Local audience hears Giffords discuss economy

U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords gave a report on the economy to a Green Valley audience Monday, but she evoked most applause when she said, “I’m very opposed to the Rosemont Mine.”

Speaking at La Posada, she said. “I don’t think the mine should happen.”

About 100 people, most of them La Posada residents, also heard her say, “I think we can balance our federal budget by 2012”—four years hence.

The federal government says the annual deficit runs about $300 billion a year, but others estimate that it’s higher.

The national debt now amounts to $9.7 trillion, or $31,236.86 per American, said Giffords, who later Monday attended at reception at Rancho Sahuarita.

Most of America’s debt is held by foreign investors.

Investors in Japan hold $601 billion of America’s debt; China, $491 billion; and the United Kingdom, $203 billion. Mexico is 15th on the list with investors there holding $39 billion of U.S. debt.

On the mine, she said there’s room in America for mining and fresh air and water, but mines shouldn’t be built in scenic places where they could foul the environment.

Augusta Resource is seeking approval from the U.S. Forest Service to build a copper mine at Rosemont in the Santa Rita Mountains east of Green Valley and Sahuarita.

One of the things President Bush has approved to try to improve the economy is the economic stimulus program, giving back $1,200 per couple, $600 per individual. His advisers suggest people should spend it and not save it.

When Giffords asked audience members what have they done with it, Martee Hanson said, to laughter, “Bush said to spend it, so I decided to bank it,”

Other solutions Democrats are offering to rekindle the economy include extending unemployment benefits, expanding Food Stamps and adding $50 million a year to the Emergency Food Assistance Program.

On housing, she said, the House of Representatives wants to overhaul the Federal Housing Administration loan program for families and seniors, provide $15 billion to help states acquire and rehabilitate foreclosed homes and give first-time home buyers a refundable tax credit of up to $7,500.

Congress has reinstated pay-as-you go (PAYGO) budgeting rules, requiring among other things if a new program is launched, the amount it costs should be taken from other ongoing projects.

In her presentation, Giffords, a Democrat, said the PAYGO rules should bring about a balanced budget by 2012, and she said, “the rule required that the federal government live within its means, just as American families do.”

jlamb@gvnews.com | 547-9749