McCarthy: Time for Congress to make the necessary spending cuts

 Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Bakersfield) gives his weekly update from Capitol Hill. In his words"

 "I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving with their friends and family. President George Washington issued the first national thanksgiving proclamation in 1789 at the request of Congress. During the Civil War, in 1863, President Lincoln set aside the last Thursday in November as day of thanksgiving and called on the country to seek healing and national unity.
 " However it was not until 1941, that Congress made the 3rd Thursday of every November a national holiday. I believe it is important that as a nation we continue to use this day as a time to reflect on what we are thankful for not only as a nation, but in our personal lives as well.

  "When Congress is back in session next week, all Americans will have a chance to choose what spending cuts they want the House to act on. There will be three items up for a vote and the item with the highest
number of votes will be taken to the House floor for an up or down vote.  Item one: eliminate unnecessary Congressional printing.  For example, when a member of Congress introduces a bill or resolution,
the Government Printing Office prints 200 hard copies and last Congress over 14,000 were introduced amounting to over 2 million printed paper copies.  An alternative to mandatory printing is just
keeping all bills and resolutions online for all to see and potentially saving over $35 million over 10 years.    "Item two: redirect the National Archives to just manage Federal records rather than spending $10 million a year on grants to help state and local governments preserve their records. 
"Item three: get rid of Federal agency broadcasting facility grant programs that have already finished their work, which could save taxpayers $250 million over ten years. To read more about these and to place your vote online or through text message, please visit: http://republicanwhip.house.gov/YouCut/.

  "As we work to turn our state and country around, elected officials have the responsibility ensure accountability in our government. Recently there have been a number of questions floating around
regarding the California high speed rail project. I believe as this project moves forward we have a responsibility to ask the tough questions and demand a realistic assessment. Since the project was
envisioned 14 years ago, the California High Speed Rail Authority predicted the project would cost $43 billion or more.  At a time with such economic uncertainty, it is important to ensure that we have an
honest discussion regarding the high speed rail project before obligating future generations with additional costs and debt.

  "Thank you to all the troops overseas and at home who sacrifice so much so that we at home can enjoy the freedoms that make America the greatest nation on earth. Enjoy the weekend and some of the big games,
and I hope to see some of you at the 33rd Annual Kern River Valley Christmas Parade in Lake Isabella on Sunday.