Dear Jackie

My House representative Jackie Walorski had a opinion piece earlier this month touting her common sense approach to government budgeting.  Here's my response from the South Bend Tribune February 22.

Jackie Walorski's Viewpoint in the Feb. 1 Tribune makes an important point that "Michiana families consider common sense principles to be a fundamental part of their proud Hoosier values." That's certainly true for me. However, she needed to add that for many Hoosiers, debt is part of common sense planning.

Personally, I have borrowed to buy cars and houses. I used student loans to get a college education and so did my daughters. These loans were common sense for us and benefited us greatly. Another thing that needs to be added to her report is the difference between common sense for a family and common sense for a government.

Many economists stress that during a big recession the government needs to spend more.
Walorski says she wants to freeze the wages of federal employees; I assume she means all federal employees or approximately 2.8 million people. She implies the top budget priority is cutting government spending.

This is a high priority after we reduce unemployment and strengthen the middle class and the economy. Debt can be alarming and stressful. Sometimes increasing debt is taking the easy and irresponsible way. But other times, increasing debt is an act of courage and faith that our debt will lead to a better future. I suggest we go easy on the cuts for a while longer.