"The national unemployment rate of 9 percent for the month of October 2011 comes as no shock. There are plenty of data illustrating a dire state of affairs even as Washington intervenes heavily in the economy - and seeks to nudge us further off the cliff.
"The four-week moving average for new unemployment insurance claims is still higher than the troublesome 400,000 benchmark.
"An all-time record 6.7 percent of Americans, a staggering 20.5 million people, suffer deep poverty, defined in 2010 as earning $5,570 or less or just $11,157 for a family of four.
"In total, 46.2 million people live below the official poverty line. This week, we also learned that nearly 15 percent of Americans - 45.8 million people - relied on food stamps in August, with recipient rolls having risen 8.1 percent in the past year.
"All of this is taking place in a wealthy industrialized nation of 312 million people blessed with favorable geography and abundant natural resources.
"We can and must do better.
"More federal intervention is not the answer; it will only dig a deeper hole. Few in government seem to realize this.
"To make matters worse, this week, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke announced a tacit continuation of the Fed's quantitative easing policy, meaning the institution's top official still can't grasp the truth that the Fed-created boom and bust cycles result in the kind of stubborn joblessness we're seeing.
"Also note how casually our leaders mention there will be sustained weak economic growth until 2014.
"Meanwhile, the Obama administration is making crude threats about women being assaulted as a result of Congress deciding against the President's costly, deficit-financed stimulus re-boot. This shows a clear lack of the leadership America urgently needs.
"In September, metropolitan area unemployment for Washington-Arlington-
"Washington elites cannot see the trouble they are causing or the pain working Americans are feeling. Washington always flourishes in the midst of the crashes it creates.
"Worst of all, the Washington establishment is unconcerned and unsympathetic about the crushing debt - now matching U.S. GDP - being forced on today's workers and future generations of taxpayers.
"Ron Paul's ambitious 'Plan to Restore America' is the boldest plan to reduce the federal deficit. It cuts taxes, authorizes a comprehensive audit of the Fed, and reins in dangerous government intervention by curtailing runaway spending and regulatory overreaches.
"Today's government-imposed economic weakness demands action. Dr. Paul is the only candidate with the experience and plan to get Americans back to work and create lasting prosperity."
Before heading to Iowa, Minnesota, and North Dakota for hard campaigning, Representative Paul showed why he is the only candidate who can unite people and bring our country authentic change.
Paul joined with a coalition of Republicans and Blue Dog Democrats to call for deep and meaningful spending cuts from the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction (or "Super Committee") that is charged with presenting the full Congress with deficit reduction options, reflecting Paul's commitment to working in a bipartisan manner to reduce the burden imposed on the American people by spending and taxes.
Paul also joined with House conservatives and Republican Study Committee (RSC) Chairman Rep. Jim Jordan (OH-4) in pledging to fight any attempt by the Super Committee to raise taxes. He co-signed a letter urging the Super Committee to avoid deficit-reduction actions that balance the federal budget on the backs of the American taxpayer.
Dr. Paul also worked with Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (AZ-8) and others to assemble members from across the political spectrum to call for a cut in Congressional pay, sending Americans a message that Washington too must curtail its spending as it requests belt-tightening from the public. The letter to the Super Committee also notes that Congress last cut its own pay in 1933, during the Great Depression.
Paul's own ambitious 'Plan to Restore America,' recently cited by Iowa Governor Terry Branstad (R) as "the boldest plan to reduce the federal deficit," proposes that President Paul will take a salary of $39,336, approximately equal to the median personal income of the American worker.
"Ron Paul is the most conservative member of Congress, yet he understands how best to work with coalitions and bring people together to solve problems. He can unite Washington without sacrificing one ounce of principle," said Ron Paul 2012 National Campaign Chairman Jesse Benton.