1 in 5 New Mexicans Receive Government Help For Food
Bingaman's Non-Response to Debt Crisis
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| Jeff Bingaman |
Dear Friend, Thank you for contacting me regarding our nation's debt. I appreciate your taking the time to write. Our national debt is rapidly climbing and threatens American prosperity. I believe that we must get serious about addressing the debt so that our country can continue to grow and provide essential services. Moving forward, this means we must consider a wide-range of policies to restore fiscal security. Congress will need to work on a bipartisan basis to make tough decisions both to control spending and to increase revenues, and neither has ever been an easy task. I agree that some level of spending cuts are necessary.
In this regard, Congress has taken crucial steps, including savings from the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Fiscal Year 2011 Continuing Resolution (CR), which reduces spending by about $38 billion compared to the budget in FY2010. If we are serious about restoring fiscal security, however, we must now focus on more than just the non-security discretionary accounts, which amount to about 12 cents of every dollar spent by Washington. A more comprehensive approach will have to look at entitlement programs, security programs, and revenue increases to balance the budget. At the same time, we must continue to invest in programs that are critical to maintaining our economic recovery and strengthening our economy going forward. The creation of our nation's debt was a bipartisan effort and as such requires a bipartisan solution. Whether or not we agree with the obligations imposed upon our nation during times when both parties controlled different branches of government, we must agree that addressing our fiscal challenges is in the best interest of the nation.
Recently, President Obama revealed his proposal for reducing the deficit and encouraging economic growth. It stands in sharp contrast to other deficit reduction plans that place too much of the burden on the middle class and seniors. I applaud the President's leadership in acknowledging that we cannot fix our deficit problems with budget cuts alone. I also agree that whatever steps we take must protect investments that we need to make in education and innovation so that our economy can continue to grow. Please be assured that throughout this discussion, I will carefully examine every proposal and work to ensure that important federal programs, including Social Security and Medicare, remain strong. Again, thank you for writing. I hope you will continue to keep me informed of issues of importance to you and your community.
Lottery Ticket Sales Down in NM
· We hire only to fill openings in critical job positions.
· We just started the third year of a salary freeze.
As we look across our expense budget, there is no one item or combination of items that could be cut to bridge the $4.3 million gap. The only path forward is to grow sales. And to do this responsibly, we must reach new players and build their loyalty to lottery games and the Legislative Lottery Scholarship program rather than ask existing players to increase their participation. To engage new players, we have developed an integrated marketing campaign that kicks off this week.
Census Reveals Entitlement Statistics
The results, published this month in a lengthy report, are hardly surprising. According to analysis by Judicial Watch, the majority of households across the country benefiting from publicly-funded welfare programs are headed by immigrants, both legal and illegal. States where immigrant households with children have the highest welfare use rates are Arizona with 62%, Texas, California and New York with 61% each and Pennsylvania at 59%. The study focused on eight major welfare programs that cost the government $517 billion the year they were examined. They include Supplemental Security Income (SSI) for the disabled, Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF), a nutritional program known as Women, Infants and Children (WIC), food stamps, free/reduced school lunch, public housing and health insurance for the poor (Medicaid). Read full story here: News New Mexico
Cultivating a Sense of Dependency
New Mexico figures show the average SNAP beneficiary in March received $296. The U.S. Department of Agriculture, which administers the program, last year approved a New Mexico plan that allows people who make up to 165 percent of the federal poverty level to enroll in SNAP. The previous level was 130 percent. The USDA acted after the state asked it to make it easier to get benefits, said state Human Services Department spokeswoman Betina Gonzales McCracken. "Compared to other states, our SNAP participation is in the top four or top five," McCracken said. "But we know that there are still 33 percent (of eligible) families that qualify for the program who aren't enrolled." New Mexico falls among the five poorest states. Read full story here: News New Mexico
U.S. AAA Credit Rating in Jeopardy
Bloomberg - Standard & Poor’s put a “negative” outlook on the long-term AAA credit rating of the U.S., citing a “material risk” the nation’s leaders will fail to deal with rising budget deficits and debt. “We believe there is a material risk that U.S. policy makers might not reach an agreement on how to address medium-and long-term budgetary challenges by 2013,” New York-based S&P said today in a report. “If an agreement is not reached and meaningful implementation does not begin by then, this would in our view render the U.S. fiscal profile meaningfully weaker than that of peer ‘AAA’ sovereigns.”
The cost to protect against a default by the government and the nation’s banks jumped and stocks declined after the New York-based firm’s statement, which assigns a one-in-three chance that it will lower the U.S. rating in the next two years. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index tumbled 1.6 percent to 1,298.67 at 12:34 p.m. in New York. The move puts politicians on notice that the U.S. debt rating is at risk unless they reach an agreement to narrow budget deficits and reduce the national debt, which S&P forecasts will rise to 84 percent of gross domestic product by 2013. President Barack Obama and congressional Republicans have clashed repeatedly over when and how to lower the debt, as well as how to fund more immediate government needs. Read full story here: News New Mexico
Armed Service Academies Selection Process Begins
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| West Point |
Interested students must submit their completed applications to Congressman Pearce’s office no later than Friday, October 21st, 2011. In November, Congressman Pearce will hold Board Academy reviews. Congressman Pearce will then submit his nominations to the Academies. The application process is open to all interested high school juniors and seniors in New Mexico’s Second Congressional District. 
Students are encouraged to research the specific academies on their respective websites for further information on the nomination and selection process. Detailed information and a downloadable application are available at pearce.house.gov. Questions may be directed to Barbara Romero, Deputy District Director for Congressman Pearce, at 575-835-8979.
McCain Introduces New Border Bill
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| John McCain |
Pearce Voted in Favor of Spending Cuts
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| Congressman Steve Pearce at Veteran's Rally in Las Cruces |
More Changes at Spaceport America
According to a copyrighted story in the Albuquerque Journal, new Spaceport America Executive Director Christine Anderson, a recent Susana Martinez appointee, pulled the plug on a $1.3 million contract with Albuquerque-based Procurement Solutions. The story says Procurement Solutions began its relationship with Spaceport America with a much smaller contract four years ago. Since 2007 the company was able to rapidly expand the size of its management role and contract value with Spaceport America. Apparently Director Anderson wants to bring the decision-making at Spaceport America under state government control and have management of the facility done by someone on the state's payroll. Anticipated savings from the change would total nearly $200,000 per year according to Anderson's estimates in the journal article by Colleen Heild. Almost immediately after Governor Martinez election, Spaceport America's budget and resource management came under increased scrutiny. Anderson replaced former director Rick Homans in January shortly after Governor Martinez inauguration.
John Sanchez to Appear on NewsNM
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| John Sanchez |
Conundrum: al Qaeda Thrives When Dictators Fall
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| Muammar Gadaffi |
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| Anwar al-Awalki |
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