Tax hike necessary to tackle deficit

Conservative Republicans really need to do some soul-searching. Carefully consider the actions of congressional Republican leaders as to whether they really make sense and are really good for the citizens of our country.

For the last 30 years we have been running bigger and bigger budget deficits. During that time we have accumulated $13 trillion of the $14 trillion national debt.

Please give this question serious thought: Is it conceivably possible to either balance our budget or to reduce the national debt by tax and service cuts alone? If you have any knowledge of the national budget you know that the majority of our obligations are fixed, such as Social Security payments to seniors. If you would cut out all of the remaining budget, the discretionary expenditures, the national budget would still be significantly in the red and the national debt would continue to grow.

I understand that all House Republicans have recently signed a “no new taxes” pledge. In addition they propose changing the House rules to require that any increase in the national debt limit should be offset by cutting expenditures. They are absolutely committed to not raising any tax at any time for any purpose. That absolutely guarantees that our budgets will continue to be unbalanced and our national debt will continue to grow and we will be passing on the problem to our children and future generations.

The only people who have sacrificed for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are the servicemen and women who have served there. Are you willing to sacrifice by paying more in taxes now to reduce annual deficits and the national debt to reduce the burden on future generations? Congressional Republicans will change policy only if they hear from Republican voters.

R. Kent Kirkwood

Mount Prospect