Republican Study Committee Budget Include CAGW Proposals

In May, CAGW applauded the Republican Study Committee’s (RSC) budget plan, which would balance the budget in 10 years.  The budget includes eliminating and consolidating dozens of programs and agencies, along with tax, regulatory, and entitlement reforms.  Many of these ideas came directly from CAGW’s annual Prime Cuts, including the elimination of the sugar program, milk subsidies and marketing orders; ending federal support for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac; and eliminating funding for the Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership.  CAGW’s work was also cited in the budget plan’s sections about earmarks and occupational licensing reform. 

CCAGW Members Impact Washington Policy

The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste’s (CCAGW) grassroots efforts continued to give voice to taxpayers’ concerns, generating more than 100,000 e-mails to the House and Senate in the first year of the 117th Congress.  More than 70,000 of those emails were sent in opposition to the $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill that only allocated $500 billion for roads, bridges, and other traditional infrastructure projects, and the $4.9 trillion Build Back Better Act, which is riddled with big-government solutions to government-created problems and filled with an unprecedented amount of wasteful spending and politically favored provisions. 

CAGW Releases Five Special Reports

CAGW launched five issue briefs and special reports in 2021.  To mark the start of a new Congress, we released “Critical Waste Issues for the 117th Congress” which details 17 policy areas that require immediate attention to eliminate runaway spending and help to create a more effective and efficient government.  In May, we released “The Folly of Government-Owned Networks,” which exposed the flaws of allowing governments to own and control broadband networks.  “Government-Run Healthcare Will Harm Patients and Eliminate Consumer Choice,” released in September, discussed why a free market approach to healthcare reform is essential so that Americans remain in charge of their healthcare choices. “Pharmaceutical Price Controls are Bad Medicine” detailed bad outcomes stemming from price controls on pharmaceutical drugs, which are included in the Build Back Better Act. Finally, CAGW released “Tobacco Harm Reduction Products Should Be Widely Adopted” in December, which detailed the need to allow tobacco replacement products to reduce the harm caused by smoking cigarettes.

CAGW’s Schatz Recognized as Top Lobbyist

For the 12th year in a row, The Hill newspaper recognized CAGW for its high visibility and clout on Capitol Hill by naming CAGW President Tom Schatz one of the “Top Lobbyists of 2021.”  Tom has long maintained that this award is due to the incredible support and dedication of the more than one million CAGW members and supporters across the country.

CAGW Increases Digital Reach

CAGW’s social media and digital presence continued to seek new ways to engage taxpayers in 2021, especially younger Americans. Our Porker of the Month videos have garnered more than half a million views; our redesigned website had more a million visitors; while our Twitter and Facebook posts reached more than three million people.  

CAGW Receives Widespread Media Coverage in 2021

CAGW once again received widespread media coverage in 2021, more than any similar organization of our size. CAGW’s op-eds have reached more than two million Americans, appearing in National Review, The Columbus Dispatch, Morning Consult, The Hill, and The Washington Times, among other publications. Members of the CAGW team participated in more than 60 interviews throughout the year. President Tom Schatz’s weekly appearance on the nationally syndicated “Alan Nathan Show” was heard on 320 stations in 35 states, reaching more than 5 million Americans.  In short, CAGW once again made Washington’s runaway spending one of the top news stories in America!