United States Budget Dilemma - Have We Gone Past The Point of No Return?

The following video is a real good look at why the Federal Government can't get their budgets balanced.

Even Rep. Paul Ryan's budget, as tight as he can make it results in a deficit!

We may already be beyond where Greece and some of the Eurozone countries are regarding their debt and the ability to get back to a balanced budget! If it is ugly in Europe one can only imagine how bad things will get here in the good old USA.

NHGOP Response to What Voters Hope is Obama's Last SOTU Address

"Tonight, New Hampshire voters heard another lofty speech filled with promises to boost job creation and rebuild our economy, but this is the same empty rhetoric they've heard year after year.  President Obama simply doesn't realize that his commitment falls short because his so-called 'accomplishments' are the problem.  ObamaCare, reckless spending and job-destroying regulations are hurting small business owners and drowning out the free market with more government.

"Despite these promises, the unfortunate reality is that the national unemployment rate is significantly higher today than it was when he took office.  Too many New Hampshire workers either can't find a job or are under-employed.  

"As we look ahead to 2012, the President's broken promises on the economy and his record of more spending, more debt and more taxes will prove to be a liability for Democrats running for office across our state."

OBAMA'S PROMISE AFTER PROMISE AFTER PROMISE

2009: "It's an agenda that begins with jobs." (President Barack Obama, White House Press Office, 2/24/2009, Accessed: 1/24/2012)

2010: "That is why jobs must be our number-one focus in 2010." (President Barack Obama, White House Press Office, 1/27/2010, Accessed: 1/24/2012)

2011: "All these investments. . . . will make America a better place to do business and create jobs." (President Barack Obama, White House Press Office, 1/25/2011, Accessed: 1/24/2012)

NH House Leaders Comment on Notification of Agreement on $36 Million Loss of Federal Revenue from 2004 Audit

CONCORD – House Speaker William O’Brien and House Majority Leader D.J. Bettencourt offered the following statements in response to the news that the federal government will be withholding $36 million in revenue based on an audit of the state’s Disproportionate Share Hospital program dating back from 2004.  The state entered into an agreement with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in which the loss of revenue will be spread over two years, starting in January 2012.  This means that the state will see a $27 million loss in the current budget and a $9 million revenue loss in the next biennial budget.

House Speaker William O’Brien

“While we certainly hoped that the federal government would reconsider the state’s appeal, the reality that we are facing a $36 million hole – and a $27 million hole in this budget – is now upon us.  That’s why we introduced a bill (House Bill 653) to give the state the opportunity to make spending reductions to bring our budget back to balance.  Obviously, we have a lean state budget, but we are going to need to do what the working families across New Hampshire are doing right now: tightening their belts to live within their means.  Clearly, this is going to involve the House, Senate and Governor working together to bring fiscal responsibility in order to resolve this old debt.”

House Majority Leader D.J. Bettencourt

“Fortunately the House made the choice to use reasonable, responsible revenue figures to bring integrity and accountability back to the budgeting process. We will have to make further spending reductions to close this hole, but they’ll be a drop in the bucket compared to what we’d have had to have made if we had used the Governor’s overinflated estimates. We’ve made clear that this legislature refuses to pass the burden off to the taxpayers or raise any taxes or fees.”

Attached - NH DSH Appeal - Executed Agreement

NH House Leaders Respond to Attack by Senator Shaheen

House Leaders Respond to Attack by Senator Shaheen on Speaker’s Efforts to

Bring Fiscal Responsibility to New Hampshire

CONCORD – House Speaker William O’Brien (R-Mont Vernon) and House Majority Leader D.J. Bettencourt (R-Salem) today responded to attacks by U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen against Speaker O’Brien and his efforts to bring fiscal responsibility to New Hampshire.  Shaheen made the remarks at Saturday’s Jefferson Jackson Dinner in Windham, a fundraiser for the Democrat Party.  A report of the speech can be seen here.

 House Speaker William O’Brien

 “As Governor, Senator Shaheen supported a statewide sales tax, passed laws that forced health insurance companies out of the state, signed huge, job-killing business tax hikes and implemented a legal strategy that led to the Claremont II decision, which has undercut local control of education.  She even managed to double state spending in just six years.  In Washington, Senator Shaheen’s record has been equally abysmal.  The non-partisan Citizens Against Government Waste gave her just a 7% rating, and the National Taxpayers Union rated her at 8% – a total and abject failure by any measure.”

 “Given Jeanne Shaheen’s big government, tax-and-spend record, being attacked by her is a badge of honor.  However, what really has caused her to act in such an offensive manner is that fact that we are working to restore the New Hampshire Advantage by getting the budget that she exploded back under control, cutting taxes to grow our economy and to create jobs and working to resolve the school funding problems that she created.  We will continue to bring fiscal responsibility to Concord, even as she continues to work to bankrupt the federal budget in Congress.”

 House Majority Leader D.J. Bettencourt

 “Jeanne Shaheen should not only apologize to the Speaker,  but to the 57% of the hard-working, productive New Hampshire residents who were not born here but have added to the great quality of life that we all enjoy.  Instead of discussing substantive issues, Jeanne Shaheen has fallen into the same attack mentality that President Barack Obama uses. Her offensive remarks show that Jeanne Shaheen has been ‘occupied’ by the left wing. Gone are the days when Democrats would talk openly and respectfully to the voters about their philosophies, instead they’d rather defer to the politics of personal destruction.  It's understandable that the left doesn’t want to discuss their tax and spend, big government policies because Granite Staters know we can no longer afford to advance the Obama Administration’s agenda, of which Jeanne Shaheen remains in lockstep. Further, Speaker O’Brien was in fact not born in Massachusetts but at Fort Dix while his father was fighting to defend America’s freedom in the Korean War.”

NH House Leadership Statement on the Passage of HB 601, Obamacare Funding

Today House Republican leadership offered the following statement  on HB 601, which sends back federal money to implement an insurance exchange in the state for Obamacare:

House Speaker William O’Brien:

“This bill sends the Obamacare money back to Washington with specific instructions to use it to reduce our massive federal deficit. New Hampshire can do its part in rejecting this expensive mandate. Obamacare has been found unconstitutional by two federal courts and we are awaiting the final decision by the U.S. Supreme Court. Spending that sort of money to comply with a mandate that is three years away and stands on very shaky ground makes no sense. It is irresponsible to knowingly waste tax dollars, be it state or federal, when we face historic budget deficits in Washington and Concord. No bit of money should be considered ‘insignificant’ in the ongoing discussions of balancing the budget. We simply have to be better stewards of taxpayer money. We also must send a strong message that New Hampshire intends to preserve our Tenth Amendment rights,” said House Speaker Bill O’Brien.

House Majority Leader D.J. Bettencourt:

“The Democrats rammed Obamacare through despite the wishes of the public but that’s no reason that we should saddle our citizens with higher taxes and the freedom to run their own healthcare that Obamacare mandates. The voters elected to fix this mess and that’s just what this legislation does,” said House Majority Leader D.J. Bettencourt.