While government doesn't create the economy, it certainly enacts policies that make it easier or more difficult for our economy to thrive. When I first took office, we faced budget deficits. After passing the Balanced Budget Act in 1997 and experiencing strong economic growth, we finally turned the budget around and had a surplus in 1998 for the first time since 1969.

Unfortunately, since 2001's economic slowdown and devastating terrorist attacks, our government is has been running deficits and is expected to do so well into the future.

Despite these challenges, I firmly believe that our nation's leaders must once again chart a course towards fiscal responsibility because a balanced federal budget is one of the key government policies that sets the stage for strong economic growth. Furthermore, a balanced federal budget and a declining national debt also translate into lower interest rates for businesses and consumers, meaning lower mortgage payments, student loan payments, and business loans for Americans.

To achieve this goal, we need to ensure that government is efficient and spending its dollars and cutting taxes wisely. Clearly, we must secure our nation at home and fight the terrorists abroad. We must keep our commitments to veterans, children, and seniors. I believe that beyond these obligations, our government should focus on investment so that the economy is strong today and in the future: education and student loans for our children, encouraging the energy technologies of the future, and cutting taxes so that businesses and individuals will invest and make the economy strong.

The Puget Sound region is a diverse and fundamentally healthy economy. I have worked with my colleagues in Washington state to keep Boeing jobs and subcontractors here, build the infrastructure we need for a strong economy, and improve education so that we continue to have the best workforce in the country.