Rob's Rundown: Week of April 23 - April 27 On Monday, Senator Portman delivered remarks on the role of energy in giving Ohio and American manufacturers opportunities to grow and be more competitive
an energy efficiency strategy to increase the use of existing energy efficiency technologies in the residential, commercial and industrial sectors of our economy.
Portman is urging his constituents to participate in National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day, an initiative to encourage people to safely dispose of unwanted or unused prescription drugs. With prescription drug abuse reaching epidemic proportions in Ohio and the U.S, we need to work together to fight this problem, which is why Portman is encouraging people to take advantage of this convenient opportunity to get rid of old or unnecessary prescription drugs before they fall into the wrong hands.
The National Take-Back Initiative will take place tomorrow from 10:00am - 2:00pm. You can find a collection site near you by visiting Portman’s website here. You can also listen to Senator Portman's public service announcement on National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day here.
Sen. Rob Portman Talks To Right Turn
You can’t say the junior senator from Ohio isn’t in the center of the storm.
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His immediate focus is on the budget, or rather the lack of one, in the Democratic-controlled Senate. “We’re in a time of trillion-dollar deficits and unsustainable debt. At a minimum, the American people deserve a budget.” He notes that at least President Obama sent up a budget, “although it was totally rejected [in the House] 414-0.” But the Senate Democrats, he points out, have no excuse.
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The economic news today was grim, and Portman sees a connection between the government’s failure to get its fiscal house in order and the lousy economy. “We have a structural problem in our economy,” he asserts. He concedes that the president inherited a bad economy and that events in Iran and the European Union are factors, but he thinks the state of the economy “is in part due to self-inflicted wounds.”
He ticks off Obama’s policy failures in the past three years. “We are not doing tax reform.” He notes, “We have the highest [corporate tax] rate [in the world] and a complicated code. It is the same with individual rates.” On the spending side, he says, “Until we have some proof the president and Congress have a serious plan on spending, [the debt] will be a wet blanket on the economy.” He points to recent economic studies showing that excessive debt translates into a 1 to 2 percent drag on growth. And he points to the regulatory overreach and uncertainty in health care, energy and other sectors of the economy.
(“Sen. Rob Portman talks to Right Turn” by Jennifer Rubin. The Washington Post. April 20, 2012.)
Senators Moving To Stop Asian Carp
WASHINGTON, D.C. -
Scientists are worried the invasive Asian carp could starve out native fish in the Great Lakes, and lawmakers are sponsoring legislation to stop the carp from taking over.
When it comes to Asian carp legislation, the number 18 is important. There are 18 points of entry that lawmakers want protected, and they want it done in just 18 months.
