To the Editor:

I’d like to take a moment to update you on a busy few weeks, beginning with my recent vote on compromise legislation to reduce the deficit and avoid default on our nation’s bills.

As you may know, I supported the eleventh-hour agreement that established a Joint Select Committee tasked with producing a plan to reduce the deficit by up to $2.4 trillion over ten years.

While I am glad the agreement protected Medicare and Social Security, I am disappointed that it did not include provisions to streamline the tax code or allow expiration of the Bush-era tax cuts for the wealthy.

It is clear that to solve this fiscal crisis we must both cut spending and raise revenue, and I am hopeful that these types of provisions, which ensure that everyone pay their fair share, will be included in the plan the committee reports to Congress in November.

Once Congress adjourned for the August District Work Period, I had the honor of traveling on a fact-finding delegation to the Middle East.

I had the opportunity to meet with political, military and diplomatic leaders from Israel and the Palestinian Authority, including Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Peres and Palestinian Prime Minister Fayyad and President Abbas, to gain a better understanding of the issues that are critical to the U.S.-Israel relationship and the region.

As a member of the House Armed Services Committee, it was important to meet with leaders from the two sides to discuss why efforts to forge a peace agreement have stalled.

One of the most revealing discussions was with the Palestinian Authority’s pollster who told us that 75 percent of the Palestinians want to participate in the Israeli economy and more than 60 percent want a two state solution.

We also visited many of the holy sites; Christian, Jewish and Muslim; which are important for religious and political reasons.

To underscore the volatility of some of the areas we visited, shortly after our delegation returned to the United States, terrorists from the Gaza Strip launched the deadliest attack against Israelis in three years.

Gunmen entered Israel through their border with Egypt and killed eight people traveling on buses and the next day, Gaza militants launched several rocket attacks into the southern city of Ashdod, wounding six.

Israel is America’s most reliable and stable ally in the Middle East and it is important that we support them in their efforts to combat the shared threat of terrorism.

I look forward to spending the remainder of August in Upstate New York, traveling across the district and meeting with constituents.

I know you’ve heard me say it so many times, but my key concern is jobs, and we must push my colleagues in Congress and the President to come up with a real jobs program.

I hope you will contact me with your thoughts and concerns moving forward.

Rep. Bill Owens

23rd Congressional District