Yesterday in Las Vegas, President Obama celebrated 100 days since his Stimulus Bill was singed into law. Over a million Americans losing their jobs and billions in new spending and new debt is no reason to celebrate. Since February 17^th, 2009, the day the president signed the Stimulus Bill into law, we have seen:

• 1,597,000 jobs lost and unemployment numbers at their highest levels in two decades.
• The president spend billions of your tax dollars.
• Our nation accrue $511.9 billion in new debt.
• OMB and CBO revise the FY2009 Deficit projection to $1.84 trillion.
• The president propose over $600 billion in new taxes – the largest tax increase in American history.

The Stimulus Bill has been a fiscal flop and is nothing to celebrate. President Obama should stop throwing parties and fundraisers out in Las Vegas and start discussing the urgent financial crisis that threatens our fiscal and economic stability. Our government is currently borrowing about 50 cents for every dollar we spend. Medicare is already paying out more in benefits than it collects and Social Security is expected to do the same in less than five years. The total unfunded liabilities for the United States are $57.6 trillion, which exceeds the net worth of America. Paying off this liability would require every American to write a check to the Treasury Department for $188,000.

I believe it is time to let Americans keep more of what they earn and for the government to spend less, which is why I supported a budget alternative that would do just that. I have also opposed these massive spending increases, voting against $1.6 trillion in new spending this year and against $2.3 trillion under the Bush Administration. It is time to start trusting and empowering individual Americans instead of the federal government. By taking these steps, our economy will see the growth and prosperity that have defined America for generations.

In a little less than five months, President Obama and the liberal leadership in Congress have spent more than $1.6 trillion. Their policies have created the highest spending levels since World War II and exploded our national debt to $11 trillion. Today President Obama’s director of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) updated his projections and is now anticipating a $1.8 trillion deficit for 2009, up from $1.2 trillion earlier this year. The CBO director also noted that the U.S. government is now borrowing 50 cents for every dollar it spends.

I voted against these wasteful spending programs, just as I did under the Bush administration, because common sense tells us that you don’t pay for borrowed money with borrowed money. We are a nation in debt and cannot continue writing checks when our bank account is overdrawn. American families do not budget this way and neither should the federal government.

As a fiscal conservative, I strenuously opposed these epic and unprecedented spending increases. The best way to stimulate the economy is to cut taxes and spending drastically. It is time to start trusting and empowering individual Americans instead of the federal government. It is time to let Americans keep more of what they earn and for the government to spend less. I believe that by taking these steps, our economy will experience the growth and prosperity that have defined America for generations.

Truly a victory for all those seeking increased transparency in our Government, the use of online video and other online technologies has been approved by the Committee on House Administration today.

The statement in full via this press release:

The Committee on House Administration adopted new web regulations that will permit Members to use outside websites like YouTube to communicate with constituents.  The new regulations, which are based upon a proposal presented in June by GOP Members of the Committee, represent a vital step to providing new, uncensored channels of communication between Members of Congress and their constituents.

The new web regulations, which were adopted via Committee poll, permit Members to post content on outside websites so long as the content is for “official purposes,” and not personal, commercial or campaign related.

Ranking Republican Vern Ehlers, R-Mich., applauded Committee Chairman Robert Brady, D-Pa., for his leadership and ability to achieve policy agreements in a nonpartisan fashion. “Mr. Brady recognized the need to allow enhanced constituent communication, and demonstrated outstanding leadership that enabled this Committee to adopt a long-overdue change,” Ehlers stated.  “It is imperative that Members have the ability to use whichever web services they feel will best inform their constituents about the important issues facing this country.”

The New York Times has a great story about my coverage of the House floor last week. An excerpt:

On Friday, when several dozen Republicans decided to stay on the House floor and discuss energy legislation after the House adjourned for a five-week summer recess, the cameras and microphones were turned off. So the first source of video was a congressman who streamed live pictures to the Internet using his cellphone camera.

Representative John Culberson, a Texas Republican and an avid user of the messaging site Twitter, acted as a citizen journalist covering the proceedings, albeit one with clear partisan intentions. …

Mr. Culberson’s online communications showed how new media tools like Twitter can supplement professional reporting. They also served as a reminder that many in Congress think House rules that restrict all communications to official sites should be revised. Mr. Culberson found himself at odds with other members last month as new guidelines for external communications circulated on Capitol Hill.

CSPAN even played one of my Qik videos on their station!

On the Web: “House Goes Home, but Video Goes Online via Cellphone”