Recap: Day 2 of the Republican National Convention

Last night featured an all star cast of speakers, from Vice Presidential nominee Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) to Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) to former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. But one of the lines that stuck with us from last night came from Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY):

Republicans and Democrats alike must slay their sacred cows. Republicans must acknowledge that not every dollar spent on the military is necessary or well-spent, and Democrats must admit that domestic welfare and entitlements must be reformed.

Senator Paul makes an important point. Putting all options on the table, including revenue increases, can make it easier to come to an agreement that is sufficient in size and scope to fix the problem, as bipartisan plans like Simpson-Bowles and Domenici-Rivlin have shown. Given the current state of Congress, both sides need to come to an agreement to enact a plan and make sure it stays in place.

While both parties will need to understand the value of compromise, ordinary Americans already get it. Outside the Convention, the CRFB and Fix the Debt teams have met many people who are worried about the federal debt's impact on them and their children. They want parties to reach across the aisle and find an agreement. As one citizen put it: 

If the Republicans and Democrats cannot see eye-to-eye, this forever will be the problem. Change your ways, change your views, listen to the people.

We could not have said it any better. We urge you to join the 140,000 citizens that demand that our leaders to come together to Fix the Debt. It is important to listen to the leaders during these conventions, but it can be even more important to listen to the people. Here are the views of more concerned citizens who spoke with the Fix the Debt Campaign:

Join the Campaign to Fix the Debt here and see our first video here.