Sen. Cornyn is right - stimulus isn't a good deal for Texans

“A Better Approach That Will Actually Restore America’s Economic Strength Remains Available”

WASHINGTON—U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, a member of the Senate Finance Committee, today issued the following statement regarding his vote against the conference report on the Democrats’ spending plan:

“A stimulus bill would have been a good idea if it had been focused on the right priorities—fixing housing first, providing taxpayers with meaningful, broad-based tax relief and eliminating redundant and ineffective Washington programs. Instead, we saw Democrats in both chambers redefine ‘stimulus’ to mean nearly anything any of them desired. Many programs in the bill are wasteful and unnecessary. The bill will use taxpayer money for things like golf carts, art projects and company cars for federal employees.

“While proponents like to highlight that the bill will provide Texas with $10 billion in government programs, the bill spends money we don’t have—in fact, Texans’ share of the national debt will increase by $90 billion. This doesn’t seem like a good deal to me.

“As a staunch advocate of open government and transparency, I take serious issue with the fact that Members of Congress and the American public had less than 24 hours to look at the conference report before the final vote.

“A better approach to the stimulus bill that actually creates more opportunity for middle-class families and small businesses and restores America’s economic strength was available. It remains available, and I will continue to build support for an alternative and comprehensive plan.”

Senator Cornyn is committed to finding real solutions:

Fix Housing First
o Supported legislation allowing 3 million Texas homeowners to refinance their mortgages at 4% or 4.5%, saving Texans on average $300 per month.
o Voted to provide a $15,000 tax credit for homebuyers.
Promote broad-based tax relief for Texas families and businesses
o Introduced legislation to lower the 15% tax bracket to 10% and the 10% tax bracket to 5%, saving every Texas taxpayer $1,600 a year.
o Defended struggling small business owners by supporting tax cuts for capital investments and purchases, and increasing bonus depreciation for new investment in equipment and facilities.

Eliminate wasteful spending and strengthen oversight