This week I had the privilege as your Senator to attend the State of the Union. But unfortunately, we knew what President Obama was going to say even before he started speaking. If you didn’t watch, I’ll give you a hint: it starts with “more” and ends with “spending.”
On the positive side, I think President Obama focused on the right central theme – creating jobs. That’s probably because we actually had negative economic growth last quarter with unemployment still around eight percent. But I think everything he’s talking about is the same-old, same-old – more government programs and 'investment' … code word for spending. For instance, if you look at how he wants to avoid sequestration, it’s more taxes and more spending.
The president hides behind the idea of a “balanced approach” that relies on raising taxes. That’s exactly how he thinks we can avert our upcoming automatic spending cuts. Unfortunately it’s unrealistic.
Click here to listen to my response to the State of the Union.
But there are a lot of very important things we can do that don’t involve that – including producing great energy jobs right here in America. If we just get the federal government out of the way and allow Americans to produce more American energy, those can be great high-paying jobs to really boost the economy.
Arguably one of the biggest culprits for the failures in our financial system is the Federal Reserve. I have to say arguably, instead of definitely, because they keep their books completely hidden from the American public. But if we audit the fed, we’ll know for certain.
This week, I joined Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) as an original co-sponsor introducing a bill that would conduct an audit of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve as well as the Federal Reserve banks. This legislation is a big step forward in bringing necessary accountability and transparency to the Federal Reserve.
In recent years, the Fed has doled out trillions of dollars to failing financial companies – with little clear economic success to point to and imposing enormous costs to our financial system. In order for us to prevent future failures by the Fed, we must determine exactly how it operates and why it picks certain winner and loser companies to bail out.
I blocked the initial nomination of Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke until the Senate debated and voted on the legislation to conduct an audit of the Federal Reserve as well as provided the Senate with documents regarding the Federal Reserve-led bailout of AIG.
This week I also co-sponsored legislation with Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) to re-establish price stability as the Federal Reserves’ single mandate. Click here for a story.
I’ve long argued that the Fed should just focus on its original job description – monetary policy and inflation. With endless stimulus-type initiatives coming out of the Fed and the money printing press never ending – all under the banner of helping boost employment – the Federal Reserve should get back to basics. This policy strives to do just that.
This battle will continue until we have full accountability and transparency at the Fed.
Like many of you, Mardi Gras is among my favorite Louisiana traditions. Growing up in New Orleans, I even had a job painting floats for Blaine Kern. That’s why, when Dottie Haydel of Haydel's Bakery contacted my office about a problem with their King Cakes, we had to help. We found out a shipment of babies for their King Cakes was stuck at the airport in Los Angeles. As it turns out, the shipment had been mislabeled as "dairy" so there was a hold-up getting it through customs. I'm happy to report that Dottie and Haydel's received them in time for Mardi Gras!
Please continue reading below to learn more about some of what I’ve been working on in the U.S. Senate.
I hope you and your family are enjoying your Mardi Gras traditions – and recovering from Super Bowl Sunday.
Sincerely,
David Vitter United States Senator
Highlights from the past month (click the hyperlinks for more information):
January marked the beginning of the 113th Congress. In this new Congress, I will serve as the top Republican on the U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, which has jurisdiction over the upcoming Water Resources Development Act, levees, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Environment Protection Agency, and the upcoming highway bill. I was also named as a Deputy Whip, which is part of the leadership team.
I’ll continue serving on the Small Business Committee, where I’ll be the second-highest ranking Republican with the highest seniority, the Armed Services Committee, and the Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee. I’m excited about the opportunity to continue my service on each of these committees that have direct impact on issues of vital interest to Louisianians. Click here to learn more about the committees I’ll be serving on this Congress.
Whenever I meet with Louisianians, I see the ocean of difference that exists between families and businesses back home and the way Washington D.C. operates. That’s why, on the first day I could introduce legislation to this new Congress, I chose to introduce a package of government reform legislation aimed at bridging that gap between Washington and the real world. These bills include issues I’ve advocated before, such as eliminating automatic pay raises for Congress and implementing Congressional term limits. Click here to read more about my government reform proposals.
Washington has been buzzing with a lot of discussion of immigration “reform”. The problem is, so far reform has only led to amnesty. We can’t accept amnesty in exchange for a promise of future immigration enforcement. We fell for that trick with the 1986 blanket amnesty and, unsurprisingly, it only encouraged future waves of illegal immigrants. There’s no guarantee that this, or any future administration, will achieve operational control of the border absent serious pro-enforcement legislation in the Congress.
There’s no disputing the fact that our nation’s domestic energy production on federal lands has been stymied by this administration and is trending in the exact opposite direction of the rapid growth we’re seeing on private and state lands. Unleashing our vast domestic energy potential will create American jobs, help free us from our reliance on foreign oil, and begin to reduce our $16 trillion dollar national debt. With this in mind, I’ve introduced a series of bills to improve our American energy economy, including expanding access to the outer continental shelf, permitting for the Keystone XL Pipeline, and fighting against a carbon tax and the over-regulating of the Obama Administration. Click here to read more about these bills.
Each year, the Louisiana Life March in Baton Rouge and the March for Life in Washington D.C. serve as important reminders of a movement that continues to gain momentum across the country. This month I had the opportunity to meet with several hundred students from Louisiana, including my daughter Lise, in our nation’s capital for the national March for Life. I know that their efforts make a difference, and I’m also taking steps here in the U.S. Senate to protect the rights of the unborn as well. Click here to learn about the pro-life bills I’ve introduced.
At a time when budgets across the country are being cut, when families are working to make ends meet and jobless rates are still high, does it make sense that Congress should get an automatic pay raise each year?
Of course not. And that answer should be obvious in Washington. But the current law on the books is that Congress gets a regular pay increase without drawing up any formal proposal or any public debate.
It’s outright wrong, and it builds distrust among Americans. Some in Washington may wonder why the American people are skeptical of Congress. Well, a little Louisiana common-sense will tell you it’s policies like these automatic pay raises directly contributing to that distrust.
Too many Louisianians and folks across the country have lost their jobs or have been forced to accept pay freezes, so it makes no sense for Congress to continue automatically receiving annual raises without having to publicly vote on it.
Just last week I reintroduced my bipartisan legislation with Senator Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) to end automatic annual pay raises for members of Congress and require that any increase be publicly voted on.
Any member of Congress who wants an automatic raise each year should have to publicly ask for it, defend it, and explain it to their constituents by putting it to a vote. Folks back home aren’t guaranteed a pay raise each year; Congress shouldn’t be either.
I know Louisianians don’t like the overly partisan tone in Congress. This sort of reform can be a bipartisan, common-sense way to help reconnect Congress to the American people.
If the Obama Administration is telling us that first they'll give us amnesty but then, after that, they’ll start enforcing our borders and illegal immigration laws, do you believe them? I certainly don’t. As we’ve learned, when this administration brings up “immigration reform,” they are really only focused on providing amnesty for illegal immigrants.
This is the same formula that has been tried before – and frankly, failed – including when it passed in 1986 under President Reagan. But of course, we provide amnesty and the enforcement part of the plan never materializes.
There is no guarantee that this or any future administration will achieve operational control of the border absent serious pro-enforcement legislation in the Congress.
As the chairman of the U.S. Senate Border Security Caucus, I’m on the front lines fighting for common sense legislation to secure our borders and prevent amnesty for illegal aliens, and I’ll continue working to promote a true, achievable alternative: attrition through enforcement. And I’ll stand and fight for that against the President, or anyone in the Senate, including members of my own party.
