The Washington Post, of all publications, confirmed what we already knew: Congress has been on a spending binge of historic proportions. In fact, the closest historic precedent is Lyndon Johnson’s “Great Society.” Hill leaders should remember that his policies led to: 1: stagflation 2: the ascendancy of the modern conservative movement

Dear Chairman Oxley, As the House Financial Services Committee reaches the point of deciding just how extensive the new controls over accounting firms should be, Citizens for a Sound Economy urges you to look beyond the partisan arguments and consider the impact of the proposed “reforms” on the economy.

SUMMARY: The House and Senate return this week from their two-week recess with a relatively light calendar. The Senate will resume consideration of the energy bill focusing on the issue of tax credits. The House in the meantime will consider several bills under suspension and then plans to take up a taxpayer bill of rights which would make modest, pro-consumer changes to the tax code.

The House and Senate are still in recess. Once again, I recommend that you find the time to see your legislators while they at home and not in Washington, DC. A handy list of public townhall meetings and recommended questions can be found here.

Last month, President Bush submitted to Congress the administration’s proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2003. The events of last year have placed new strains and burdens on federal priorities, and the new budget again places the budget in deficit. The budget proposal includes increased expenditures on homeland security and the war on terrorism and an overall 6.5 percent increase in discretionary outlays. Despite the increased spending levels and the return to deficits, many in Congress are calling for even greater spending while criticizing President Bush’s tax cuts as being fiscally irresponsible. Yet recent history suggests that it is Congress’s profligate spending habits that need to be curbed.

Remarks prepared for delivery by Jack Kemp, Co-Director, Empower America, to Investor's Business Daily's Second Annual Conference, "2002: A Business and Economic Outlook" at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, February 15, 2002 GREETINGS