As a member and a Co-Chair of the fiscally conservative Democratic Blue Dog Coalition, I believe fiscal responsibility is crucial to avoid forcing our children and grandchildren to pay for the poor decisions that have been made by this Administration. Along with my fellow Blue Dogs, I have led the charge to hold the President accountable for how our tax dollars are being spent. American families do not get to ignore their bills and claim to have a balanced family budget, and the federal government should not either.

The President wants to spend $2 trillion to extend tax cuts for the wealthiest of Americans who make over $400,000 a year at the expense of America’s seniors, working families and children. The President proposes doing so by cutting important health programs and the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Instead of cutting billions of dollars in Medicare, Medicaid and SCHIP (State Children’s Health Insurance Program), we should ensure that Arkansas’s 464,000 seniors and 68,000 uninsured children have access to affordable health care. With many Arkansans serving our country in the military, it is imperative that we take care of those brave men and women when they return. Instead, the President again under funds the VA and Arkansas’s 259,000 veterans.

The priorities of the President’s budget are not in line with the priorities of the people of Arkansas’s Fourth Congressional District and I pledge to help pass a budget that reflects the values of the people I represent in Washington. Our growing national debt is almost $9 trillion and it is past time for Congress to make the tough decisions necessary to reverse our country's precarious fiscal course.

“I am proud to commemorate the Hot Springs National Park on its 175^th Anniversary, a national treasure enjoyed by countless Arkansans, Americans and tourists from across the world,” Ross said. “This commemorative act of Congress is an opportunity to write into history the important role Hot Springs National Park played in the formation of the Department of the Interior and the National Parks Service, in those early years when our nation began its quest to conserve and preserve our natural treasures.”

The idea of setting aside special places in the United States for the future enjoyment of its citizens originated in Hot Springs when President Andrew Jackson and the U.S. Congress established Hot Springs Reservation to protect the 47 hot springs in Garland County.

The Hot Springs Reservation became the first protected area in the nation in 1832, and was the only federal area mentioned by name in the act that established the National Park System. The Hot Springs Reservation was officially renamed Hot Springs National Park in 1921, becoming America’s 18^th national park.

Ross said that by introducing the legislation this week, he plans to have the bill signed into law for the 175^th Anniversary celebration at the Hot Springs National Park on April 21^st – 23^rd, 2007. The bill has been referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources.

“This legislation is a testament to the great people at the National Park Service as well as the many volunteers of Hot Springs and Garland County who contributed their time and diligent efforts to help make the commemoration of the park a reality,” Ross said.

There are currently 390 places under the jurisdiction of the National Park System and seven call Arkansas home. These include: Buffalo National River; Trail of Tears National Historic Trail; Pea Ridge National Military Park; Arkansas Post National Memorial; Central High School National Historic Site and the Fort Smith National Historic Site.

– 30 –

“The priorities of the President’s proposed budget are not in line with the priorities of the people of Arkansas’s Fourth Congressional District,” Ross said. “The President proposes extending tax cuts to people making over $400,000 a year at the expense of America’s seniors, working families and children by cutting Medicare funding and continuing to leave No Child Left Behind as an unfunded mandate. Our growing national debt is almost $9 trillion and it is past time for Congress and the American people to demand accountability for how and where our tax dollars are spent.”

– 30 –