy ones.  Washington has a spending problem, not a revenue problem.  If I am doing my job for my children, Abby, Davis, and Starke, and for your children and grandchildren, we have got to stop spending money we do not have. 

The House continues to move in the right direction with respect to cutting wasteful spending, but we still have a long way to go.  The status quo is not an option.  Sadly, President Obama doesn’t seem to be in agreement, and instead continues to push forward with unsustainable spending.
 
Thankfully, the House rejected President Obama’s budget 414 to 0.  Not a single Democrat, including Nancy Pelosi, who would like to be Speaker again, could vote for President Obama’s unrealistic plan. 

Last week, the House put forward its 10-year blueprint for government spending with the Fiscal Year 2013 Budget Resolution.  Unlike the Senate, which hasn’t passed a budget in three years, the House continues to try to tackle our looming fiscal crisis.  In keeping with our pledge to have an open and accommodating process, the House took up a total of seven budget proposals including President Obama’s plan.  I supported both the Republican Study Committee and House Budget Committee plans, which start us on a path to control spending.

While there are things that could be improved in both of the budget plans that I supported, it is time for tough decisions.  Without a plan from the Senate for the third consecutive year, and with an unrealistic plan from the President, these were the only reasonable plans from which to choose.  Ultimately, the House passed the House Budget Committee plan.  I hope the Senate and the President are prepared to work with the House to reach a compromise that is both good for the United States of America as a whole and ensures a future for our children and grandchildren.

Further reading: 
http://budget.house.gov/UploadedFiles/FY2013_Path_to_Prosperity.pdf
http://budget.house.gov/fy2013Prosperity/

This Week in History

Apr 5, 1614:
Pocahontas, daughter of the chief of the Powhatan Indians, marries English tobacco planter John Rolfe in Jamestown, Virginia. Their marriage was said to have brought peace between the English colonists and the Powhatans.

John Rolfe arrived in Jamestown in 1610 and two years later cultivated the first tobacco there.  In the spring of 1613, English Captain Samuel Argall took Pocahontas hostage, hoping to use her as a means to negotiate a permanent peace with her father.  Brought to Jamestown, she was put under the custody of Sir Thomas Gates, the marshal of Virginia. Gates treated her as a guest rather than a prisoner and encouraged her to learn English customs. She converted to Christianity and was baptized Lady Rebecca.  Chief Powhatan eventually agreed to the terms for her release, but by then Pocahontas had fallen in love with John Rolfe.  On April 5, Pocahontas and John Rolfe married with the blessing of her father and the governor of Virginia.

Further reading:  http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/pocahontas-marries-john-rolfe

As always, if you have questions, concerns, or comments, feel free to contact my offices.  You can call my Abingdon office at 276-525-1405 or my Christiansburg office at 540-381-5671.  To reach my office via email, please visit my website at www.morgangriffith.house.gov.

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