Johnny Isakson Press Releases

Isakson, Chambliss Continue Fight Against President Obama’s Questionable ‘Recess’ Appointments

2012-02-03T21:23:00Z

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., and Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga., today joined 37 of their Senate colleagues to announce their intention to file an amicus brief and join a court challenge to President Obama’s recent unconstitutional ‘recess’ appointments of individuals to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and National Labor Relations Board.

This is the second action that Isakson and Chambliss have taken in the past week to fight the controversial recess appointments, which came in January during a time when the Senate was not in recess but was actually in session. Yesterday, the senators sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., demanding that he clarify “serious inconsistencies” in his past statements about the use of recess appointments. In the letter, the senators noted that Reid employed the use of pro forma sessions to shorten recess periods to prevent President George W. Bush from making recess appointments beginning in November 2007, but now appears to have changed his position under President Obama.

“President Obama and his administration have, time and again, thwarted the will of the Senate with recess appointments of individuals that Senate has either already rejected outright or has never vetted,” said Isakson. “His flagrant disregard not only of the role of the Senate, but also of the foundation upon which our country stands, must be stopped.”

“I am very concerned that, in making these recess appointments, the president has chosen to ignore the Constitution and disregard longstanding rules and precedents,” said Chambliss. “We cannot change rules every time we change presidents. I intend to work with my senate colleagues to reinstitute the checks and balances set forth in the Constitution, and to ensure that the American people’s elected representatives are not circumvented by the president or the majority leader.”

Sens. Isakson and Chambliss were joined in the announcement today by Sens. John Cornyn (R-Texas) and Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.), John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), John Boozman (R-Ark.) Richard Burr (R-N.C.), Dan Coats (R-Ind.), Tom Coburn (R-Okla.), Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Jim DeMint (R-S.C.), Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.), Lindsay Graham (R-S.C.), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), John Hoeven (R-N.D.), Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas), James Inhofe (R-Okla.), Mike Johanns (R-Neb.), Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.), Mike Lee (R-Utah), Richard Lugar (R-Ind.), John McCain (R-Ariz.), Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Rand Paul (R-Ky.), Rob Portman (R-Ohio), James Risch (R-Idaho), Pat Roberts (R-Kan.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), John Thune (R-S.D.), Pat Toomey (R-Pa.), and David Vitter (R-La.)

Below is the text of the statement signed by 39 Republican Senators:

February 3, 2012

We the undersigned believe that President Obama’s January 4, 2012 recess appointments of individuals to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and National Labor Relations Board were unprecedented and unconstitutional. We intend jointly to file an amicus brief challenging the constitutionality of President Obama’s appointments to the National Labor Relations Board and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Isakson, Chambliss Demand Answers from Democrat Leader Reid Over Unconstitutional Recess Appointments

2012-02-02T22:51:00Z

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., and Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga., today joined 32 of their Senate colleagues in demanding that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nevada, clarify “serious inconsistencies” in his past statements about the use of recess appointments. Their letter comes in the wake of President Obama circumventing the Constitution and the Senate in January by appointing Richard Cordray to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and three others to the National Labor Relations Board despite the fact that the Senate was in legislative session.

In the letter, the Senators note that Reid employed the use of pro forma sessions to shorten recess periods to prevent President George W. Bush from making recess appointments beginning in November 2007, but now appears to have changed his position under President Obama.

“This apparent shift in your position raises a number of concerns. Most specifically, it appears that you believe the importance of preserving Senate’s constitutional role in the nomination and appointment process varies depending on the political party of the President,” the letter states.

Senators signing the letter included Senators Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.), John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), John Boozman (R-Miss.), Richard Burr (R-N.C.), Dan Coats (R-Ind.), Tom Coburn (R-Okla.), Thad Cochran (R-Miss.), John Cornyn (R-Texas), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Jim DeMint (R-S.C.), Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), John Hoeven (R-N.D.), Mike Johanns (R-Neb.), Mike Lee (R-Utah), Dick Lugar (R-Ind.), John McCain (R-Ariz.), Jim Moran (R-Kan.), Rand Paul (R-Ky.), Rob Portman (R-Ohio), Jim Risch (R-Idaho), Pat Roberts (R-Kans.), Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.), John Thune (R-S.D.), Pat Toomey (R-Pa.), David Vitter (R-La.), and Roger Wicker (R-Miss.).

A signed copy of the letter can be viewed HERE and the full text of the letter is below:

February 2, 2012

The Honorable Harry Reid Senate Majority Leader United States Senate Washington, DC 20510

Dear Majority Leader Reid,

In light of President Obama’s recent decision to break with precedent regarding the use of recess appointments, we are writing to inquire about your views on the matter so as to clear up what appear to be serious inconsistencies on your part. We hope you will provide a complete and candid response.

On January 4, 2012, the President announced his intent to recess appoint Richard Griffin, Sharon Block, and Terence Flynn to serve on the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and Richard Cordray to serve as head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). Pursuant to a Unanimous Consent agreement, the Senate was to go into pro forma session every three days between December 17, 2011 and January 23, 2012. However, the President, in a controversial turn of events, determined that the Senate’s use of periodic pro forma sessions was insufficient to prevent him from exercising his recess appointment power under Article II of the Constitution.

As you are surely aware, it was under your leadership that the Senate first began to use pro forma sessions in order to prevent President George W. Bush from making recess appointments beginning in November 2007. With very few exceptions, this became the standard practice for the Senate during the rest of President Bush’s term in office, during which time no recess appointments were made. And, though you discontinued this practice when President Obama first took office, the procedure was reinstituted last year.

Furthermore, in deciding whether to make these appointments, the President reportedly relied on the opinion of the Office of Legal Counsel which argued that, because no business was to be conducted during the scheduled pro forma sessions, the President could consider the Senate unavailable to provide advice and consent and exercise his power to make recess appointments.[1] Yet, on December 23, 2011, one of the days scheduled for a pro forma session, you, yourself, went to the floor and conducted business to provide for the Senate passage of the Temporary Payroll Tax Cut Continuation Act of 2011 (H.R. 3765)[2], clearly undermining any claim that the Senate is unavailable to perform its duties during a pro forma session.

However, despite the fact that you were indisputably the author of what became the routine use pro forma sessions to prevent recess appointments and even though you are obviously well aware that the Senate is able to conduct significant business during a scheduled pro forma session, you have, on multiple occasions, publicly expressed your support for President Obama’s efforts to bypass the Senate with regard to these nominations. For example, while appearing on the January 15, 2012 edition of “Meet the Press,” you stated unequivocally that the President “did the right thing” in making these appointments. And, while you did acknowledge in the interview that it was you who established the procedure of using pro forma sessions, you also stated that “President Bush didn’t have to worry about recess appointments because [you] were working with him,” and that “[you] believed then, [you] believe now, that a president has a right to make appointments.” You made similar arguments this week on the Senate floor.[3]

This purported explanation directly contradicts remarks you made on the Senate floor during the Bush Administration wherein you explicitly indicated that the purpose of the pro forma sessions was to prevent President Bush from making recess appointments. On November 16, 2007, you stated that “the Senate would be coming in for pro forma sessions during the Thanksgiving Holiday to prevent recess appointments,” and that you had made the decision to do so because “the administration informed [you] that they would make several recess appointments.”[4] On December 19, 2007, you stated that “we are going into pro forma sessions so the President cannot appoint people we think are objectionable…”[5] After reading these statements, it is clear that, under the Bush Administration, you believed that the use of pro forma sessions was sufficient to prevent the President from making recess appointments and that the practice was undertaken specifically because you were unable to reach an agreement with the President regarding specific nominees.

This apparent shift in your position raises a number of concerns. Most specifically, it appears that you believe the importance of preserving Senate’s constitutional role in the nomination and appointment process varies depending on the political party of the President. Because we hope that this is not the case and because we hope that you, as the Senate Majority Leader, have taken seriously your responsibility to protect and defend the rights of this chamber, we hope you will answer the following clarifying questions:

In your view, what specific limitations does the Senate’s use of pro forma sessions place on the President’s power to make recess appointments under the Constitution?
Would it have been constitutional, in your view, for President Bush to have made recess appointments during the time the Senate, under your leadership, was using pro forma sessions? If so, for what purpose did you establish the practice of using pro forma sessions in the first place? If not, why do you now believe it is constitutional for President Obama to make recess appointments under similar circumstances?
In your view, did the Senate’s passage of the Temporary Payroll Tax Cut Continuation Act of 2011 comply with the constitutional requirements for the passage of legislation? If so, do you disagree with the President’s argument that the Senate was “unavailable” to perform its advice and consent duties during the recent adjournment?

Needless to say, these are very serious matters. While there are many issues that divide the two parties in the Senate, including the very appointments at issue here, we hope that you share our view that neither party should undermine the constitutional authority of the Senate in order to serve a political objective.

Thank you for your attention regarding this matter.

Isakson, Chambliss Join Bipartisan Group of 42 Senators in Introducing Legislation to Approve Keystone XL Pipeline

2012-01-30T20:27:00Z

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., and Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga., along with 42 of their Senate colleagues today announced that they will introduce legislation to approve the Keystone XL pipeline project under Congress’ authority enumerated in the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution, Article 1, Section 8.

Isakson and Chambliss are original co-sponsors of the bill, which was spearheaded by Senators John Hoeven, R-N.D., Richard Lugar, R-Ind., David Vitter, R-La.

The legislation authorizes TransCanada to construct and operate the Keystone XL pipeline from Alberta, Canada, to the U.S. Gulf Coast, transporting hundreds of thousands of barrels of oil per day to U.S. refineries, which includes 100,000 barrels a day from the Bakken region of North Dakota and Montana. The bill allows the company to move forward with construction of the pipeline in the United States while the State of Nebraska works to determine an alternative route. Hoeven secured an opinion from the non-partisan Congressional Research Service (CRS) confirming Congress’s constitutional authority to approve the project.

The Keystone XL pipeline project has been under review for more than three years, but President Obama rejected it last week saying the 60-day provision authored by Lugar, Hoeven and Vitter included in the payroll tax cut extension bill passed in December didn’t give him enough time to review the project. In fact, the Obama Administration spent 1,217 days reviewing the pipeline and there was no time limit on the State Department’s ability to review the Nebraska portion of the project.

“Now, more than ever, our country needs leadership on energy security. Unfortunately, President Obama failed to provide leadership when he rejected the Keystone XL pipeline last week,” said Isakson. “I am proud to join my colleagues in the Senate in rejecting the president’s action by trying to move the Keystone XL pipeline forward. I will continue to do everything I can to support this critically important project, which will bring hundreds of thousands of barrels of crude to the U.S. from our strong ally Canada and at the same time, create thousands of American jobs.”

“We simply cannot afford to delay approval of the Keystone pipeline permit any longer. Its construction will allow us to increase oil imports from Canada, a trusted ally and friend,” said Chambliss. “By rejecting this permit, President Obama is putting his own re-election ahead of America’s economy and energy security. After years of review and environmental evaluation, it’s time to move forward on this project. This legislation will ensure we do just that.”

Legislative Summary

The Keystone XL pipeline has been subject to rigorous environmental analysis for more than three years, and was on schedule to be decided on by the U.S. State Department by the end of 2011. By contrast, the original Keystone pipeline took two years to review and became operational last year.

The legislation builds off the completed Environmental Impact Statement, which was finished by the State Department on Aug. 26, 2011. Additionally, it requires the U.S. State Department to enter into a memorandum of understanding (MOU) within 30 days with the State of Nebraska to assist in rerouting in that state, which will be subject to the Nebraska governor’s agreement on the route within the state. However, it allows Nebraska all the time it needs to identify a new route within the state to strengthen the completed Environmental Impact Statement.

Further, the legislation requires strong environmental and safety requirements by incorporating the environmental and safety standards required and finalized by the Secretary of State. At the same time, the bill protects state and local laws relating to the protection of private property rights by ensuring those laws are not changed in this process.

In addition Senators Isakson, Chambliss, Hoeven, Lugar, and Vitter, original co-sponsors of the bill are Minority Leader Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), Mike Johanns (R-Neb.), Rob Portman (R-Ohio), John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), John McCain (R-Ariz.), John Cornyn (R-Texas), Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas), John Thune (R-S.D.), Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.), Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.), John Boozman (R-Ark.) Jim DeMint (R-S.C.), Rand Paul (R-Ky.), Lisa Murkowski (R-Ala.), Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.); Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), Mike Lee (R-Utah), Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), Patrick Toomey (R-Penn.), Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), Richard Burr (R-N.C.), Dan Coats (R-Ind.), Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), Tom Coburn (R-Okla.), Thad Cochran (R-Miss.), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Dean Heller (R-Nev.), Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), Jim Risch (R-Idaho), Pat Roberts (R-Kan.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Richard Shelby (R-Ala.), Roger Wicker (R-Miss.).

Isakson Responds to President Obama's State of the Union Address

2012-01-25T17:44:00Z

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., tonight issued the following response following President Obama’s State of the Union address:

“Real ‘fairness’ would be government doing what American families have had to do: sit around the kitchen table, prioritize spending, get their spending in line and not borrow too much money.

“When it comes to taxation, we need a comprehensive approach. The president’s own commission, Simpson-Bowles, recommended that we do away with many of the current tax expenditures and tax deductions, lower the tax rate on our taxpayers and produce more income. That will bring capital off the sidelines and investment back to small business. We need a comprehensive approach, not a winners and losers approach to tax reform.

“Additionally, if on the one hand, you speak of more jobs for Americans and energy security, and on the other hand, you reject 20,000 jobs, which the Keystone XL pipeline would have brought about, and 700,000 barrels of crude from Canada, one of our best friends, then you are saying one thing and doing something else—that’s wrong for our country. We need leadership on energy security.”

Isakson Opposes the President’s Request to Increase Debt Limit By An Additional $1.2 Trillion

2012-01-26T20:47:00Z

WASHINGTON – Saying that the federal government must live within its means just as American families have to do, U.S. Senator Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., today voted in support of a resolution of disapproval on the president’s request to increase the debt limit by an additional $1.2 trillion. Isakson voiced disappointment that the motion to proceed to the resolution failed in the Senate by a vote of 44 to 52.

Even though the resolution passed the House last week by a vote of 239 to 176, the failed vote in the Senate now means that, under the Budget Control Act of 2011, the president’s requested debt increase of $1.2 trillion will go into effect because Congress has failed to pass a resolution of disapproval within 15 days of the president’s request.

“Our country is experiencing a very serious financial crisis that has been felt by families and businesses across America. I find it very troubling that the president is asking to increase the nation’s debt limit when his Democrat majority in the Senate has failed to submit budget in the past 1,000 days,” said Isakson. “In the president’s speech on Tuesday night, he spoke a great deal about fairness. I would suggest that the fairest thing Washington can do is to finally pass a budget and, and more importantly, stick to it and force the federal government to live within its means just as Americans across the country have had to do in their households and businesses.”

Isakson is co-sponsor of S.J. Res. 34, a similar resolution of disapproval on increasing the debt limit, which was introduced by Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., earlier this week. In September 2011, Isakson voted in favor of another resolution of disapproval on increasing the debt limit, which failed by a vote of 45 to 52.

Isakson to Obama: ‘Rejecting the Keystone XL Permit Hampers America’s Ability to Secure Its Energy Future’

2012-01-18T22:17:00Z

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., today strongly criticized President Obama’s decision to kill the proposed Keystone XL pipeline, writing in a letter to the White House that the decision is a missed opportunity to secure America’s energy future and to create tens of thousands of badly needed jobs for Americans.

As part of the payroll tax bill passed by the House and Senate and signed into law by the president in December 2011, President Obama was required to act on the Keystone XL permit within 60 days. Obama today said his administration has rejected the application for a construction permit for the proposed pipeline even though the states through which the pipeline would run had Ok’d it.

Isakson has been a strong proponent of the Keystone XL pipeline and co-sponsored legislation to force the Obama administration to issue a construction permit for the Keystone XL pipeline within 60 days. Isakson also sent a letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to express his strong objections when the administration last year initially postponed a decision on the proposed Keystone XL pipeline until after the 2012 election.

The full text Isakson’s letter to President Obama is below.

January 18, 2012

The President The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20500

Dear Mr. President:

I am writing to respectfully express my strong objection to your decision today to reject the permit for the proposed Keystone XL pipeline. Rejecting the Keystone XL permit hampers America’s ability to secure its energy future, and I urge you to reconsider your decision and instead approve the permit application.

As you know a requirement that you act on the Keystone XL permit within 60 days was contained in the payroll tax bill passed by the House and Senate at the end of last year. As you also know the State Department received the Keystone XL environmental permit application in September 2008, and has been reviewing it since then. Prior to passage of the 60 day provision, you had announced that you were postponing a decision on the proposed Keystone XL pipeline until after the 2012 election, and specifically to the first quarter of 2013. In your statement today, you said that rejecting the pipeline “…is not a judgment on the merits of the pipeline, but the arbitrary nature of a deadline that prevented the State Department from gathering the information necessary to approve the project and protect the American people.” Congress wisely recognized that the State Department has had more than three years to review the permit application, and then acted in a bipartisan manner to ensure that you were compelled to take action without further delay on a permit of such critical importance to America’s national security and energy security.

As you know the proposed 1,711-mile pipeline would carry energy extracted from Canada’s oil sands to refineries on the Gulf Coast and in Oklahoma. In its December 2010 study, the Department of Energy found that imports of heavy crude from Venezuela and Mexico are declining and the Keystone XL pipeline is necessary to offset those declines. The study also found that stranded Bakken crude in Montana and North Dakota would be able to be transported to major American refineries. Additionally, an Environmental Impact Study completed in August of this year by the State Department found that the pipeline would have minimal environmental impact. Energy extracted from the Canadian oil sands and sent to Houston’s refineries would supply 500,000 barrels per day of oil and create over 13,000 jobs in the United States. Almost 900 companies based in the United States are exporting supplies and equipment to the Canadian oil sands because they see the potential the Canadian oil sands provide.

Other nations also see the vast energy potential in Canada. China, for example, has made an $11 billion investment in Canada’s energy production. On the day when your Administration was announcing a delay of more than one year in deciding on the Keystone XL permit, news reports indicated that Canada’s natural resources minister was in Asia to discuss more investment by China in Canada’s energy fields. In October, Sinopec, which is majority-owned by the Chinese government, bought Canada’s Daylight Energy for $2.2 billion, and last year Sinopec also spent $4.65 billion for a 9 percent stake in ConocoPhillips’ Syncrude oil sands project in Alberta. In July, the China National Offshore Oil Corporation, which is wholly owned by the Chinese government, bought the Canadian oil company OPTI for $2 billion. Chinese oil companies are taking positions in Canada because they see the potential long-term energy security in these oil sands developments. Delaying or rejecting the permitting of the Keystone XL pipeline ensures that developing nations such as China will continue to buy up more of the world’s energy supply. Canada is one of our closest allies and is our largest trading partner. As we work to reduce American dependency on oil from the Middle East and other volatile regions, it makes sense to expedite, not delay, the Keystone XL pipeline and to partner with Canada in a mutually beneficial way to help develop Canada’s energy resources.

Reports in The New York Times and The Washington Post had indicated that your original decision to delay action on this issue until 2013 may have been influenced by electoral politics relating to your reelection campaign. Since there is no apparent environmental or security reason to halt approval of this permit, I would hope that the politics of the 2012 election played no role in your decision to reject the Keystone XL pipeline permit. Now more than ever is the time we should be developing and exploring all of America’s energy resources, ensuring America’s energy security, creating jobs for the American people, and stimulating the American economy. Instead we have moratoria on abundant oil and gas resources in our coastal waters and, with the exception of a few recent permits issued in 2011, the Gulf of Mexico as well as the Arctic. We also have a ban on recovering energy from areas in our Western states where scientists estimate that oil shale reserves could be three times as much as the amount of oil in Saudi Arabia.

Demand from developing nations such as China and India is dramatically increasing and supplies are facing regional instability from events in places such as Egypt, Libya, Iran, and Iraq. Your administration should work to be an ally, and not an impediment, in the effort to secure America’s energy future. I strongly and respectfully urge you to reject the influence of outside interest groups that oppose the pipeline, to work instead to immediately increase America’s energy security, to strengthen ties with one of America’s strongest allies, and to create jobs in America by reversing the decision you made today and approving the Keystone XL pipeline. I appreciate your consideration of my views and stand ready to work with you in any way possible.

                            Respectfully,

                            Johnny Isakson
                            United States Senator

Isakson Returns More Than Half A Million Dollars of His Senate Office Budget to the U.S. Treasury for Fiscal Year 2011

2011-12-16T21:52:00Z

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., today announced that he returned more than $503,000 of his allotted Senate office budget to the Treasury for fiscal year 2011. In total, Isakson has returned over $3.8 million to the Treasury during his 13 years as a former member of the U.S. House and as a current member of the U.S. Senate.

“I am pleased to announce today that my office has returned more than half a million dollars to the Treasury for fiscal year 2011. I am trying to do all I can to rein in spending in Washington, and that starts with my own Senate office budget,” said Isakson. “When Georgians sent me to Washington to represent them in Congress, they put their trust in me to be a good steward of their hard-earned tax dollars. I take this responsibility very seriously, and have worked to ensure that my office budget is spent wisely.”

Early this year, Isakson introduced S.81, the Congressional Budget Accountability Act, to guarantee that any unspent funds from senators’ office budgets must be used to pay down the national debt or reduce the deficit. Under the current rules, senators can return leftover office funds to the Treasury at the end of the fiscal year, but the money goes back into the general fund. Isakson’s legislation has been endorsed by Citizens Against Government Waste and has a bipartisan group of 15 co-sponsors in the Senate.

This year, Isakson received the “Taxpayers’ Friend Award” from the National Taxpayers Union for his voting record in 2010. Isakson received an “A” rating, or a 96 percent score, for being among the strongest supporters of responsible tax and spending policies in Congress.

Isakson, Chambliss Vote for Balanced Budget Amendment

2011-12-14T20:54:00Z

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., and Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga., today voted for a constitutional amendment requiring Congress to balance the federal budget, a measure aimed at reducing the nation’s debt and reining in federal spending.

The vote comes as a result of the Aug. 2, 2011, compromise to raise the nation’s debt limit that included a mandate that the House and Senate vote on a balanced budget amendment by the end of the year.

S.J.Res.10, which Isakson and Chambliss both co-sponsored, failed in the Senate today by a vote of 47 to 53, with both senators voting in favor of the measure. The bill was introduced by Senator Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, earlier this year.

“Facts are stubborn, and there are three facts that hold true in our country’s current fiscal situation: The federal government is spending too much, promising too much and borrowing too much,” said Isakson. “I support a balanced budget amendment because it forces Congress to just say ‘no’ to spending too much, and it forces the Congress to recognize that we can only promise that which we can afford.”

“The current and projected imbalance between government spending and revenues is unsustainable. Washington has an obligation to say ‘enough is enough,’” said Chambliss. “We must stop spending money we don’t have and stop playing politics with America’s future. This legislation will force Congress and the administration to put our nation on a path toward fiscal sustainability.”

Currently, 48 states have some form of a balanced budget requirement. By law, the state of Georgia must operate under a balanced budget.

Isakson and Chambliss also co-sponsored a similar proposal, S.J.Res.3, which was introduced by Senator John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Senator Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, in January of this year.

Isakson Introduces Bill to Stop Taxpayer Bailouts of Mortgage Industry

2011-12-08T19:48:00Z

WASHINGTON – Drawing on more than 30 years of experience in the real estate industry, U.S. Senator Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., today introduced legislation that gets taxpayers out of the business of bailing out the mortgage industry by winding down Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and creating a new transitional program to securitize high-quality mortgages. The legislation creates a mechanism to pay back taxpayers for the bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and mandates that the transitional program be turned over to the private sector after 10 years.

“This legislation is a detailed roadmap to change the unsustainable course we’re on in which the American taxpayers have been bailing out the mortgage industry to the tune of hundreds of billions of dollars. My bill will shut down Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac through an orderly transition, and it will repay the taxpayers,” said Isakson. “I invite my colleagues in Congress, both Democrat and Republican, to move this bill forward to strengthen our nation’s housing finance system and our nation’s economy.”

Specifically, Isakson’s bill:

* Shuts down Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac

* Creates a new transitional program to guarantee securitizations of high-quality mortgages for a 10-year period after which the new operation shall be privatized

* Creates a new, self-funding catastrophic fund to protect taxpayers from having to bail out another housing collapse during the 10-year transition period before privatization

* Pays back the American taxpayer for the cost of the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac bailout

* Shuts down the new transitional program completely within 10 years and turns it over fully to the private sector

Isakson spent more than three decades in the real estate business, beginning his business career in 1967 when he opened the first Cobb County, Ga., office of a small, family-owned real estate business, Northside Realty. Isakson later served as president of Northside for 20 years, presiding over the company’s growth into the largest independent residential real estate brokerage company in the Southeast and one of the largest in America.

Isakson Co-Sponsors Legislation to Force Administration to Issue Keystone Construction Permit Within 60 Days

2011-11-30T22:40:00Z

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., has co-sponsored legislation that would force the Obama Administration to issue a construction permit for the Keystone XL pipeline within 60 days. The legislation comes in the wake of the Obama administration recently postponing until after the 2012 election a decision on whether to approve a permit for the pipeline that would run from Canada to Texas.

The legislation, the North American Energy Security Act, was spearheaded by Sens. Dick Lugar, R-Ind., John Hoeven, R-N.D., and David Vitter, R-La.

“The administration must be an ally, and not an impediment, in the effort to secure America’s energy future,” said Isakson, who is a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. “I am pleased to join my Senate colleagues in co-sponsoring this legislation because the KeyStone XL pipeline will immediately increase America’s energy security, strengthen ties with one of America’s strongest allies and create jobs in America.”

The proposed 1,700-mile Keystone XL pipeline would transport 700,000 barrels of oil per day from Canada and the U.S. Bakken region to U.S. refineries. Canada’s oil sands are among the largest oil reserves in the world. As global demand for oil surges and Canada increases production, the addition of the Keystone XL pipeline will ensure that Americans benefit from reliable and secure oil from our largest trading partner.

Despite having spent a record three years reviewing the Keystone XL permit, including two comprehensive environmental evaluations, the Obama Administration recently deferred a decision on the permit until after the 2012 presidential election. The legislation Isakson is co-sponsoring will spur job creation in the United States quickly and will reduce America’s dependence on oil from volatile regions.

Specifically, the bill:

Establishes Congressional affirmation that Keystone XL is good for job creation, economic growth, and national security.
Requires the Secretary of State to issue a permit within 60 days to allow the Keystone XL project to move ahead, unless the President publicly determines that it is not in the national interest.
Requires the permit for Keystone XL to contain strong and specific environmental protections and protect states’ rights.
Requires the federal permit to recognize an alternative route approved by Nebraska, protecting its ability to shift the route of the pipeline to avoid the Sand Hills while not holding up construction elsewhere.
Concludes more than three years of federal review by deeming the Final Environmental Impact Statement to be adequate.

Earlier this month, Isakson sent a letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to express his strong objections over the administration postponing a decision on the proposed KeyStone XL pipeline until after the 2012 election.