WASHINGTON—The Heritage Foundation today released the final of five animated shorts in a series called “Road Trip on a Budget,” produced in collaboration with Sen. Rick Scott of Florida. The series is aimed at educating Americans and raising awareness on Washington’s out-of-control spending, with the goal of bringing the issue of fiscal responsibility back to the forefront.  

Senator Rick Scott said, “Congress has ignored the consequences of reckless spending, like raging inflation which increases the price of living for American families, for too long. The American people deserve better. With the current debt ceiling suspension expiring this weekend, our ‘Road Trip on a Budget’ series highlights how Washington got to nearly $30 trillion in debt, but more importantly, shows that we can get this spending under control. We have to stop spending recklessly on things we don’t need and invest in the things we do. We need to make government more efficient, cut taxes, reduce regulations and focus on creating an economy where businesses can thrive and create more jobs for American families. That’s the playbook. It worked in Florida and it will work for the entire nation.” 

Heritage Foundation President Kay C. James discussed the significance of this collaboration:    

“When politicians talk about the national debt and the deficit, most Americans’ eyes glaze over. It’s just not a relatable topic to most people, nevertheless the consequence of reckless federal spending cannot be understated. The fact is, excessive government spending and debt will eventually affect every single American, especially our children and grandchildren, in the form of higher taxes, a slower economy, fewer jobs, and higher prices for nearly everything.  

 

“What Heritage and Sen. Rick Scott have done with the ‘Road Trip on a Budget’ series is package this kind of critical knowledge in a format that’s understandable, compelling, and accessible to everyone. The American people deserve to know how rampant government spending is affecting their future and the importance of a more fiscally responsible path forward.” 

The Biden administration and Democrats have embraced exorbitant spending in just a few short months in office and show no signs of slowing down.  

The $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, $2.7 trillion American Jobs Plan, and $1.8 trillion American Families Plan would all grow the federal government to unprecedented levels, inserting more government control into nearly every facet of American life. In addition, President Biden and congressional leaders have indicated they will soon adopt a budget resolution starting the reconciliation process that includes $3.5 trillion in new spending for every major, radical, socialist policy item that Biden has requested.  

Adding even more deficit spending does nothing to address the underlying supply problems. In fact, doing so is likely to worsen inflation and further fuel consumers’ anxiety. These plans go far beyond traditional federal authority, and with them, comes the looming promise of tremendous debt that young people and generations to come will be responsible for paying back. 

 

 

Click here to see the final video.  

SCRIPT: 

“Great news – we’re going home! To Florida of course.  

 

Road trips are fun, but they have to come to an end eventually. So what have we learned on the way?  

  

The best way to get our economy back on track and make sure every American has the opportunity to succeed is to pay down our massive debt, get spending under control and live within our means.  

 

We CAN do this. I did it as Governor of Florida.  

 

When I got elected in 2010, Florida had been struggling. 832,000 jobs lost in the four years before I took office.   

 

Debt was soaring. The state raised taxes on its poorest citizens by more than $2 billion to fill a budget hole.

 

Kinda like what’s happening across the country right now. 

 

And what did we do? We cut taxes 100 times and cut 5,400 burdensome regulations.   

 

We paid down a third of state debt and turned a $4 billion deficit into $3 billion annual surpluses.   

 

And Florida businesses created nearly $1.7 million jobs for Florida families.  

 

THIS is the kind of success we can see across the nation.

 

But we have to be responsible.

 

We have to stop spending recklessly on things we don’t need. And invest in the things we do.

 

We need to make government more efficient, cut taxes, reduce regulations and focus on creating an economy where businesses can THRIVE and create more jobs for American families.   

 

That’s the playbook. It worked in Florida and it will work for the entire nation.  

 

With the debt ceiling expiring just days from now, we need to be united in taking a stand for American prosperity and saying we won’t keep letting Washington max out credit cards at the expense of the American people.  

 

So I hope you’ll join me in saying enough. $30 trillion in debt is TOO much.   

 

It’s time to take back control, be responsible and make Washington Work for American families. 

 

And that’s a journey we can all take, together. 

 

I’m Senator Rick Scott. Thanks for watching Road Trip on a Budget. Stay tuned to The Heritage Foundation’s social channels for more videos on America’s debt crisis and what we must do to put America back on a fiscally responsible path forward.” 

More information on federal spending and the budget can be found here.