I am honored to have the opportunity to listen to your priorities as the 111th Congress closes and the 112th Congress prepares to assume the responsibilities of leadership.

For too long, members of Congress have put their personal agendas ahead of the Constitution they have sworn to uphold. Many have chosen to spend tax dollars without regard for the future. That must end.

In the 112th Congress, I will be a voice for serious reform in Washington. I believe that government must be smaller, more transparent and less expensive.

I am reminded of an illustration that free-market economist Milton Freidman used. He noted that there are four ways money can be spent: you can spend your own money on yourself, you can spend your own money on someone else, you can spend someone else's money on yourself or you can spend someone else's money on someone else. Clearly, we all spend most efficiently when we are in the first category. Congress fits in that last category - and because Congress is always spending someone else's money on someone else, it rarely uses your tax dollars efficiently.

That's why I always try to remember that I am voting to spend my own money - my tax dollars and those of my children as well as yours. It's why I want you to hold me accountable for the way I spend your hard-earned money. And that's why I want to make sure you keep as much of your money as possible.

Looking ahead, I fully expect that the Speaker of the House will call the 111th Congress back into session one more time. Should that occur, I will oppose any attempts to use a "lame duck" Congress to pass a legislative agenda that is out of step with the priorities of the American people. During the next Congress, which will begin in January, I look forward to pushing back the big government agenda of this administration and advancing simple, conservative solutions to the real problems Americans face.

CONSTITUENT CORNER

November is here. The air is crisp. The changed leaves are falling. Thanksgiving will soon be here. Many of us are thinking of enjoying the holidays with our families and friends.

As I write today, I have several items to alert you to.

Obamacare

On October 1^st, the first phase of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act went into effect. The law passed early this year is scheduled to be implemented over the next four years. Already, the first steps of implementation are not going so well.

For many employers, the cost of paying for the expanded plans mandated by the law is so great that they are considering eliminating health care coverage altogether – before the rest of the law goes into effect.

As a result, the New York Times reports that the Obama administration is granting dozens of waivers to big businesses and their insurers. The waivers allow these employers and insurers to continue providing limited-benefit plans that provide far less coverage than is mandated by the new law. A number of states have also asked for power to exempt some insurers, concerned that the law will be disruptive if insurers leave their state or stop offering certain types of coverage.

Yet, these waivers are selective. Not everyone has applied for them and not everyone gets them. The majority passed an economically devastating law and then temporarily waives it for some companies but not others. In effect, the healthcare law that was supposed to improve people’s lives is doing the opposite and the Administration’s way of dealing with these consequences is to selectively and temporarily waive the law.

I do not believe that this is what most people were thinking of when they called for healthcare reform. That is why I have called for repealing the current law and replacing it with meaningful reforms that drive coverage costs down, keep decisions with patients and expand access to health insurance.

Department of State Blocks Import of WWII Rifles

During the Korean War, American-made M1 rifles were sent to Korea to help our allies. Now that they are not of any military use, the South Korean government is ready to send nearly one million of these classic rifles back to the U.S., where they would be sold to law-abiding Americans. Earlier this year, the sale was approved by the U.S. government, but now the Department of State is saying these weapons may not be brought into the country because they “could potentially be exploited… for illicit purposes.”

I joined several of my colleagues in writing to the Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton--asking her to reverse her decision to block these antique firearms. These classic rifles should be able to be purchased from South Korea, imported to the U.S. and sold to anyone who can legally buy them.

Recovery Road Signs

Have you seen a sign like the one in this picture?

First the good news; then the bad.

This week brought good news for the St. Louis region as the U.S. Navy and Boeing signed a multiyear contract that will keep the St. Louis production line building F/A-18 Super Hornets through 2013. I have fought for this deal by prodding the Navy into it and providing the legal authority needed to sign the contract.

Not only does this bulk contract save the Navy - and U.S. taxpayers - over six hundred million dollars, it also promises stable jobs for the St. Louis region. It makes an important step towards addressing the Navy's impending fighter shortfall and ensuring that America’s aircraft carriers are equipped to perform their primary strategic role: to provide on-call naval air power anywhere in the world at any time.

In less favorable news, Congress adjourned on Wednesday without stopping the tax increases that are scheduled to go into effect on January 1st.

We all know that our economy is in a precarious position. Washington has laden us with debt and mandates, many manufacturing jobs have gone overseas, and the housing market has collapsed. We need strong capital investment, innovation and entrepreneurship in order to create new jobs. But the recession, compounded by the impending tax increases and new government mandates, makes job creation too great of a risk for many businesses to take right now. Stopping the scheduled tax increases would take some of the pressure off of businesses, freeing up capitol for long-term job creation. Punishing job creators for their successes will prolong the recession and keep the unemployment lines long. That’s why I am disappointed that Congress refused to act decisively this week to make the current tax cuts permanent.

As always, I’d love to hear what you think on this or any subject.