***NEWS
RELEASE***
For Immediate Release
September 14, 2011
CONTACT:
Deborah Hamilton, Hamilton
Strategies, 215.815.7716, 610.584.1096,
DHamilton@HamiltonStrategies.com
ACTION of PA
Urges Sen. Casey to
Co-Sponsor Balanced Budget Amendment
Group Committed to
Conservative Principles in Government Raising Awareness about Budget
Amendment to Constitution
West Chester, Pa.—ACTION
of PA, or Americans For Christian Traditions In Our Nation,
is urging U.S. Sen. Bob Casey to co-sponsor and vote for a Balanced Budget
Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
In a proposal called
“Upgrade Our Federal Government: A Petition for the Balanced Budget
Amendment,” ACTION of PA is asking Casey to be one of the
senators who proposes that a Balanced Budget Amendment be added to the U.S.
Constitution.
In the petition to Casey,
ACTION of PA lists several reasons why it’s time for a federal
Balanced Budget Amendment. Every state in the U.S., other than Vermont ,
currently has some sort of budget amendment in place, meaning that states
cannot spend more than they collect in income or revenue. These state
amendments require a balance between the projected receipts and expenditures
of each government.
Especially in light of the
U.S. government’s recent financial woes, many have proposed that a similar
amendment be written into the U.S. Constitution. Thus far, there is no such
amendment. After the August 2 passage of the Budget Control Act 2011, which
raised the debt ceiling, Congress must vote on a balanced budget amendment
by the end of 2011.
Forty-seven U.S.
senators, including Pennsylvania’s Sen. Pat Toomey, are co-sponsoring a
Senate Joint Resolution proposing an
amendment to the U.S. Constitution relative to balancing the budget. A
balanced budget amendment must get at least 67 votes in the U.S. Senate to
be passed on to the states for ratification.
Gwenne Alexander,
president of ACTION of PA and head of Chester County Action for 8 years,
commented, “ We believe that it is irresponsible, unbiblical, impractical
and displays an extreme lack of leadership when many of America’s
legislators and the current administration do not take drastic measures to
balance the nation’s budget. Too many of our country’s leaders are
careening through the decades just spending away, without a thought as to
how this will affect future generations. It is high-time that this
behavior and this situation are rectified.
“It is wholly improper
and immoral for those sworn to “protect and defend”, to so readily apply the
whip of debt to the backs of America ’s children. When a
nation’s fiscal prudence is so easily cast aside, lack of strength and
respect will quickly follow.”
The federal budget
deficit for 2011 alone is expected to total more than $1.3 trillion and the
national debt is approaching $15 trillion,
threatening the country’s economic opportunities and the position within a
global market.
This summer, Standard &
Poor’s, a U.S.-based financial services company and credit-rating agency,
downgraded the U.S. “because of the rising public debt burden” and its
perception of “greater policy making uncertainty.” Standard & Poor’s
also believes the Budget Control Act of 2011 “falls short of the amount
necessary to stabilize the general government debt burden by the middle of
the next decade.”
Because Congress and the
Obama Administration have been unable to agree on a plan to balance the
federal budget, one must be forced through a Constitutional amendment.
In addition to the economic
reasons, ACTION of PA supports a Balanced Budget Amendment because
it is consistent with the Judeo-Christian values upon which the nation was
founded. The Bible encourages balanced budgeting and discourages debt.
In fact, ACTION of PA believes it is immoral to incur debt
without a plan to pay off both the interest and the principle.
The country’s Founding
Fathers—Thomas Jefferson and George Washington—believed that wars, economic
problems and public debt of one generation should be paid for by that
generation, not the next. Jefferson
said, “We are morally bound to pay (Revolutionary War debts) ourselves.” And
President Washington told Congress, “No pecuniary consideration is more
urgent than the regular redemption and discharge of public debt.”
ACTION of PA
will continue to petition Casey to join
Toomey and his fellow U.S. senators in supporting a Balanced Budget
Amendment.
ACTION of PA,
a new organization in Pennsylvania with chapters in four counties, works to
engage Pennsylvanians in the issues that affect the state. A main goal of
the new group is to elect candidates with traditional values and high
integrity to office, especially as the election season approaches. The
group will also bring to light issues ranging from budgets and spending to
education and government reform.
For more information on
ACTION of PA, visit www.actionofpa.org/.
