Ehrlich on Washington column, January 8, 2001

HEWS FROM Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr. Second Congressional District of Maryland 1 407 York Road, Suite 304 Lutherville, Maryland 21093 EHRLICH ON WASHINGTON By Congressman Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr. 315 Cannon House Office Building Washington, D.C. 20515 Week of January 8, 2000 A New Congress, A New Era As the New Year begins, Americans are faced with economic uncertainty. Along with President -elect Bush, many experts point to warning signs on the horizon which indicate our economy is slowing down. Recent figures show manufacturing activity fell last month to its lowest level in nearly a decade. Fortunately, the Federal Reserve may have staved off an economic downturn by moving quickly to cut short-term interest rates last week. My growth-oriented colleagues and I in the 1 07th Congress welcomed this news during our opening day of the session. We also recognize, however, that America needs tax cuts to pump capital into our economy over the long term. Taxpayer-friendly Congressional colleagues are receiving support for relief from the most surprising of persons. Suddenly, House Minority Leader Richard Gephardt supports tax cuts, saying last week, “I think we need a tax cut. I’ve felt that and Democrats have felt that way for a long time. I don’t know the exact size. It may be that it has to get bigger because the recession is looming and we’ve got economic worries out there.” While many in Congress would have appreciated Mr. Gephardt’s support of targeted tax relief legislation passed last year, we welcome him to the side of tax fairness. If this statement reflects his true intention to begin helping businesses and working families, Americans can look forward to a more unified Congress willing to build on its past pro-business and pro-family successes. The 1 06th Congress brought renewed fiscal discipline to the nation’s capital. We stopped the Federal government’s 39-year practice of raiding the Social Security and Medicare Trust Funds to pay for other projects. We reversed the course of over three decades of reckless spending which had increased our nation’s public debt. We balanced the budget and began to pay off our obligations to Americans who loaned the government money in treasury bills and bonds. Responsible budgeting teamed with the hard work of the American people and technological innovation in the private sector powered our nation’s economy and allowed the government’s projected surplus to grow. continued