The 111th Congress just kicked off and is debating its first official order of business: a new rules package that would make it easier for them to raise your taxes! Somehow missed that promise on the campaign trail last fall.

In any case, here's the letter that AFP sent to Capitol Hill earlier this afternoon notifying Members of Congress that this will be scored as an official Key Vote:

Dear Representative:

Patrick Ruffini has some very astute observations over at The Next Right re: how fiscal conservatives on Capitol Hill should handle the rapidly approaching economic stimulus debate on Capitol Hill. Here's the most relevant blurb, but read the whole thing:

According to the Politico, liberal New York Times columnist / economist Paul Krugman says he's been in touch with the Obama team re: how to fix the economy.

Senator Tom Coburn has released an end of the year report profiling some of the most egregious examples of wasteful government spending. As we continue to hear a clamor for bigger government and more spending to stimulate the economy, take a look at what your government spent your hard-earned tax dollars on this year. The spending problem extends far beyond earmarks. It reaches into programs and departments across government in the form of wasteful grants, contracts and agreements that receive little notice. Whatever the form of government waste, it is clear that there is plenty of room to trim the federal budget. The list below is a short summary of the report and contains only a few of my favorite examples. Click here to read the whole report.

Like most Congressional Democrats, U.S. Rep. Hilda Solis - President-elect Obama's pick to be the next Labor Secretary - is a co-sponsor of the controversial "card check" bill that would essentially do away with the secret ballot for America's working men and women in union elections.