WASHINGTON, July 10 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- On July 16th, The Concord Coalition will join with other federal budget analysts to host a stop on our Fiscal Wake-Up Tour, a nationwide series of town hall forums on the nation's long-term fiscal challenge. U.S. Comptroller General David M. Walker will be the featured speaker. The event will be held at the Nashville Downtown Library. The event is co-sponsored by Congressman Jim Cooper and the Nashville Health Care Council. It is free and open to the public.
"One thing that Democrats and Republicans can agree on is that our nation's current fiscal policy is not sustainable over the long-term. Our children's economic future is at risk, which is something no one wants. Changing course will require hard choices such as scaling back future entitlement promises, increasing revenues to pay for them, or -- most likely - - a combination of both. Because these choices are politically difficult, the active involvement of the American people is critical. Without greater understanding of the problem among the public, community leaders, business leaders and home state media, elected leaders are unlikely to break out of their comfortable partisan talking points and unlikely to find solutions. That is why we began the nation-wide Fiscal Wake-Up Tour. As demonstrated by the recent election result, voters are tired of partisan gridlock. This gives both parties an opportunity and a duty to begin working together on the real problems we face. Ensuring a sound fiscal future for our children should certainly be high on their list," said Robert L. Bixby, executive director of The Concord Coalition.
The Fiscal Wake Up Tour is a major element of the nonpartisan initiative "Facing Up to the Nation's Finances." With partners from The Brookings Institution, The Concord Coalition, The Heritage Foundation, Public Agenda and Viewpoint Learning, Facing Up to the Nation's Finances is beginning to engage citizens across the country in meaningful, structured discussion - called ChoiceDialogues - on the basic facts of the federal budget challenge, to determine a course of action that reflects Americans' national values and vision for the future. The partners in the Facing Up to the Nation's Finances initiative chose Tennessee as the launching point for the Project. The initiative's web site, http://www.facingup.org/, is a center for learning, online dialogue and information about what citizens are doing to encourage leaders to take action before it is too late. The site includes pictures and reports from the ChoiceDialogues that took place in Tennessee in May 2007, along with media coverage of the initiative and upcoming events.
On July 16th, there will be a Town Hall open to the public and press. The panelists will be available to the press before and after the event.
WHAT: Town Hall, hosted by the Nashville Health Care Council
WHERE: Downtown Library 615 Church Street Nashville, TN 37219
WHEN: Monday, July 16, 2007
Begins at 10:00 am
WHO: -- Representative Jim Cooper of Tennessee
-- David Walker, Comptroller General of the United States
-- Bob Bixby of the Concord Coalition
-- Stuart Butler of the Heritage Foundation
-- Isabel Sawhill of the Brookings Institution
-- Heidi Gantwerk, Viewpoint Learning
For more information or to RSVP you can contact Tristan Cohen at 703.894.6222, or by email at tcohen@concordcoalition.org.
Additionally, a follow-up Facing Up to the Nation's Finances Stakeholder Dialogue will be held in Nashville on Saturday, July 21. The Stakeholder Dialogue brings together Tennessee political and business leaders, along with Tennesseans who participated in the earlier ChoiceDialogues, to delve more deeply into the specifics of potential reforms. They will attempt to identify areas of common ground across political perspectives that reflect citizen values and concerns, while acknowledging political realities. Attendance is by invitation only, but may be the subject of media coverage.
For information about David Walker's participation in the Fiscal Wake-Up Tour, please contact the GAO Office of Public Affairs, 202-512-4800. For other information about the Fiscal Wake-Up Tour Town Hall, please contact Tristan Cohen, Communications Director of The Concord Coalition, at 703-894-6222. Panel members will be available to the media before the event. For more information about the Facing Up to the Nation's Finances initiative, please contact Michael Hamill Remaley, Director of Communications at Public Agenda, at 212-686-6610 or mremaley@publicagenda.org.
Concord Coalition
CONTACT: Tristan Cohen of Concord Coalition, +1-703-894-6222,
communications@concordcoalition.org
Web site: http://www.facingup.org/
