House Republicans Offer a New Governing Agenda for the American People
WASHINGTON – U.S. Congresswoman Candice Miller (MI-10) today released the following statement after House Republicans presented A Pledge to America, a new governing agenda focused on addressing the American people’s top priorities. The Pledge is the culmination of a months-long engagement with the American people in which House Republicans sought their ideas and priorities for Congress. The agenda offers concrete solutions that can be implemented immediately to tackle the issues that are most important to the nation, including job creation, spending restraint, national security, health care, and reform to Congress itself. The full agenda, A Pledge to America, can be viewed and downloaded here: http://pledge.gop.gov
“It is past time for the people’s representatives in Washington to hear the voices of American citizens who are demanding action on a new agenda to restore prosperity and security to our great nation,” Miller said. “That is why Republicans in the United States House of Representatives began the Americans Speaking Out project which engaged the American people directly to seek their wisdom on the creation of new governing agenda. The result of that engagement is “A Pledge to America” which I am proud to sign as my commitment to my constituents and the American people on that new governing agenda that I will push forward today.
“This agenda focuses on five key areas, the need to create jobs, to cut federal spending, reform Congress, repeal the job killing health care law and support a strong national defense. These are the overwhelming priorities of the American people and we must take action immediately on their agenda. We are ready to begin today to make the needed changes. Our pledge is our promise to fully and unequivocally represent the priorities of Americas and get our nation back to prosperity,” Miller concluded.
NOTE: The preamble to “A Pledge to America” reaffirms Republicans’ commitment to principles of smaller, more accountable government; economic freedom; lower taxes; fiscal responsibility; protecting life, American values, and the Constitution; and providing for a strong national defense. This new governing agenda is comprised of five specific policy plans that could be implemented right now if President Obama and Democratic Leaders would allow it:
•Creating Jobs. “A Pledge to America” reflects Americans’ demand for immediate action on policies that will end uncertainty for small businesses and help our economy get back to creating jobs. This new governing agenda contains a plan to create jobs, end economic uncertainty, and make America competitive – including stopping all tax hikes, reining in red tape, and repealing ObamaCare’s ‘1099 mandate.’
•Cutting Spending. “A Pledge to America” embodies Americans’ rejection of the now-thoroughly discredited notion that we can simply tax, spend, and borrow our way to prosperity. This new governing agenda contains a plan to cut spending and reduce the size of government – including cutting government spending to pre-‘stimulus’, pre-bailout levels, imposing a hard cap on future discretionary spending, and ending TARP once and for all.
•Reforming Congress. “A Pledge to America” acknowledges that we cannot get our arms around the issues of the day when we have a government that refuses to listen to the people and ignores their priorities. This new governing agenda contains a plan to reform Congress and restore trust – including implementing ‘read the bill’ reform, allowing for more open and fair debate, and requiring that every bill contain a citation of Constitutional authority.
•Repealing and Replacing The Job-Killing Health Care Law. “A Pledge to America” recognizes that the American people continue to squarely oppose the government takeover of health care, with its higher costs, higher taxes, job-killing mandates, and Medicare cuts to pay for a massive new entitlement. This new governing agenda contains a plan to repeal and replace the job-killing health care law with common-sense reforms focused on lowering costs and protecting American jobs.
•A Strong National Defense. “A Pledge to America” reinforces Congress’s responsibility to help provide for a strong national defense and determine a coherent strategy to confront and defeat the terrorist threat. This new governing agenda contains a plan to keep our nation secure at home and abroad – including passing clean troop funding bills, keeping terrorists off American soil, and fully funding missile defense.
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