Chavez: Uniting Congress

Linda Chavez

Townhall - The attempted assassination of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and the murder of six others in Tucson have transfixed the nation for the past week. But as horrific as those events were, Congress has little choice but to move on. There is little Congress can do about what happened in Tucson -- or ensure something like it won't ever happen again. It is hubris to believe otherwise. What members of Congress owe their fallen colleague -- and the American people -- is to return to the business of legislating. And few periods in recent history offered greater legislative challenges than those facing the 112th Congress.

The nation faces a mountain of debt, estimated at more than $14 trillion, or more than $45,000 for every person living in the United States today. The new Republican majority in the House has promised to cut spending in order to help close the deficit and keep long-term debt from rising. They'll have the chance over the next several weeks as they move to fund government beyond the continuing resolution that expires March 4. Republicans would like to cut $100 billion out of President Obama's 2011 budget, even before the president gets a chance to present his 2012 budget expected sometime in February. But doing so will require deep cuts in existing programs, and Republicans have already taken off the table those related to Defense, Homeland Security, and Veterans Affairs. Read full column here:

Chavez: Uniting Congress