Secure Our Future Responsibly
Florida 8:45 PM
Reposted from the Tampa Tribune
an Oped by Governor Charlie Crist
Last year I supported Sen. John McCain for president. Despite these efforts, the American public chose Barack Obama as the person they wanted in the White House to confront the worst financial market turmoil since the Great Depression and the worst recession in a generation. Regardless of whom they voted for Nov. 4, he is our president, and every patriotic American should hope he succeeds in ending the economic problems that now beset our country.
Soon after his inauguration, the president signed legislation aimed at stimulating economic growth. Many good and decent people opposed this measure, and some even offered proposals to reduce the tax burden and the proposed spending that I would have preferred to see enacted. But the case for doing something to help the economy was overwhelming, and I was glad the president and Congress were able to pass a bill.
But let there be no doubt - I am a fiscal conservative. Since I took office two years ago, we have cut state spending by $7 billion, lowered property taxes by an estimated $25 billion over five years and created innovative no-cost solutions like the Florida Discount Drug Card and Cover Florida Health Care Plan.
I oppose the president's budget proposals, in particular his willingness to increase the top tax rate on personal income from 35 to 39.6 percent. I am publicly asking him to withdraw these tax increase proposals, considering the structural damage higher tax rates will do to the long-term growth potential of our nation's economy.
In addition, the president's plan will severely increase our national debt. Even with the increase in federal revenues resulting from higher taxes and a planned military withdrawal from Iraq, the smallest annual deficit we will see in the next 10 years is $533 billion in 2013. At the rate projected in the president's budget, the national debt will increase by $3.7 trillion by 2014. Two years ago the annual budget deficit was $162 billion.
History has demonstrated that deficit spending can be effective in times of economic crisis and war. In addressing the current crisis, the stimulus package would have increased the national debt by less than two percent in 2009. However, the additional expenditures in the proposed budget add to that burden, taking the total annual increase in our indebtedness this year to more than 17 percent. Creating deficits greater than $533 billion per year for a period of 10 years while simultaneously raising taxes is both contrary to responsible economic recovery and ultimately unsustainable.
The destructive power of a program dependent on increasing taxes begins with the disincentive Americans will be given to work, save and invest. As rates approach 40 percent or higher, what incentive is there to pursue greater productivity and innovation when nearly half of the benefit of such individual successes are captured by the federal government to pay its debts?
The personal incentive of income as a result of hard work is a cornerstone of American prosperity and must be protected.
There is a better way. Rather than starting down the path of higher tax rates, I recommend the Congress and administration redouble its efforts to reduce government spending. Give the president line-item veto power. Create a bipartisan task force to restructure government for a new generation of challenges. Eliminate duplicative functions across government. Modernize entitlements. Get health markets right.
Combined with the anticipated return of the economy's health, reduced spending will first help stabilize the national debt and create opportunities to reduce the burden being placed on future generations.
Gov. Charlie Crist is running for the U.S. Senate.
He has received an endorsement from the editor of Drawnlines Politics.
an Oped by Governor Charlie Crist
Last year I supported Sen. John McCain for president. Despite these efforts, the American public chose Barack Obama as the person they wanted in the White House to confront the worst financial market turmoil since the Great Depression and the worst recession in a generation. Regardless of whom they voted for Nov. 4, he is our president, and every patriotic American should hope he succeeds in ending the economic problems that now beset our country.
Soon after his inauguration, the president signed legislation aimed at stimulating economic growth. Many good and decent people opposed this measure, and some even offered proposals to reduce the tax burden and the proposed spending that I would have preferred to see enacted. But the case for doing something to help the economy was overwhelming, and I was glad the president and Congress were able to pass a bill.
But let there be no doubt - I am a fiscal conservative. Since I took office two years ago, we have cut state spending by $7 billion, lowered property taxes by an estimated $25 billion over five years and created innovative no-cost solutions like the Florida Discount Drug Card and Cover Florida Health Care Plan.
I oppose the president's budget proposals, in particular his willingness to increase the top tax rate on personal income from 35 to 39.6 percent. I am publicly asking him to withdraw these tax increase proposals, considering the structural damage higher tax rates will do to the long-term growth potential of our nation's economy.
In addition, the president's plan will severely increase our national debt. Even with the increase in federal revenues resulting from higher taxes and a planned military withdrawal from Iraq, the smallest annual deficit we will see in the next 10 years is $533 billion in 2013. At the rate projected in the president's budget, the national debt will increase by $3.7 trillion by 2014. Two years ago the annual budget deficit was $162 billion.
History has demonstrated that deficit spending can be effective in times of economic crisis and war. In addressing the current crisis, the stimulus package would have increased the national debt by less than two percent in 2009. However, the additional expenditures in the proposed budget add to that burden, taking the total annual increase in our indebtedness this year to more than 17 percent. Creating deficits greater than $533 billion per year for a period of 10 years while simultaneously raising taxes is both contrary to responsible economic recovery and ultimately unsustainable.
The destructive power of a program dependent on increasing taxes begins with the disincentive Americans will be given to work, save and invest. As rates approach 40 percent or higher, what incentive is there to pursue greater productivity and innovation when nearly half of the benefit of such individual successes are captured by the federal government to pay its debts?
The personal incentive of income as a result of hard work is a cornerstone of American prosperity and must be protected.
There is a better way. Rather than starting down the path of higher tax rates, I recommend the Congress and administration redouble its efforts to reduce government spending. Give the president line-item veto power. Create a bipartisan task force to restructure government for a new generation of challenges. Eliminate duplicative functions across government. Modernize entitlements. Get health markets right.
Combined with the anticipated return of the economy's health, reduced spending will first help stabilize the national debt and create opportunities to reduce the burden being placed on future generations.
Gov. Charlie Crist is running for the U.S. Senate.
He has received an endorsement from the editor of Drawnlines Politics.
Posted by Nick Stone
on 8:45 PM.
Filed under
Posts
Fiscal conservatives support taking on additional debt to rescue an economy? If this is what fiscal conservatives are, I hope he has some opponents that aren't fiscal conservatives. I'll vote for them, thanks.