Times-Standard - ‘Debt, deficit and where we go from here': Congressman Thompson to host Eureka forum Saturday
”The main thing for me is just to hear what constituents think we need to do about the national debt,” said Thompson, who will be holding a community forum on the subject Saturday, in a phone interview with the Times-Standard. “We're entering a period of (budget) cutting, and I think it's important for folks to have their voices heard.”
The forum, which will be held in Eureka City Council Chambers from 10 to 11 a.m., is the fifth in a series Thompson is holding throughout his 1st Congressional District to gather input from his constituents.
The federal debt has become a topic of heated debate in Washington since a bipartisan debt commission issued a report late last year warning that without immediate action “reckoning will be sure and the devastation severe.” The commission's report found that, even after an economic recovery, federal spending is projected to outpace revenues, meaning the government will have to continue borrowing in order to spend. Failure to act quickly, the report found, will limit options for addressing the pending crisis.
In its final recommendations, the commission called for a cap on federal discretionary spending through 2020, a revamping of the tax code and major reforms to Social Security.
In his brief interview with the Times-Standard, Thompson declined to weigh in on the commission's recommendations, saying he didn't want to pre-empt or direct Saturday's discussion, which he said is really designed to gather ideas from constituents.
”I keep pretty well plugged in, but it's always good to get out and hear first-hand what folks are saying,” he said. “I think (having the discussion) is very, very important.”
With Thompson coming to town, the Humboldt Tea Party Patriots -- a group that has been sharply critical of federal spending -- issued a statement Thursday taking Thompson to task for his part in increasing the federal government's budget deficit.
”Economists forecast that the deficit for 2011 will be the biggest imbalance on record,” the group said in the statement. “The Congressional Budget Office is forecasting a $1.5 trillion gap, giving the country a third straight year of $1 trillion-plus deficits. Even a budget cut of $100 million would be a mere drop in the bucket toward getting the country back on an even keel financially. We cannot continue this spending spree.”
The group proposed “canceling” $105 billion in appropriations of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 as an obvious place to start, but did not offer any other suggestions.
Thompson said he's looking forward to hearing constituents' ideas.
“(The discussion) is just going to be about debt and deficit and where we go from here,” he said.
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If You Go:
What: Community forum on U.S. debt crisis with Congressman Mike Thompson
When: 10 to 11 a.m. Saturday
Where: Eureka City Council Chambers, 531 K St.