Zoller co-chairs Ga.'Campaign to Fix the Debt' chapter

The Campaign to Fix the Debt – a national nonpartisan coalition of business leaders, elected officials, community leaders, academics and individual citizens – officially launched its state chapter in Georgia recently, with a goal of bringing concerned individuals together and call on lawmakers to address the ballooning national debt.

Former radio talk show host Martha Zoller of Gainesville, who ran an unsuccessful campaign for the Republican nomination for the 9th District congressional seat, is one of the chapter's co-chairs. Other co-chairs are, businessman Rick W. Allen and State Sen. Joshua McKoon. All participated recently in the launch of the chapter, which was held at the state Capitol. Zoller called on lawmakers in Washington to put aside political differences and find practical solutions to the debt, and encouraged Georgians to ask their leaders to take action.

“The $16 trillion debt threatens our nation’s future economic and national security,” Zoller said. “America’s out-of-control national debt should stand above all other issues as voters assess the candidates in this critical election year. The bottom line is that we can’t borrow and spend our way to prosperity. Our elected leaders and candidates hold differing opinions on many issues, but they must set partisanship aside and find common solutions that protect our country’s families, businesses and our economy from a future economic crisis.”

In addition to the long-term challenges associated with our debt, the co-chairs say lawmakers will also need to confront the rapidly approaching “fiscal cliff” – over $600 billion of spending cuts and tax hikes next year alone that analysts unanimously agree would push the country back into a recession.

“Business leaders are concerned whether Congress and the White House can agree on a budget before January,” Allen said. “Simply put, business owners and managers can’t hire new employees or invest in new capital in uncertain economic times. At the same time, families are concerned about how the debt will affect interest rates, their ability to purchase new homes and their retirement accounts.”

The Campaign to Fix the Debt calls on the country's elected leaders to avert the "cliff" while gradually putting the debt on a sustainable course by generating more tax revenues and making smart spending cuts to programs that "aren’t working or aren’t necessary."

“We are thrilled that the Campaign to Fix the Debt is involving so many Georgians at the grassroots level,” said Maya MacGuineas, President of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, who is spearheading the Campaign. “In order to put our debt on a sustainable path, elected officials are going to have to make tough choices. These choices will be made easier if they know that the people they represent do indeed value cooperation and demand a long-term, comprehensive agreement over our debt.”

For more information, and to sign the campaign’s Citizen’s Petition, please visit www.fixthedebt.org.

Link: The Campaign to Fix the Debt