Tim Pawlenty compares his experience cutting the state budget in Minnesota with the current debt talks in a new op-ed for the Des Moines Register:
With America facing 9.2 percent unemployment and anemic economic growth, the last thing we need is more government. We need to balance government budgets by cutting spending and rejecting tax increases. This can be done in both Minnesota and Washington, but only if Republicans draw a line in the sand and stand firm against more spending and taxes.
That’s what I did as governor of Minnesota, where I balanced every budget without tax increases and left the state with an estimated $663 million surplus for the budget period that ended last month. It wasn’t easy: We made tough choices to prioritize programs and cut spending. We passed market-based health care reforms, pay-for-performance for teachers, public employee pension reforms and more to get the state’s finances under control.
Read more here.