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(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – U.S. Senator Tom Coburn, M.D. (R-OK) released the following statement today regarding lower-than-expected budget deficit estimates.
“The Treasury Department’s budget deficit estimates provide even further proof that lowering tax rates boosts the economy and tax revenues. When the American people are given the freedom to work hard and express their entrepreneurial spirit without excessive government interference we all prosper,” Dr. Coburn said.
“However, we can’t let today’s good news lull us into a false sense of security. Our nation faces $79 trillion in unfunded liabilities in Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid that will wash away the gains of today’s strong economy if we maintain the status quo. Doing nothing to fix these programs will result in higher taxes or benefits cuts once Baby Boomers begin retiring in five short years from now.
“The first step Congress can take to continue our strong economy is to eliminate wasteful and duplicative spending, which accounts for at least 10 to 20 percent of our budget. Members of Congress need to define successful representation not as sending money back to their states through pork projects but in keeping dollars from leaving states. The private sector and individual Americans are vastly more skilled at allocating scarce dollars than politicians or bureaucrats in Washington, D.C.
“Congress also must abandon its politically-expedient approach to the debate about entitlement reform. President Bush deserves credit for offering honest solutions to Social Security. Politicians who deny the economic threat posed by unsustainable entitlements – as many Democrats did when they applauded the failure of Bush’s Social Security reforms during his State of the Union address – are expressing their willingness to commit the next generation to a lower standard of living so they can win the next election. The only way our economy will remain strong and capable of sustaining a global war on terror is through low tax rates, spending restraint and entitlement reform. Now more than ever the American people should not tolerate political cowardice in Washington,” Dr. Coburn said.