With talks on reaching a deal to cut spending and raise the debt ceiling reaching a critical stage, the venerable over-50 organization AARP has weighed in with a television advertisement that seeks to shift the focus from entitlement programs such as Medicare onto what it deems to be wasteful spending by Congress. We had earlier given the American public four Pinocchios for failing to… Read more

Washington, DC – Ways and Means Social Security Subcommittee Members, led by Chairman Sam Johnson (R-TX) and Ranking Member Xavier Becerra (D-CA), sent a letter to Social Security Administration (SSA) Inspector General Patrick O’Carroll inquiring into recent press reports which have raised concerns about decisions made by a Social Security administrative law judge (ALJ). In the letter… Read more

On the heels of recent reports and a New York Times article detailing the economic challenges facing small businesses, the Department of Labor released data this week indicating that initial claims for unemployment insurance benefits remained above 400,000 for the 10th week in a row.  These unfavorable economic conditions are a result of a failed… Read more

Obamacare poses two great dangers to our nation: lower quality of care and runaway costs. It will stifle innovation and lead to rationing. But the overwhelming cost and the damage it will do to our nation’s finances at a pivotal moment in our history deserve greater scrutiny. The promises Obamacare supporters have made about the ultimate cost of the program are based on highly unlikely… Read more

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), Ranking Member of the Senate Finance Committee, and House Ways & Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp (R-Mich.) issued the following statement in response to news that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will no longer accept applications for waivers from the Democrats’ health care law after September 22, 2011. … Read more

Yesterday, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce unveiled www.TradeSupportsJobs.com, a website highlighting U.S. exports and the jobs they create for all 50 states and all 435 Congressional Districts, reinforcing the need to act now on the pending trade agreements with Colombia, Panama, and South Korea.  Passing the pending trade agreements is a… Read more

AARP is out with a new TV ad attacking Congressional Democrats and Republicans for considering policies that would extend the solvency of the Medicare program and reduce our nation’s staggering debt.  In the ad AARP absurdly suggests the nation’s trillion dollar deficit and nearly $15 trillion debt can be solved by miniscule cuts to earmarks.  This is hard to reconcile with… Read more

Washington, DC - Today, Ways and Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp (R-MI) released a public letter he sent to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) demanding information about its recent investigation into certain donations to non-profit organizations and the agency’s apparent drive to impose gift taxes on these monies.  Camp questioned the process leading up to this action and level… Read more

Despite calling small business the “anchors of our Main Streets,” economic data released today make it clear that the policies of the Obama Administration have left small business treading in rough waters.  In its monthly Small Business Economic Trends Report, the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) reports that small business optimism has declined again, sinking to… Read more

The American people have just been told by the Trustees for Social Security and Medicare that these programs are headed towards insolvency. So when they hear Social Security is owed billions due to wrongful payments, Americans want, need, and deserve answers. In FY 2009, overpayments totaled $6.5 billion for the retirement, disability, and Supplemental Security Income or SSI program,… Read more