I hope, however, that his message this year is followed up with a commitment to work with a Republican Congress in a bipartisan fashion to solve the nation s difficult problems. This year, Congress has made it our number one priority to finally put an end to one of the most burdensome problems plaguing Americans today paying off the national public debt. Paying off our public debt is the right thing to do. It is morally wrong to burden our children and grandchildren with a huge national debt. If we eliminate the public debt, that money can be freed up for use on other priorities like increased tax relief, investing in our schools, or fortifying our national defense.
Less debt means lower taxes and lower interest rates for purchasing homes and cars.
It means that you can keep more of your hard-earned money and also be able to get more for your money when purchasing goods and services. Our goal was to reduce the deficit by controlling wasteful government spending. No one expected that we would be able to accomplish this, but in only a few short years, the budget was balanced and a record surplus was created. Last year, Congress raised the bar on fiscal responsibility even further by pledging to keep the budget balanced without spending the Social Security Trust Fund. I believe that American taxpayers can be debt-free by at least 2015, but it is up to Congress to make sure that the big spenders in Washington are kept away from the Social Security Trust Fund.