Gregg Harper Update

On Fox News (Hattip: Majority In Mississippi)

Fundraiser in Starkville

Please Join Congressman Gregg Harper (MS-3): Judiciary Committee, Budget Committee, House Administration Committee, Joint Committee on the Library of Congress, For a Fundraising Reception: Tuesday, April 14th, 2009, 5:30 PM - The Veranda Restaurant, 208 Lincoln Drive - Starkville, MS - Suggested Contributions: Maroon & White Club: $500/Bulldog Fan: $250/Cowbell Ringer: $100

On Obama's Defense Cuts (Hattip: Majority in Mississippi)

Harper said it’s “a horrible idea to cut missile defense by $1.4 billion” when countries like North Korea and Iran are potential threats. “At a time when we should be focusing resources and research into defense funding, it would be poor judgment by the Obama Administration to make a decision which would defer attention from the first rate equipment our service men and women deserve,” Harper said in a statement. “I hope that the President will reconsider his decision to scratch the F-22 Raptor program.” It’s not clear if jobs would be cut at Meridian if Congress approves Gates’ proposal. The plant also builds components of the C-130J transport plane.

In Madison County
Spends the day in Meridian

Harper met with local officials, including Meridian Mayor John Robert Smith and several Lauderdale County Supervisors and Meridian City Council members, Tuesday at the Lauderdale County Courthouse, where he talked mostly about the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Harper brought along his copy of the stimulus bill to demonstrate its length. "1,073 pages," he said. "Not a single member of the House or the Senate got to read it." "The size of government has been out of control," he said. "This stimulus bill creates 33 new federal programs." He criticized deficit spending, saying, "You wouldn't run your home, you wouldn't run your business, and you sure wouldn't run your government here (in Meridian) that way." With that said, Harper said that, since the bill has already been passed, he felt it is his responsibility to "make sure Mississippi gets its slice." Harper was critical of President Obama's energy policy, saying the administration's goal ought to be to "make America energy independent" rather than to "reduce the use of fossil fuels." He expressed his skepticism at the idea of global warming, and advocating the increased used of nuclear power, saying "I've gotta think we can figure out a way to handle nuclear waste."

More in Meridian

"I'm afraid that this administration does have plans to cut defense spending in a number of areas, whether it's canceling the remaining ones on the F-22. They're showing a reduction in missile defense programs of $1.4 billion," Harper said. "So, there are a lot of things important for our national security that we need to rethink."

Visits Lockheed Martin

U.S. Rep. Gregg Harper toured a Mississippi Lockheed Martin plant Tuesday and said a Pentagon plan to cut missile defense spending could be bad for national security and the economy. Harper said it's "a horrible idea to cut missile defense by $1.4 billion" when countries like North Korea and Iran are potential threats. "At a time when we should be focusing resources and research into defense funding, it would be poor judgment by the Obama Administration to make a decision which would defer attention from the first rate equipment our service men and women deserve," Harper said in a statement. "I hope that the President will reconsider his decision to scratch the F-22 Raptor program."