A report by Gallup has said Americans are most likely to choose deficit and debt reduction as the best approach for dealing with the economy over other alternatives like raising taxes and increasing stimulus spending.

I agree, which is why I have cosponsored a balanced budget amendment and introduced legislation to cut federal spending by 40% over five years.

Do you agree? If not these, what other economic strategies do you support?

The Federal Reserve recently reported in its "beige book" survey of economic conditions that the "economy is still too weak to add to permanent jobs."

As we've clearly seen over the past few years, bailout and stimulus spending will not lead to economic recovery. To create permanent jobs for Americans, we need a policy change in Washington that will empower small businesses, not the government, to lead us to economic recovery.

If you haven't already, take a look at my list of Job Killing Principles vs. Job Creating Principles for a list of my ideas on economic recovery.

• $1,161,000,000,000:  The total cost of the Democrats “stimulus.”  The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates the cost of the bill will reach $814 billion and interest on the debt for the bill will be at least $347 billion.

• 9.6%:  The unemployment rate for the month of August 2010.

• 283,000:  The number of jobs lost in June, July and August 2010.

• 3,582,000:  The number of gross jobs lost since the “stimulus” was signed into law.

• 6,249,000:  The number of Americans unemployed and searching for work for more than 27 weeks.

• 45.4%:  The percentage of people between the ages of 16 and 24 years old with a job.  Prior to the stimulus, employment among 16 to 24 year olds had never slipped below 47.5 percent.

As you know, I was one of only 17 Members of Congress to vote against both this stimulus and every other stimulus and bailout under the Bush and Obama Administrations because I believed that they would not work.

As I have said from the beginning, real economic growth comes from generating income and wealth for American families, and income and wealth come from increasing commerce and growing jobs. I believe we need to focus on solutions that provide more opportunities to small businesses, so that they can begin to create more jobs and lead us back on the path to economic recovery.

I want to hear your thoughts – what do you think is the best way to create jobs for Americans?

Job-Killing Principles

Spend what you do not have. Runaway stimulus and bailout spending has caused our national debt to reach record levels, allowing it to be financed by China and giving China leverage on the global stage.

Increase energy taxes. Cap-and-trade energy bills like the ones currently before Congress create a national energy tax that would increase energy costs and kill jobs while unemployment stands at almost 10 percent.

Raise taxes on small business and American families. The Bureau of Labor Statistics recently reported that the economy lost 131,000 jobs in July. 15 million Americans are trying to find work. Raising taxes in the midst of a struggling economy would be detrimental to small businesses and further cripple the economy.



Job Creating Principles

Make tax cuts permanent. Implementing lasting tax cuts will help to restore economic freedom in the United States and put our country on the path to a brighter future. The Economic Freedom Act (H.R. 5029), which I have cosponsored, would reduce taxes for American businesses and families.

Decrease burdensome regulations on small businesses. Small business and entrepreneurs are the cornerstone of our nation's economy. In our current economic situation, it is ever more critical that we support our small businesses by continuing pro-growth policies like lowering taxes, simplifying the tax code, and reducing burdensome regulations.

Lower the debt. Our national debt is expected to reach 93.1% of our GDP this year. Economic experts say even a 1 percent increase in GDP can create almost one million jobs. A commitment to decreasing the debt is a job-creating principle, which is why I have introduced a bill to cut government spending by 40% over the next five years.

The White House announced last week that the United States will likely have another record deficit this year – $1.47 trillion.

At the same time, Secretary of the Treasury, Timothy Geithner, attempted on two occasions to make a case for allowing existing tax cuts to expire later this year. Geithner said that he believes the responsible thing for the federal government to do is to let the tax cuts expire, “to make sure we can show the world” that America is “willing as a country now to start to make some progress bringing down our long-term deficits.”

I believe Mr. Geithner is wrong - the federal government doesn't tax too little. The federal government spends too much.

Raising taxes will not create jobs and it will not provide the certainty we need for American business owners. It is unfair for Washington to continue to spend money in droves and expect American taxpayers to foot the bill.

I want to hear your thoughts. Do you think it is a good idea to let existing tax cuts expire at the end of this year? How would tax increases impact your family or business?