U.S. House of Representatives; 3rd DISTRICT
QUESTION: What is the most important issue in your district that you can affect as a member of Congress?</br></br>Member, U.S. House of Representatives, 1987-present; House Ways and Means Committee, 1989-present; speaker, Maryland General Assembly, 1979-86; chairman, Maryland Legal Services Corporation, 1988-present; trustee, St. Mary's College, 1988-present; trustee, Baltimore Museum of Art, 1988-present.</br></br>A. The most important issue facing Congress is the budget deficit. The high budget deficit keeps interest rates high and economic growth slow, and squeezes federal spending in education, housing and anti-poverty programs important to the 3rd Congressional District. In order to reduce the deficit, we must first correctly define it. Remove the Social Security trust fund surplus from the Gramm-Rudman calculations and eliminate all "blue smoke and mirror" gimmickry from budget action. At least 50 percent of deficit reduction can be accomplished through real budget cuts, primarily in the defense budget. The remainder of the deficit reduction program can be accomplished through new revenue.</br></br>Office manager and officer, South East Literature Sales; 10-year registered Democrat; candidate, Maryland Senate, District 5b, 1986 Democratic primary, received about 30 percent of the vote; candidate, New York Democratic Committee, 1982; 20-year activist, including involvement in National Anti-Drug Coalition, Schiller Institute and Food for Peace; volunteer, LaRouche for President campaigns, 1980-88; BA in social sciences, State University of New York, 1972.</br></br>A. We must stop the evil manipulation of the U.S. government's economic and foreign policy by the Anglo-American families associated with the Trilateral Commission and financial, banking and re-insurance firms. I will mobilize the legislative and investigative powers of Congress to reverse the current economic depression and the policy of administrative fascism that is enforcing murderous austerity. Congress must repeal the Gramm-Rudman bill and assert its constitutional rights, and order the Federal Reserve to issue trillions of dollars of low-interest credit to create productive jobs, that is, to rebuild Baltimore's ports, shipbuilding and steel manufacturing and an American industrial export capability. Congress must penalize "junk bonds" and leveraged buyouts by imposing higher taxes on and restricting credit flows to all forms of speculation and usury. With the resulting increased tax revenue base, we can reverse the genocidal budget cuts in governmental spending and decrease taxes on working people.