From thunes' newsletter
Last year, the Democrat-led Congress failed to pass a budget. Now, six months into the current Fiscal Year (FY), Congress has yet to pass a single appropriations bill to fund the government. As a result, Congress has been forced to pass a series of short-term Continuing Resolutions, the most recent of which will fund the government through April 8, 2011.
The House-passed spending bill (H.R. 1), was approved on February 19th and would save approximately $57 billion when compared to last year's funding levels. In response, Senate Democrats proposed a nominal $4.7 billion in cuts. With the February deficit hitting a record $223 billion and the nation's debt well over $14 trillion, Congress must enact proposals that will begin to seriously address the fiscal situation our nation is facing.
Since 2008, non-defense, discretionary spending has increased by 22 percent, 10 times the rate of inflation. More than 40 cents of every dollar now spent by the federal government is borrowed. Continued growth in the amount of federal spending and the size of the federal government is not sustainable. Senator Thune will continue to advocate for fiscal responsibility as Congress works to complete action on unfinished spending bills. As a member of the Senate Budget Committee, Senator Thune has also started the important task of examining the FY 2012 budget put forward by the Obama administration.
Additionally, Senator Thune will continue to advocate for the passage of his budget reform bill, which seeks to change the way Washington's budget operates.
