Senator John Cornyn

A guest post by Panhandle Poet.

Fiscal policy, which is the level of taxes and spending, is one of two tools used by government to influence the overall performance of the economy.  The second tool, monetary policy, which is the manipulation of the money supply within the economy, is the tool we commonly see used when we hear of the Fed raising or lowering interest rates.

Taxes place a drag on the economy because they shift income from earners to a significant consumer of that income - the government.  Government is necessary for providing certain services, yet is an inefficient allocator of spending.  There is frictional loss of economic power through the re-distribution process.  However, taxes are necessary to fund the government and have been structured through the years to influence behavior through various exemptions and credits.

Government spending on the other hand can stimulate the economy.  This creates conflict however, because of the offsetting drag of taxation to fund that spending unless funded through borrowing.  Borrowing moves the burden of the stimulus temporally.  If unchecked, it can consume an inordinate amount of the budget and drain the economy of its energy.  There is also the ever-present danger of inflation which, since the late 1970's, has been mostly controlled through careful attention to monetary policy.

When social engineering agendas drive the legislative process, we see an imbalance enter into fiscal policy.  Such imbalances can overload the ability of monetary policy to make corrections and keep the economy functioning properly.  Over time, continued pressure for sustained economic growth while creating an overburden of debt, creates a situation in which significant corrections must occur.  When such corrections are further influenced by corrupt practices and insufficient oversight, significant economic turmoil will be the result - as we are currently experiencing. 

The social agenda espoused by the Democratic Party, coupled with the re-distributive schemes of their nominee for the Presidency, would cause dire consequences to our economy if enacted.  The solution to our current woes is to shift spending away from an inefficient government and into the hands of the people who earned it.  Government should return to the role of oversight and policy rather than attempting to nationalize our financial institutions.

Grover Norquist, President of American's for Tax Reform, shares his thoughts on Senator Cornyn's support of the tax payer protection pledge:

I engage in daily battles to protect the economic security of families and individuals across Texas and the nation. One of the important fights I have been leading for years is the effort to get rid of wasteful congressional earmarks once and for all.

The American people are starting to realize that too often earmarks are about using their paychecks to preserve a Congressman's or Senator's paycheck. Democrats claimed they would clean up the earmark process, but the taxpayers still see campaign contributions coming in one end of the Beltway and earmarks coming out the other.

I am outraged - as are millions of hardworking taxpayers - that while Americans are struggling to pay higher gasoline prices, higher food prices, and higher health care premiums, Washington is spending tax dollars on "Fruit Fly Research" in Paris, France, "Monuments to Me" in New York City and a "Lobster Musuem" in Maine. I wish I could say these were the only earmarks that Washington approved last year, but Congress approved 11,607 other earmarked projects.

As Chairman of the Republican Study Committee, a 110-member caucus of the most conservative Republicans in the U.S. House, I am encouraging Republicans of all stripes to swear off earmarks and to stand behind the McCain-Palin ticket on this issue. Earmarks represent the victory of seniority over merit, special interests over the national interest and secrecy over transparency. It is time for change!

John McCain has repeatedly said he will veto any spending bill that contains "even one earmark" - and Sarah Palin HAS vetoed earmarks as Governor of Alaska. That is my kind of President and Vice President.

I can't think of a better way for Republicans to win back our mantle of fiscal accountability than winning the earmark battle in Washington. I applaud Senator John Cornyn for standing up on this issue. Earlier this year, he co-sponsored a year-long moratorium on pork barrel earmark spending in the Senate.

As Republicans, we are not naïve when it comes to government spending. We know that Social Security and Medicare must be reformed for future generations. We know that some federal bureaucracies have grown out of control. I know that earmarks comprise on a fraction of our federal budget - although I hope I am never in Washington so long that I consider $25-30 billion just a "little bit of money" - but my point is that to change Washington, we must change the culture of spending.

As my dear friend Senator Tom Coburn has said, earmarks are "a gateway drug on the road to spending addiction. On far too many occasions, colleagues have told me, "I know that bill costs way too much, but I had to vote for it because I worked so hard for those earmarks." There is no core conservative value to be defended in the Congressional earmarking process. I am hoping that we are finally getting some traction on this issue in Washington with more members from the Senate and the House signing on to personal moratoriums and a Presidential team that is campaigning on this issue.

In order for Republicans to regain our brand of fiscal responsibility, we must be leaders in rooting out wasteful earmarks.

Senator Cornyn has been traveling across Texas today making stops in Waco, Temple, and Georgetown.

The crowds have been enthusiastic and very receptive.

Check back later for more pictures and a roundup of press links from the various events.

What fiscal issues are on your mind?

Please leave your comments in this thread and check back throughout the week for more.

Check out Senator Cornyn's new ad: Family 2

View all of Senator Cornyn's ad by visiting our Blip page here.

With just 12 days left before election day a new Rasmussen poll shows Senator Cornyn with a huge 15 point lead over challenger Rick Noriega.

Head over here to see the numbers broken down.

UPDATE:

Bloggers Pondering Penguin, Lonnie Walker, The Crazy Conservative, Lone Star Times, and Abilene Establishment all have posts about the poll.

Senator Cornyn launched a new ad today entitled "Sorghum".

The ad discusses the economy and Senator Cornyn's bipartisan plan to focus on education and keep taxes low.

Check out the ad below:

The campaign also released a new radio ad.

Listen to it below:

Click here to check out all of Senator Cornyn's ads.