America is at a Crossroads

October 31, 2010
By Keith Rothfus

Last year I decided to run for Pennsylvania's 4th Congressional District because, like most Americans, I am very concerned about spiraling debt and deficits, the failure of Congress and the Obama administration to recognize what is needed to grow jobs and the economy, the explosive growth of government and the loss of basic freedoms.

As unemployment continues to hover near 10 percent and Congress continues to spend record amounts of money, it is time to hit the reset button.

Notwithstanding the spiraling deficit and unprecedented bailouts, President Obama, aided and abetted by the most liberal Congress in at least two generations, decided to spend $787 billion on a "stimulus package." Problem is, it didn't work. What it did do, however, was saddle our children and grandchildren with a lot more money to pay back.

That's why I have taken to calling them "Generation Debt."

The president told the country that if the stimulus bill were passed, unemployment would peak at 8 percent. It did not and it continued to rise to a level not seen in more than 25 years. The president's top economic adviser later conceded that unemployment would remain "unacceptably high for years."

Agenda item No. 1 for the next Congress should be to get the economy moving to create jobs. We start by repealing the health care bill passed this year and making the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts permanent. Unfortunately, Jason Altmire has said that repealing the health care bill is "not a viable option," and he and his fellow members left town last month without making the tax cuts permanent.

In addition to attacking spending and taxes, we need to reconsider how Congress does business. Earmarks must stop. Spending decisions by federal agencies should be made on a competitive needs-based analysis, not whether a congressional representative is returning a favor for a donor or simply trying to make him- or herself look good for the district.

No more bridges to nowhere, no more tunnels to nowhere and no more $200 million dollar airports like the one in Johnstown that gets only three prop flights a day, not surprisingly all coming from Washington, D.C.

We also need to do a comprehensive review of the spending of each federal agency and determine where we can eliminate waste and fraud.

Our nation is at a crossroads.

The election this year will be about which party offers better solutions for positioning the private sector to add jobs.

The election also will be about how much power we want to give the federal government over our daily lives.

The positive results of the pro-growth policies of the 1980s and 1990s, which focused on lower taxes, lower regulation and reduced spending, are recent enough for people to remember and I am convinced that they will choose those policies again this year.

Keith Rothfus, an Edgeworth attorney, is Republican nominee for the 4th Congressional District seat in Tuesday's election.

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