Home Governmental Affairs U.S. Senator Johnny Isakson 04-16-10 - - Weekly eNewsletter
04-16-10 - - Weekly eNewsletter
Dear Friends,

I am delighted to be back at work serving the people of Georgia in the Senate, and my family and I truly appreciate the many kind messages and well-wishes we received while I was recovering from my brief illness.

Tax Relief for Americans
Yesterday was tax day, and Americans were again reminded that our economic struggles aren’t due to their government spending too little or not taxing Americans enough.  In fact, just the opposite is true.  We need to enact policies that strengthen and stabilize our economy.  Congress must become better stewards of the taxpayers’ money, and that is what I have strived to do my whole career.  

That’s why I have reintroduced legislation to repeal the U.S. tax code and to force Congress to vote to reauthorize it or replace it with a new system.  My Tax Code Termination Act would terminate the current tax code on December 31, 2013. To ensure a smooth transition to a new system, Congress must approve a new tax code by July 4, 2013. If a new system is not approved by July 4, 2013, Congress would be forced to vote to reauthorize the current tax code.

To help Congress choose the best replacement system, the bill also creates a bipartisan commission that would be required to examine and to recommend to Congress plausible replacements for the tax code. A flat tax and a national sales tax must be among the options it examines.

I met with Tea Party activists from Georgia yesterday in Washington to address these issues, and I firmly believe the time has come for us to give some relief to the American taxpayer through a complete overhaul of our burdensome, confusing and overly complex tax code.  

I also am committed to passing legislation to curb federal spending and to demand more accountability from programs that receive federal dollars. That’s why I am a co-sponsor of a constitutional amendment that would allow the President to use the line-item veto to either eliminate or reduce appropriations in any bill passed by the Congress. The amendment would also require Congress to balance the federal budget.

In addition, I voted for the tax cuts of 2001 and 2003, which are now set to expire at the end of this year. It would be a terrible blow to the budgets of all families and small businesses if this tax relief was to expire this year, and I want to see these tax cuts made permanent.

In addition, I have also introduced legislation to reform the federal budget process by converting it from an annual spending process to a two-year cycle, with one year for appropriating federal dollars and the other year devoted to oversight of federal programs. I also have co-sponsored bipartisan legislation that would establish a task force charged with making recommendations on how to improve the government’s long-term fiscal imbalances.

Meeting with FDIC Chair and Georgia Bankers
During the Easter recess, Senator Chambliss and I organized and attended a meeting in Georgia between FDIC Chair Sheila Bair and more than 20 bankers from across Georgia.  The meeting allowed members of Georgia’s banking community the opportunity to meet with Bair and ask her questions about the challenges they are facing with the real estate marketplace, FDIC regulatory policies and capital markets.  

During the meeting, Senator Chambliss and I expressed our concern that mark-to-market accounting rules are disproportionately penalizing the people they serve. Given the declines our nation has seen in the mortgage-backed securities and in real estate, mark-to-market has caused tremendous problems for our nation’s banks. We believe mark-to-market rules should be replaced with a mechanism of amortization or “smoothing” to absorb the assets over time. This would allow the absorption of those assets over time to be more reflective of reality and less reflective of the dire economic straits that our nation faces today.

We had a good dialogue for these difficult times.  I appreciate Chairman Bair taking the time to meet with Georgia’s bankers so she could hear firsthand about the tough challenges they are facing.  

Supreme Court
On April 9, 2010, Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens announced his plans to retire from the court later this year.  President Obama is expected to announce his nomination to replace Justice Stevens in the next few weeks. When a nomination is made, I look forward to a thorough examination and debate of the nominee’s credentials in the Senate. I believe a qualified judge is one who understands the value and the strength and the power of the Constitution of the United States of America, who will rule based on the law and who will not legislate based on the position.

Military Academy Day
Each year, I, along with the Georgia Congressional Delegation, have the honor of hosting a statewide Military Academy Day to help familiarize students with the application and nomination process for applying to the nation’s five service academies.  This year’s event will be held on Saturday, May 8, 2010 at Dobbins Air Reserve Base in Atlanta from 10 a.m. until 11:30 a.m.

Representatives from all five academies will also be in attendance to explain more about their requirements and expectations and will be available to answer questions.  The event is open to students grades eight through 12.  In addition, a number of aircraft will be on display at the event, including an F-22 Raptor, a UH-1 Huey helicopter and an AH-1 Cobra helicopter.

Due to Dobbins’ security restrictions, all attendees must make reservations and must present photo identification, vehicle registration and proof of auto insurance at the Cobb Parkway checkpoint for admittance.  All individuals who are interested in attending must make a reservation by contacting my Academy Director, Nancy Brooks, at (770) 661-0999 or by registering online.  All individuals who wish to attend must provide their phone number, date of birth, driver’s license number, and total number of guests who will be in the car by the registration deadline on Friday, April 30, 2010, at 5 p.m.

Our annual Academy Day event has proven extremely helpful for students interested in applying to our nation’s military academies.  I am proud to work with the Georgia delegation to provide this service and hope it will be an informative experience for all who attend.  To view highlights from our previous Academy Day events, click here.

What’s on Tap?


Next week, the Senate will consider several outstanding presidential appointment nominees.  The Senate also might begin floor consideration of financial regulatory overhaul legislation.

Sincerely,
Johnny Isakson
 

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