Washington, D.C. – Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) today approved of President Bush’s goals to eliminate the deficit, expose and reduce earmarks, and reform entitlement programs in his 2007 State of the Union address.

Balance the Budget.  The President said Congress “can restrain the spending appetite of the federal government, and balance the federal budget” without tax increases.  The Bush tax cuts gave working Americans much-needed relief, allowing them to spend, save, and invest which in turn stimulated the economy.  Congress must practice fiscal restraint by weeding out wasteful spending.

Earmark Reform.  President Bush lamented the majority of earmarks that “are dropped into committee reports that are not even part of the bill that arrives on my desk. You did not vote them into law. I did not sign them into law. Yet they are treated as if they have the force of law.”  He also repeated earlier calls to cut the cost of number of earmarks in half.  The President identified two major shortcomings that the House and Senate reforms did not address and must be included in any final legislation.

Entitlement Reform. The President correctly noted that without changes to Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security, future generations will face “huge tax increases, huge deficits, or huge and immediate cuts in benefits.”  Both parties are in denial over the looming crisis that will accompany the retirement of the baby boomers.  Tough but necessary changes are in order before the problem spirals out of control.

“CAGW supports the President’s budget goals.  We hope the President proposes a tight budget for fiscal 2008 and is willing to use his veto pen if Congress refuses to cut wasteful spending,”  CAGW President Tom Schatz said. 

Citizens Against Government Waste is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to eliminating waste, fraud, mismanagement and abuse in government.