Actions speak louder than words in deficit debate By Governor Bob McDonnell (R-V

Actions speak louder than words in deficit debate By Governor Bob McDonnell (R-Va.) - 01/31/11 On Tuesday night, President Obama stood in the United States House of Representatives and delivered a speech calling for fiscal responsibility, deficit reduction and a government focused on freeing the private sector to create the good jobs our citizens need. The general philosophy advocated in the speech was hard for many to find disagreement with, and post-speech polling bore that out. A positive, upbeat speech extolling the merits of lower taxes, good jobs and optimism in America is what our citizens want to hear. But governing is about getting results, and Americans need to see action that matches the rhetoric. As Governor of Virginia, I have worked with Republicans and Democrats to help navigate our state through these treacherous economic times. We have made progress. We cut $6 billion out of our last two budgets, reduced state spending to 2006 levels, and now have a $403 million surplus. We rejected tax increase proposals, cut spending, and focused our government on its core functions. Since last February, Virginia has seen the fourth highest number of net new jobs created of any state, and our unemployment rate has fallen to 6.7 percent, ninth lowest nationally. Our governing model of fiscal austerity and strong support of the private sector has given the Commonwealth a small tailwind on the path to economic recovery. While our national challenges are much greater, I sincerely hope the President will choose this fiscal conservative model of governing, and not just of speechmaking. As a Republican governor I appreciated the President's acknowledgements that small businesses drive our economy, the private sector must be bolstered to create good jobs, and the continuance of last decade's tax reductions will benefit all Americans. He spoke with needed clarity regarding the dynamic nature of this global economy and the furious economic competition between states and nations to which it has given rise. I strongly endorse his call for a reduction in the corporate income tax, and I certainly do not disagree that we need to "out-innovate, out-educate, and out-build" the world in the years ahead. Further, this Administration knows it has an ally in Richmond in the shared effort to provide more entrepreneurial and higher quality educational opportunities for all our young people. There was much common ground to be found in the President's roughly 6,800 words of text. Unfortunately, specifics on policy were scant. The President touched on the negative impact that excessive and burdensome regulations can have on the businesses that create the jobs our citizens need. I applaud him for focusing on job creation, higher education opportunity expansion, and even tort reform. But will he earnestly pursue these commendable objectives? The President spoke about the "mountain of debt" looming above our heads. Yet the most he could muster when it came to the difficult decisions that must be made to reduce the size of that mountain was a call to freeze domestic spending for the next five years. While this move would save $400 billion over the next decade, the only way out of this crisis will be through cutting spending. The Simpson-Bowles Debt Reduction Commission has given this President an initial list of items from which to choose in the pursuit of real debt reduction. Tuesday night was his opportunity to put the Presidential stamp of approval on a number of those proposals, and call for a bipartisan commitment to enacting them. It did not happen. It was an opportunity lost. It was left to Congressman Paul Ryan of Wisconsin to level with the American people about the tough measures that must be taken to truly reduce our nation's immoral and unsustainable $14 trillion in debt. However, in a politically split Washington, nothing of substance will occur without cooperation between the parties. The American people certainly appreciate a bipartisan speech, but what they really need is bipartisan action in the much tougher task of getting our fiscal house back in order. The President's speech was well-received, now is the time for policies that are well-conceived. The months ahead will tell us much about whether or not this Administration is truly committed to the fiscal responsibility that is crucial to sustained job-creation and economic recovery. Bob McDonnell is the 71st Governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia. He delivered the Republican response to the State of the Union in 2010. http://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/lawmaker-news/141197-governing-is-about-getting-results-and-americans-need-to-see-action-gov-mcdonnell Carl Ray Louk "FRIENDSHIP NEVER ENDS" SG-1996 "LET LOVE LEAD THE WAY" SG-2000 "THE PHOENIX SHALL RISE" SD "EVEN A MAN WHO IS PURE IN HEART AND SAYS HIS PRAYERS BY NIGHT, MAY BECOME A WOLF WHEN THE WOLFBANE BLOOMS AND THE AUTUMN MOON IS BRIGHT." LT-1941 "FLESH OF MY FLESH; BLOOD OF MY BLOOD; KIN OF MY KIN WHEN SAY COME TO YOU, YOU SHALL CROSS LAND OR SEA TO DO MY BIDDING!" CVTD-1895 "FROM HELL'S HEART I STAB AT THEE, FOR HATE SAKE I SPIT MY LAST BREATH AT THEE" CA-1895  "I HAVE BEEN, AND ALWAYS SHALL BE YOUR FRIEND" Spock  "TRICK OR TREAT, TRICK OR TREAT CANDY IS DANDY BUT MURDER, OH MURDER, IS SO SWEET" CRL-2003  "EYE OF NEWT, AND TOE OF FROG, WOOL OF BAT, AND TONGUE OF DOG ADDER'S FORK, BLIND-WORM'S STING, LIZARD'S LEG, AND OWLET'S WING. 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