Gory Details of our Fiscal Situation

When I arrived in Congress in 2011, America’s debt and deficit was THE major topic of discussion. Our nation’s total debt was $14.7 trillion and 96% of GDP. Soon it will hit and surpass $39 trillion and 124% of GDP. Within 10 years it will almost certainly exceed $60 trillion.

When I entered Congress, although both sides claim to be concerned about our dire fiscal situation, neither side has demonstrated a genuine desire to seriously address it. Now, $24 trillion in added debt later, it’s barely mentioned, and most members of congress, the administration, and the public seem content to continue whistling past the graveyard. 

On March 11, I held my first hearing as chairman of the Subcommittee on Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Growth.

We need to take a green-eyeshade, accountant’s approach to discipline government spending and return it to a reasonable pre-pandemic level. Neither Republicans nor Democrats have been genuinely serious about addressing this problem. I’m dead serious about it.

I want to thank our witnesses for their testimony that describes our growing fiscal situation in all its gory detail. The first step in solving a problem is admitting we have one.

If we ever are willing to collectively take that first step, the next step is property defining it. A financial problem lends itself to charts and graphs. The written testimony is chalked full of some very good ones that I highly recommend people study.

Learn More

• Here are a few charts I have developed over the years that help describe the challenges we face.

• X Post:  Witness Maya MacGuineas explains, right now we spend $6 on seniors for every $1 on kids under 18. When Social Security began, seniors were the poorest — today children are. To add insult to injury, we have mortgaged their future with $39 trillion in debt and growing. It is immoral what we are doing to our children and grandchildren.

Right to Try 

I'm launching an investigation into why the FDA is denying access to a drug that has been helping patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy for years. 

Several families of loved ones with Duchenne traveled to Washington, D.C. to join me for this press conference. They are begging the FDA to approve the drug ataluren. 

They are flighting to maintain access to this existing treatment which has delayed symptoms and helped some patients with Duchenne live into their 30's. 

I championed Right To Try, which became law in 2018, to give people with life-threatening conditions the right to access drugs that have completed Phase 1 FDA oversight, but don't have full approval.

WATCH: March 10 Press Conference “Duchenne Families Fight to Maintain Access to Existing Treatment”

Around Capitol Hill

I had an excellent meeting with Senator Markwayne Mullin about his vision for the future of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. I look forward to supporting his nomination.

Official U.S. Senate photo by John Shinkle

Congratulations to the 2026 Wisconsin delegates to the United States Senate Youth Program. I met Nina Bhattacharjee of Neenah (left) and Anna Gallardo-Ibarra of Sturgeon Bay (right) at the annual Senate Reception on March 11. They both spent the week in Washington seeing their government in action. 

The U.S. Senate Youth Program, established in 1962 by U.S. Senate Resolution, is a unique educational experience for outstanding high school students interested in pursuing careers in public service. Learn more and apply for next year. 

Also on Capitol Hill from Wisconsin, I met with a group of students from Parker High School in Janesville. Teacher Stan Milam brought his ten Washington Seminar Students to my office for a Q&A. Thanks for stopping by!

ICYMI Interviews

On March 13, I appeared on Fox Business' Mornings with Maria to talk about Iran, the SAVE America Act, and ending the Senate filibuster. 

I was interviewed on the March 5 edition of The MAHA Podcast. We discuss the assault on scientific research, COVID injections, and how the public needs to demand better and healthier products. Consumers need to be the primary driving force for the MAHA (Make America Healthy Again) movement. 

X Post: "We need to restore integrity to scientific research."