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Opinion: Weekly remarks: Obama for Obama, Rep. Kevin McCarthy for the GOP

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This article was originally on a blog post platform and may be missing photos, graphics or links. See About archive blog posts.

Here, through the magic of technology, are the remarks of President Obama, who wasn’t in Washington Friday but somehow still sent these weekly words from the White House, which the Ticket always obediently publishes early every Saturday morning.

This week the GOP remarks are from a California Republican -- yes, there still are some left. He’s Rep. Kevin McCarthy of Bakersfield. His words are included below. (Relax, last week the GOP came first.)

-- Andrew Malcolm

President Obama:

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It’s not news to say that we are living through challenging times: The worst economic downturn since the Great Depression. A credit crisis that has made that downturn worse. And a fiscal disaster that has accumulated over a period of years.

In the year 2000, we had projected budget surpluses in the trillions, and Washington appeared to be on the road to fiscal stability. Eight years later, when I walked in the door, the projected budget deficit for this year alone was $1.3 trillion. And in order to jumpstart our struggling economy, we were forced to make investments that added to that deficit through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

But as surely as our future depends on building a new energy economy, controlling healthcare costs and ensuring that our kids are once again the best educated in the world, it also depends on restoring a sense of responsibility and accountability to our federal budget. Without significant change to steer away from ever-expanding deficits and debt, we are on an unsustainable course.

So today, we simply cannot afford to perpetuate a system in Washington where politicians and bureaucrats make decisions behind closed doors, with little accountability for the consequences; where billions are squandered on programs that have outlived their usefulness, or exist solely because of the power of a lobbyist or interest group; and where outdated technology and information systems undermine efficiency, threaten our security, and fail to serve an engaged citizenry.

If we’re to going to rebuild our economy on a solid foundation, we need to change the....

...way we do business in Washington. We need to restore the American people’s confidence in their government – that it is on their side, spending their money wisely, to meet their families’ needs.

That starts with the painstaking work of examining every program, every entitlement, every dollar of government spending and asking ourselves: Is this program really essential? Are taxpayers getting their money’s worth? Can we accomplish our goals more efficiently or effectively some other way?

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It’s a process we have already begun, scouring our budget line by line for programs that don’t work so we can cut them to make room for ones that do. That means ending tax breaks for companies shipping jobs overseas; stopping the fraud and abuse in our Medicare program; and reforming our health care system to cut costs for families and businesses.

It means strengthening whisteblower protections for government employees who step forward to report wasteful spending. And it means reinstating the pay-as-you-go rule that we followed during the 1990s – so if we want to spend, we’ll need to find somewhere else to cut.

And this Monday, at my first, full Cabinet meeting, I will ask all of my department and agency heads for specific proposals for cutting their budgets. Already, members of my Cabinet have begun to trim back unnecessary expenditures.

Secretary Napolitano, for example, is ending consulting contracts to create new seals and logos that have cost the Department of Homeland Security $3 million since 2003. In the largest Department, Secretary Gates has launched an historic project to reform defense contracting procedures and eliminate hundreds of billions of dollars in wasteful spending and cost overruns. And I commend Senators McCain and Levin – a Republican and a Democrat – who have teamed up to lead this effort in Congress.

Finally, in the coming weeks, I will be announcing the elimination of dozens of government programs shown to be wasteful or ineffective. In this effort, there will be no sacred cows, and no pet projects. All across America, families are making hard choices, and it’s time their government did the same.

That is why I have assembled a team of management, technology, and budget experts to guide us in this work – leaders who will help us revamp government operations from top to bottom and ensure that the federal government is truly working for the American people.

I have named Jeffrey Zients, a leading CEO, management consultant and entrepreneur, to serve as Deputy Director for Management of the Office of Management and Budget and as the first ever Chief Performance Officer. Jeffrey will work to streamline processes, cut costs, and find best practices throughout our government.

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Aneesh Chopra, who is currently the Secretary of Technology for Gov. Kaine of Virginia, has agreed to serve as America’s Chief Technology Officer. In this role, Aneesh will promote technological innovation to help achieve our most urgent priorities – from creating jobs and reducing health care costs to keeping our nation secure.

Aneesh and Jeffrey will work closely with our Chief Information Officer, Vivek Kundra, who is responsible for setting technology policy across the government, and using technology to improve security, ensure transparency, and lower costs. The goal is to give all Americans a voice in their government and ensure that they know exactly how we’re spending their money – and can hold us accountable for the results.

None of this will be easy. Big change never is. But with the leadership of these individuals, I am confident that we can break our bad habits, put an end to the mismanagement that has plagued our government, and start living within our means again.

That is how we will get our deficits under control and move from recovery to prosperity. And that is how we will give the American people the kind of government they expect and deserve – one that is efficient, accountable and fully worthy of their trust.
Thank you. ###

Following are the weekly remarks by the Republican representative, California’s Rep. Kevin McCarthy of Bakersfield:

This is California Congressman Kevin McCarthy – the House Republicans’ Chief Deputy Whip.

Earlier this week, President Obama said that we need to get serious about fiscal discipline by trimming waste in the federal budget. Republicans couldn’t agree more. We want to work with the President to get our financial house back in order.

Unfortunately, the Washington Democratic establishment has pushed all year for policies that spend too much, tax too much, and borrow too much from our children and grandchildren.

When I think of the future, I think of my 15 year old son Connor and my 12 year old daughter Meghan. I worry about their future because your kids are as important to you as mine are to me. And I am unwilling to leave our children with so much debt.

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It’s irresponsible to borrow more than all previous American Presidents combined. And it must stop if we want to get our economy moving again.

The trillion-dollar ‘stimulus’ bill … the $410 billion dollar ‘omnibus’ spending bill… and the massive, fiscally-irresponsible Democratic budget that doubles the debt in just over five years, and triples the debt in just over ten years. All this money, but why are we funding a skateboard park in Rhode Island and new bike racks in Washington, D.C.?

The Democratic governor of Ohio is planning to use $57 million dollars in ‘stimulus’ funds on studies instead of ‘shovel-ready’ projects that could create jobs now. And don’t forget that the same ‘stimulus’ bill authorized those outrageous AIG bonuses.

When will all this spending and borrowing end?

Hard working American families and small businesses are asking that same question. In fact, thousands of Americans turned out on Tax Filing Day to say they’ve had enough of the high taxes and borrowing to bankroll Washington’s spending spree.

I attended one of these Tea Parties in my hometown of Bakersfield, California, and believe me, the message was heard loud and clear. Every day, America’s families, seniors, and small businesses are making tough choices.

They’re worried about their jobs, their mortgages, and their savings. They’re sacrificing to pay the bills to make sure their children get a good education. But Washington isn’t willing to make the same difficult decisions.

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This is why Republicans are leading the way with solutions to provide a new direction. Rather than proposing more Washington spending, Republicans propose tax relief for American small businesses. We know America’s entrepreneurs and innovators create the jobs in our economy – over 70% of all American jobs come from small businesses.

Republicans are also working to reduce taxes on hardworking American families, rebuild their savings, lower their energy costs, expand access to affordable health care, but most of all, curb Washington spending and borrowing. These are not Republican or Democratic ideas – these are common-sense American solutions that we have heard from millions of Americans.

And we know that when the government spends our hard earned tax money, we should be guaranteed accountability. That’s why House Republicans are unveiling Washington Watch, a new website tracking misuse of taxpayer dollars and ‘stimulus’ waste. We invite you to visit that website at www.republicanwhip.house.gov. Together we can help stop wasteful Washington spending by shining a spotlight on the waste.

In this time of economic crisis and financial instability, Republicans are reaching out to the President and Washington Democrats to find solutions to solve our country’s problems. We have incredible challenges before all of us, and we ask all Americans to join us in working together for better solutions. Because it’s not just our future… it’s all of our children’s future. Thank you for listening. ###

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Photo credits: Ron Edmonds / Associated Press (White House at dawn); Office of Rep.McCarthy

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