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Positions and Views on Other Issues where Information is Available: |
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| Fiscal Policy |
Positions and Views |
| Fiscal Policy, a General Statement |
Johnson: As a senior member of the Senate Banking Committee, I consider fiscal responsibility a critical foundation of our economy. I am committed to returning our nation to a balanced budget. We need to return to the days of a secured federal budget, which means not borrowing from Social Security and not creating huge new debts for future generations to pay off.
I have used my position on the Senate Banking Committee to restore the integrity of corporate America, including the mutual fund industry and other securities that enable millions of Americans to invest in their futures. In addition, I have fought to maintain consumer access to affordable credit, and for tough new measures to fight identity theft. I will continue to frame public policy that ensures every South Dakotan can invest in a safe and strong market.
In the 110th Congress, I have the privilege of serving as the chairman of the Financial Institutions subcommittee. Clearly, a strong banking infrastructure is crucial to our state and to our local communities. The financial services institutions that serve our communities not only provide a secure place for residents to invest their savings, but our communities benefit tremendously as those deposits are reinvested into the local economy through loans to small businesses and entrepreneurs, financing home purchases and kids' educations, and other important investments in our people and our way of life. I am proud to have worked with bankers and other financial service providers throughout our state, as well as the consumers they serve. I am pleased to be in a position to closely monitor this important industry and the regulations that govern it.
Furthermore, from my position on the Security and International Trade and Finance subcommittee, I am working to ensure that proper safeguards exist to stop international money-laundering and to freeze monies that are intended to fund terrorism.
Source: johnson.senate.gov/issues/banking.cfm Date: 07/13/2008 |
| Federal Budget and Debt |
Johnson: As a member of both the Senate Budget Committee and the Appropriations Committee, I am extremely displeased with many of the Bush Administration’s budget priorities. The budget surpluses of the Clinton Administration are now entirely gone, and now President Bush is asking Congress to make permanent the tax cuts that have put us in this situation. Since the US is already in red ink, obviously the money for this new distribution will require decreases in important domestic spending and borrowing from the Social Security Trust Fund. I believe this is a terrible idea.
Our nation’s veterans are currently waiting in year-long lines to get access to VA health care. Our rural hospitals and nursing homes are on the verge of closing because of inadequate Medicare/Medicaid reimbursement. Our schools are struggling to stay open due to reduced budgets. And the President says we don’t have the funds for South Dakota’s water projects. Some may see the people affected by these cuts as “special interests.” I see them as South Dakotans, who should not be short-changed to provide tax cuts that overwhelmingly benefit the wealthiest one-percent of Americans.
I remember when being a conservative meant living within one’s means, and that is the strategy our nation ought to return to. We need to return to the days of a balanced federal budget, which means we were not borrowing from Social Security, we were not creating huge new debts for future generations to pay off, and we were not jeopardizing Medicare and Social Security. Government is about setting priorities, and the Bush Administration’s budget priorities are wrong in too many instances. I will continue to do all that I can to redirect our nation’s resources to an agenda that better meets America’s domestic needs and our international moral obligations.
Source: Candidate Website Date: 10/04/2008 |
| Presidential Line-item Veto Power |
Johnson: No Response |
| Deficit Spending |
Johnson: No Response |
| Spending Limits |
Johnson: No Response |
| Entitlements |
Johnson: No Response |
| Balanced Budget Constitutional Amendment |
Johnson: No Response |
| Foreign Creditors |
Johnson: No Response |
| Pay-As-You-Go (PAYGO) Rule for Tax Cuts or New Spending |
Johnson: No Response |