Texas faces enormous challenges that won’t be met by politics-as-usual at a time of rising deficits and the worst economic collapse since the Great Depression. You deserve someone who shares your values working for you in the United States Senate to help us all bridge the gap between the Texas that is — and the Texas that can be.

Balancing the Federal Budget

Courtesy of Connect Amarillo

Congress should have to do what every Texas family does: live within its budget. If that takes a constitutional amendment, so be it. No more tax cuts for the super wealthy who didn’t even ask for them, no more pay raises for Washington insiders who refuse to pass a living wage for the rest of us, and no more special-interest earmarks unless politicians publicly stand by their pork. Hardworking families must come first in the budgeting process to protect the backbone of our economy, middle class families. And we should immediately end the failed Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP) and force banks that took taxpayer bailout money to give it back (and not in bonuses to executives).  The only time I have seen the federal government actually cut unnecessary expenditures was the military Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) initiative of two decades ago. Since Congress lacks the political will to cut spending, even when it knows our future prosperity depends on it, it’s time to force them to reduce the deficit and safeguard vital public services like Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security. I have so little faith in both parties in the Congress that I believe this is the only solution.

Making Government Work Better and Cost Less
In 1993, I led the National Performance Review for Vice President Al Gore, modeled on what we had accomplished in Texas to save taxpayers billions while safeguarding vital public services. But during the past administration, the federal government ballooned. It’s time to put the bureaucracy on another serious diet and transform it into a high-quality, low-cost customer service operation.  I will lead the charge — and my record proves I know how to do it.

Striving for Energy Independence
Texas is the nation’s top natural gas producer and a critical source of oil. We should retake our rightful place as the traditional energy leader by charting the next course of alternative energy technologies and innovative self-sufficiency. The industries are here and they work.  Don’t believe the other side’s hype.  Texas companies can and should lead the nation in sustainable and domestic energy and natural gas should be the fuel of choice for our nations truck fleets just as the “Picken’s Plan” suggests.

Preserving Our Natural Heritage
The natural heritage of Texas is a unique resource central to our economy and our quality of life. From protecting water supplies to pioneering new anti-pollution technology, from standing up for clean air as a basic family value to championing effective recycling programs and other local job-creating initiatives, Texas should be leading the way in the international marketplace.  After all, going green is better than seeing red. The key is a comprehensive effort to strengthen the nation’s environmental protection, beginning with an energy policy whose goals are independence from foreign oil, investments in clean alternatives, and tough new transportation solutions to relieve traffic and congestion.

Guaranteeing Affordable College Tuition
The wealthy don’t have to worry about paying for their children’s college, and low-income families have access to financial scholarship for their eligible kids.  What about the vast majority of Texans struggling to put something aside for their kid’s education?  As Comptroller I started the Texas Tomorrow Fund that helped send thousands of middle class Texans to college. At a time when China, India, and other emerging economies are boosting their education spending, the last thing American should do is make it harder for those middle-class students to go to college. Pell Grants and other successful plans should be protected and then expanded, even if less-successful programs have to be cut to pay for it. Texas communities deserve a full partner in the U.S. Senate to bring every available federal dollar for our public schools and colleges to Texas— and ease the burden on our taxpayers.

Saving Social Security
Social Security is that rarest of Washington programs: one that works. Tens of millions of Americans count on it to deliver the benefits they’ve earned with a minimum of fraud or waste and a cost of just .06 cents for every dollar paid out. I will continue to stand against privatizing Social Security. It’s a bad idea that would jeopardize our promises to today’s seniors and those near retirement while piling up mountains of debt on our children and grandchildren.  Those folks put their hard earned dollars into the system and the system should honor their years of commitment.

Honoring Our Veterans
It is unacceptable that after years of broken promises, veterans in underserved areas are still expected to travel hundreds of miles for the medical care they were promised when they volunteered to defend our country. Bringing overdue VA hospitals to South Texas and El Paso at long last should be a top priority. I will also work to repeal the Disabled Veterans’ Tax so that men and women who served in the military no longer have to choose between disability suffered in service or retirement pay.

Preserving Our Special Friendship with Israel
Israel is among our most trusted allies and a reliable stalwart for democracy and our shared values in the Middle East. The U.S. should stand with Israel when it engages in acts of self-defense against hostile forces and continue to cooperate on military operations, intelligence sharing, and use of Haifa port. It is wrong to draw false equivalents between self-defense and homicide bombings by terrorists or their state sponsors.

Restoring America’s Place in the World
America has a unique and positive role to play on the world stage — and serious repair work to complete after the past several years. Let’s start by exporting our values again, instead of our jobs. Then let’s step up our investments in proven programs that make a difference in millions of lives without costing taxpayers an arm and a leg: basic clean water initiatives, low-cost immunization programs, and a reinvigorated diplomatic corps to address America’s interests around the world in partnership with our allies.