Q:        What are the next steps to resolve the budget impasse in Washington?

A:        The 16-day partial government shutdown ended with a deal to appoint a budget conference that includes 29 lawmakers from the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives.  The bicameral, bipartisan panel is tasked with reaching an agreement on government funding levels.  I was named to serve on the budget conference, which is operating under a December 13 deadline to issue its final recommendations to Congress.  The vote to reopen the government did not lock in policy changes to address the $17 trillion national debt.  Now the budget conference is working to create a blueprint for future revenue and spending levels.  The last budget conference took place more than four years ago in April 2009.

Q:        What priorities will you promote as a member of the budget conference?

A:        First, to restore credibility and fiscal integrity to one of Congress' primary constitutional responsibilities:  the power of the purse.  The United States is not only facing a debt crisis.  We are also facing a crisis in confidence by the American people in our institutions of government.  Lawmakers need to come together to put the federal budget and budgeting process back on track.  For too long, Washington has been riding the gravy train, refusing to turn the corner on deficit spending or put the brakes on the national debt.  The federal budget has been driven off the rails by overpromises and overspending.  A driving force behind the reckless fiscal path includes unsustainable entitlement spending that's creating long-term generational inequity. Consider the largest federal pension and health care entitlements, Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid that serve older Americans. As the historic demographic shift continues over the next two decades, reforms are needed not just for spending discipline but to save the programs themselves, programs that have become part of the social fabric of America.  Other federal entitlements, such as food stamps, unemployment benefits and disability payments, have seen dramatic growth as eligibility was expanded during the Obama administration.  Adding even more burden to the taxpaying public, new federal subsidies paid out under the Affordable Care Act also will add to the wealth redistribution formula that is reshaping the size, scope and influence of the government into the U.S. economy and its reach into the lives of Americans.  On the budget conference committee, I intend to drive a hard bargain on behalf of the taxpaying public with a simple, straightforward message:  Washington cannot tax, spend and borrow its way to prosperity.  To that end, I'll work to restore principles of good governance during the negotiations, including transparency, accountability and fiscal integrity.

Q:        What needs to happen to reach a budget agreement?

A:        A concurrent budget resolution requires majority approval by the conferees to advance for a final up-or-down vote by Congress.  The budget resolution does not require the President's signature.  Instead, it has the authority to set the spending and taxing levels by which lawmakers on the respective committees will allocate tax dollars that operate services and functions of the government.  It boils down to lawmakers reaching an agreement on taxes and spending.  I disagree with those who believe raising taxes is the solution to reducing deficits and paying down America's $17 trillion debt.  Remember, less is more.  Spending less and taxing less will do more good for the economy.  The key to America's prosperity is rooted in the genesis of our republic.  We are a nation of self-starters who believe in personal responsibility, wealth creation and upward mobility.  Generations of Americans have worked hard to lay claim to their piece of the American Dream.  A tax-hungry, spendthrift Uncle Sam puts that dream at risk.  Restoring long-term prosperity will require a bipartisan consensus for permanent solutions to strengthen public entitlement systems and enact job-creating reforms of the federal tax code.  So, in addition to laying the groundwork for spending reductions that shrink the deficit, the budget conference should take the high road and identify long-lasting solutions that steer us away from fiscal cliffs.  Restoring fiscal integrity is the best way to avoid defaulting on the full faith and credit of the United States.

Q&A on Breast Cancer with U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley

Q:        Why is October proclaimed National Breast Cancer Awareness Month?

A:        Consider this annual campaign as a catalyst that can help save lives.  Let's put it this way: Breast cancer has the potential to affect every American across the United States.  By calling attention to this insidious disease, National Breast Cancer Awareness Month helps to educate the public about symptoms, risk factors, screenings and prevention.  It also serves as a reminder to diagnosed patients, survivors and victims' loved ones that America stands strong in the march to find a cure.  By year's end, breast cancer will turn the lives of hundreds of thousands of Americans upside down.  The National Cancer Institute projects 232,340 women and 2,240 men will be diagnosed with breast cancer in 2013.  And 39,620 families will lose their grandmother, mother, wife, sister, daughter, aunt, niece or granddaughter to this disease before the New Year. The State Health Registry of Iowa estimates 2,300 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in 2013; 410 Iowa women will lose their life to the disease.  Designating the month of October as National Breast Cancer Awareness Month helps mobilize communities across the country to show solidarity.

Q:        How do you observe this campaign?

A:       For starters, I give thanks and praise that I'm able to wish my wife Barbara another happy, cancer-free birthday.  Barbara is a 26-year breast cancer survivor whose birthday coincides with National Breast Cancer Awareness Month.  Like many survivors, Barbara attributes early detection and treatment with her recovery and survival.  Barbara also uses her birthday as a personal reminder to schedule her annual mammography screening.  We are grateful to participate in community awareness events, such as Race for the Cure, to stand together with families who have confronted this disease and the risk of losing everything from it.  Barbara and I want to show support for Iowa families struggling with a diagnosis, enduring treatment, considering preventive medical choices stemming from inherited genetic mutations to reduce risk of the disease, or mourning the loss of a loved one.  Since Barbara's diagnosis in 1987, America has made promising medical advances in the effort to diagnose, treat, prevent and find a cure to this second-leading cancer killer of women.

Q:        How can Iowans get involved to make a difference?

A: First, I would kindly challenge Iowans to hold their loved ones accountable.  Ask them if they conduct monthly self-exams.  Check whether they are up-to-date on an annual clinical breast exam from a medical provider.  Make sure they have had their mammography screening, which is considered the gold standard for early detection.  If not, don't drop the issue until one is scheduled.  The five-year survival rate if diagnosed and treated before the cancer spreads beyond the breast approaches 99 percent. Look for events, races and fund-raisers in local communities and neighborhoods.  Patronize local businesses that donate proceeds to breast cancer prevention and research.  National Breast Cancer Awareness Month helps keep America a step ahead of this pervasive disease by firing up the public's attention, fueling fund-raising and focusing on the life-saving screenings, treatments and research that save lives.  When it comes to public health and wellness, complacency could be considered public enemy no. 1.  Men and women need to know the warning signs to fight this disease.  The population considered at higher risk for breast cancer includes older women, those who have a family history of the disease, and obesity, particularly post-menopausal. It is said an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Choosing healthy lifestyles and following early, consistent screening recommendations will increase the odds Iowans will celebrate the gift of life with loved ones for many years to come.

For more information, visit the National Breast Cancer Awareness Month website at http://www.nbcam.org.  This year-round online resource offers a virtual repository of information to learn more about breast cancer, breast health, the latest developments in research, awareness events and patient resources.

by U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley

Unemployment, at 7.3 percent, is still much too high and a pressing problem for our country.  Even worse, unemployment of young people under age 25, is at 15.6 percent.  This is a very large number of young Americans.  Many of these young people have invested in a college education and are still unable to find jobs.  Participation in the labor market is at an all-time low of 63.2 percent.  This is the lowest rate in 35 years.  Last month, 312,000 people stopped looking for work.

We need to increase production.  To do that we need two things: capital and labor.  Capital comes first.  We need capital to create jobs and lower unemployment.  One of the best ways to do that is to unleash investment.  Better policies in Washington can allow this to happen.  We need to reduce marginal tax rates, allow for the production of domestic energy, reform the tort system, and reform the corporate tax code.  We have one of the highest corporate tax rates in the world, which makes us uncompetitive in the global economy.

It's time to implement policies that will make us more competitive and, in turn, increase productivity and strengthen our economy.

Q:        How have patents and innovation improved our lives?

A:        Throughout the ages, people have used their brains and brawn to make life easier for themselves and society.  Each successive generation has marched down the path of progress to achieve higher standards of living and greater prosperity.  Inventors turn an idea into a product that addresses a need or solves a problem.  Consider how modernized farming practices displaced societies of hunters and gatherers.  Iowa's own Norman Borlaug is credited with saving mass starvation of a billion people through his work in high-yield, disease-resistant plant genetics.  Perhaps the most sweeping social transformation occurred during the Industrial Revolution when advances in manufacturing and mechanization helped lift a rising tide of economic growth and productivity for people around the world.  In 1903, the Wright Brothers triggered a transportation revolution that profoundly impacted global commerce and world travel.  A decade into the 21^st century, the world is witnessing a new explosion of economic growth made possible by technological advances in life sciences, communications, clean energy and medicine.  Today's technologies nearly seem like the products of science fiction or yesteryear's futuristic gadgets that most people didn't expect to exist in their lifetimes.  However, thanks to the ingenuity, imagination and creativity of scientists, engineers, mathematicians, inventors and entrepreneurs, America's high tech pioneers continue to raise the bar of expectations and drive the U.S. economy forward.  Inventions can make life safer, healthier, more convenient, more fulfilling and more productive.  Just think how the washing machine "saves" time in a busy household.  America's founders recognized the value of encouraging inventors to think outside the box.  Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution authorizes Congress to develop a legal framework to promote scientific innovation and the arts.  The nation's patent laws help to spur U.S. competitiveness, innovation and job creation.

Q:        Why is it beneficial for an inventor to seek a patent?

A:        Since 1836, more than 60,000 Iowans have secured patents to protect the property rights of their inventions.  From the first-ever patented carousel to farm implements and medical imaging systems, Iowans from all 99 counties have navigated the patent system to protect their hard work, investment and earning potential.  The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office issues patents for qualifying inventions that are considered original, useful and "non-obvious" to the marketplace.  A patent grants for a limited time legal rights to a patent holder, to exclude others from making, using, selling or importing the invention in the United States.  In exchange for these rights, the patent holder publicly discloses the invention.  The patent system offers a mutual benefit to the inventor and society, as others may study the published patent to discover new scientific advances.  Last year, the federal patent office issued about 270,000 patents with 1.5 million patent applications pending.  The average wait time for patent approval is 24.6 months.  If you have an original idea that you believe could someday fly off the store shelf, filing a patent application may be a smart business decision.  First, inventors need to do some homework.  Do some research to see if your idea already has been granted a patent.  The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office website has a searchable tool at http://www.uspto.gov.  If your invention appears patent-free, it would be wise to file a one-year provisional patent application to protect your claim and continue market research.  Filing a patent and conducting the necessary research can seem like a bewildering, costly, time-consuming undertaking.  The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office recommends hiring a professional, such as a patent attorney or patent agent to prepare and prosecute your application.  As with nearly any situation, watch out for scam artists who over-promise and over-charge for their services.  Use good judgment and seek referrals to reputable patent professionals.  For more than 200 years, the patent system has worked to advance our system of free enterprise by giving risk-takers the legal and monetary incentive to build, create and invent.  Like representative government, it's a two-way street.  It strengthens job creation in America and rewards inventors who bring the next big thing to the marketplace.  Just as encouraging the next generation to get involved early in our participatory democracy strengthens our system of self-government, encouraging youth to unleash their creativity at home, Science Olympiads and science camps will help the next generation build a better, stronger America tomorrow.