Red Tape Keeps Economy Running on Empty

Getting the U.S. economy back on track can be achieved by unleashing America’s “vibrant entrepreneurialism.” That's the phrase the President used to describe the success of America's free market. I agree the United States’ free enterprise system has been “the greatest force for prosperity the world has ever known.” Yet, for the last two years, joblessness and deficits have climbed under the flawed theory that taking money away from the private sector grows jobs and creates wealth. In 2009, the White House threw taxpayers under the bus with a stimulus package that added hundreds of billions... Read more

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ATF Director: “Mistakes Were Made.”

During a July 4 interview with congressional investigators, the Acting Director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives provided a wealth of information about the Justice Department’s response to the joint inquiry Representative Darrell Issa, the Chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, and I are conducting about the ATF’s reckless tactics used in a policy known as Operation Fast and Furious. The policy allowed guns to be sold to known straw purchasers who then transported the firearms to third parties, often, it turns out, ending in the hands of Mexican drug cartels. Two guns found at the murder scene of Border Patrol... Read more

 

A Plan to Reduce Deficits to Help the Economy and Do Right by the Next Generation

Today the Senate voted on legislation that would cut government spending, cap government spending levels and seek a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution. This proposal passed the House of Representatives earlier in the week. It’s the only actual legislation that’s been offered in the ongoing budget debate. It’s beyond the blueprint the House passed already. And it’s far beyond the President’s speech. It reflects the message sent last fall from the voters that Washington needs to spend less. I spoke in favor of the Cut, Cap and Balance Act of 2011 yesterday afternoon... Read more

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Competition Brings Choices for Consumers

The Senate Judiciary Committee, where I serve as the top Republican, this week passed legislation to prohibit brand-name drug manufacturers from using pay-off agreements with generic pharmaceutical companies to keep cheaper generic prescription drugs off the market. I’ve been working on this bill with Senator Herb Kohl from Wisconsin for several years. We’re working to end these agreements that line the pockets of both the generic and brand-name companies while denying consumers the opportunity to purchase cheaper prescription drugs. For example, Cephalon Corporation paid $136 million to keep four different competitors out of the market for its drug Provigil, a narcolepsy drug, for six years. During that time, Provigil sales in the United States alone were more than $3.1 billion. In a separate instance, Bayer spent $400 million to pay off three different potential competitors, which kept a generic version of the antibiotic Cipro off... Read more