Four years ago, we in Congress voted to authorize the use of military force against Iraq. I was one of 23 Senators who voted against it and my thoughts expressed then still hold true today:

"Before the United States wages war against Iraq, President Bush and the Congress owe it to the young Americans who face death or injury in that conflict to ensure that every effort has been made to obtain our ends without endangering them. Every ounce of preparation must be taken to ensure a swift and efficient outcome should war become necessary. As another President, Herbert Hoover, once said, 'Older men declare war. But it is youth that must fight and die.' The burden is on our leaders to justify why young men and women need to risk their future now.

"As we consider this war, we must also consider the implications of what we are doing. Saddam Hussein is not the only dictator who oppresses his people, attacks his neighbors, and is developing weapons of mass destruction (WMD). North Korea's Kim Jong Il, Libya's Muammar Qaddaffi, Iran's Ayatollah Khamenei, Syria's Bashar al-Asad, and others, all pose threats or have posed threats to American interests. All are known for their human rights abuses. Read more...

51,000 new jobs. 4.6 percent unemployment rate. More Americans employed than ever before. Plummeting gas prices. All-time stock market highs.

While this news alone proves the strength of our economy, just yesterday, President Bush announced that the federal deficit has been cut in half three years earlier than he originally promised. Unfortunately, Democrats are too consumed with casting a dark shadow on Republican policies to acknowledge the great strides our economy has made in the past several years.

The facts, however, are indisputable: Republicans' responsible fiscal policies and pro-growth initiatives have put money in the pockets of American families and raised the standard of living nationwide.

The numbers released by Treasury yesterday demonstrate the positive impact that tax relief can have on our economy and our fiscal outlook. By lowering the tax burden and encouraging more business investment and hiring, Congress helped create the conditions for economic growth, which has led to a surge in revenue flowing into the Treasury. (FY 2005 revenues were 14.5 percent higher than the year before and FY 2006 tax receipts are 11.8 percent above last year.) Due to these pro-growth policies, the deficit is dropping, but we must do even more to restrain spending so that we can balance the budget. This is especially critical in preparing the way as we work to address the budgetary challenges that face us in the near future with the retirement of the baby-boom generation.

The Treasury numbers for FY 2006 show:

* The FY2006 budget deficit was $248 billion, or 1.9 percent as a share of the economy (GDP) -- below the average of the past 40 years of 2.3 percent of GDP.

* This year's deficit has fallen by $71 billion from last year's actual deficit of $318.7 billion.

* The FY2006 deficit is 41 percent lower than the OMB's original projection of $423 billion in February of this year.

In his press conference today, President Bush demonstrated that, in addition to being in a state of denial on the war in Iraq, he is also in denial over our nation's historic fiscal downturn.  President Bush and Congressional Republicans have squandered the $5.6 billion budget surplus they inherited and transformed it into a $4 billion deficit.  America deeply needs a new economic direction, one that Congressional Democrats are ready to provide.  Democrats will restore fiscal discipline by re-implementing pay-as-you-go budget rules.  Restoring the pay-go rules is the common-sense approach to getting our country back on the right fiscal track.

The following is a joint post from the Chairman and Ranking Member of the House Agriculture Committee, Va. GOP Rep. Bob Goodlatte and Minn. Dem. Rep. Collin Peterson:

Despite the decline in gasoline prices, asserting our nation’s energy independence continues to be a challenge. To move us closer toward the goal of greater energy independence, the House of Representatives recently passed a resolution that established a goal of producing 25 percent of the all energy consumed in the U.S. on America’s farms, ranches and forests by the year 2025, an initiative known as 25x’25 (H. Con. Res. 424).

The resolution recognizes the need for a sustainable, safe, and reliable energy supply and enjoys wide bipartisan support in the House Agriculture Committee and in the House and the Senate. A broad coalition of agriculture, industry, environmental leaders, as well as several governors and state legislators have also rallied around the 25x’25 Resolution.

Expanding production and use of renewable fuels opens new markets for agriculture producers, provides consumers with a safe, sustainable, environmentally friendly, and renewable source of energy, and decreases our nation’s dependency on foreign oil, reducing the negative effects of severe spikes in oil prices on consumers.

Read more...

Yesterday the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) predicted what Americans will spend to heat their homes this winter. For households using natural gas, consumers can expect to pay $826, down from a record $945 last winter. But this modest decline is cold comfort when costs have nearly doubled in five years: they were $465 in the winter of 2001-2002, $600 in 2002-2003, $659 in 2003-2004, and $741 in 2004-2005. Natural gas is the most widely used winter heating fuel in the United States, used by 58 percent of all U.S. households.

This winter’s small cost break follows an unusual combination of events – curtailed production after last year’s hurricanes and a record warm winter that dramatically reduced consumption. But make no mistake, the natural gas crisis hasn’t gone anywhere. Natural gas prices continue their march upward, U.S. jobs are being shed by the millions, and the nation’s competitiveness, economy and security remain at risk – due in large measure to current federal energy policies.

The nation simply can no longer afford a ‘fair weather’ energy policy under which a warm winter represents our only relief from steadily rising energy prices. Instead, what residential and industrial energy consumers need is for Congress to change federal energy policies so that Americans have greater access to our own abundant natural gas supplies in the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS). Decades-old energy policies have placed 85 percent of these supplies off-limits while demand rises – driving natural gas prices higher and making the nation less competitive internationally. Every American pays the price for these irrational and outdated policies. Read more...

The President came to Congress in October 2002 and asked Congress to authorize force against Iraq.  I voted against giving the President this authority, and parted ways with most of my colleagues in Congress.  This was not a popular vote at the time, but it was the right vote.  I was proud of my vote then, and I am proud of it now.

I have remained an outspoken critic of President Bush's policies in Iraq.  There was no connection between the events of 9/11 and the Saddam Hussein regime.  The Bush Administration distorted and misused intelligence information about Saddam Hussein's actual WMD capacity.  Saddam Hussein did not have nuclear weapons, and did not pose an imminent threat to the United States.

During the debate in 2002, I stated on the House floor that I had “grave concerns Read more...

Congressional Republicans have been working to promote pro-growth economic policies and we are continuing to see the positive results day-in and day-out.  As a result of our work, the federal deficit has declined for the second year in a row and has been cut in half three years ahead of schedule.

By restraining spending in Washington and allowing Americans to keep more of what they earn, we are creating jobs and making America more prosperous.  Democrats in Washington believe we can tax our way out of this deficit, but Republicans know better.

And there's more good news about the economy in addition to a shrinking budget deficit. The Dow recently reached a record-high.  Disposable personal income is up more than 14 percent since 2001.  Home ownership is higher than ever, with two-thirds of Americans owning homes.  Unemployment is at its lowest average since the 1960s.  And nearly 6 million jobs have been created since 2003.

More Americans are working and keeping more of what they earn.  As a result, revenues are up and the deficit is down.  Our tax cuts are working, and the American economy continues to grow.

North Korea’s nuclear weapons test is an irresponsible act and a dangerous development that threatens the safety and stability of the region, our allies Japan and South Korea and the world. China has an opportunity to step forward and increase pressure on North Korea to cease their nuclear program. Stopping North Korea’s nuclear weapons program must be a priority for the international community.

In early 2003, I traveled to the Korean Peninsula with then-Secretary of State Colin Powell. When I returned I proposed that the United States should engage in discussions with North Korea regarding their nuclear weapons program. I suggested that North Korea agree to freeze their nuclear program and allow International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspectors back in to verify their actions and the United States simultaneously agree not to attack North Korea or call for economic sanctions in order for bilateral negotiations to begin.

The Administration chose to pursue six-party talks instead which have so far been unsuccessful in stopping North Korea’s nuclear program. As North Korea heads in this dangerous direction, we must do all we can to keep a dialogue open between North Korea and the international community. I’ve heard the excuse that Kim Jong Il is like an errant child and we shouldn’t encourage his behavior. But errant children typically don’t have nuclear weapons.