Comeback America Initiative Officially Launches

BRIDGEPORT, Conn., Feb. 14, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, the Comeback America Initiative (CAI), a non-partisan organization that will foster a national discussion around fiscal challenges and solutions, announced its official launch. Both independently and through partnerships, CAI will work towards achieving specific policy, operational and political reforms needed to put government on a more prudent, sustainable and accountable fiscal path, according to its Founder and CEO David M. Walker.

"Since our federal financial condition is deteriorating and with no real plan from our elected leaders in Washington D.C. to address the nation's structural deficits, I felt compelled to create an organization that would develop and promote sensible solutions to put our federal finances in order," said Walker, the former U.S. Comptroller General from 1998 to 2008. "Since my time as U.S. Comptroller General, I have been warning lawmakers and the American people that the U.S. government's addiction to debt will eventually result in a debt crisis if it is not addressed in a reasoned, responsible and timely manner. We are now headed for a fiscal abyss, and we must change course to prevent a global economic collapse."

While broadly CAI will address issues like budget controls, entitlement reform and re-evaluating the efficiency of government and its programs, some upcoming initiatives include:

Sovereign Fiscal Responsibility Index

CAI has partnered with Stanford University's MBA program to develop an economic index that will be based on available international data and will, among other things, demonstrate where the U.S. stands as compared to other major countries in connection with fiscal sustainability.

Fiscal Reform Plans A and B

CAI will develop and publish two illustrative reform plans to address the nation's structural deficits. Plan A will illustrate the type of reforms that would serve to put the nation's finances in order in a reasoned, responsible and phased-in manner in order to avoid a "debt crisis." Plan B will illustrate the type of immediate reforms that would need to be considered if we have a "debt crisis."

Public Education and Engagement

CAI will continue to participate in the Fiscal Solutions Tour and various other public engagement activities. These will include participation in Town Hall style meetings and conference calls with elected officials who want to engage their constituents with the facts, the truth and the tough choices that need to be made to put of nation on a more prudent and sustainable fiscal path.

Key Fiscal Fact Sheets

CAI will create a set of fiscal fact and solution sheets addressing a number of major areas in need of fundamental reform.

"We have had a bipartisan fiscal leadership deficit in Washington D.C. for too long. President Obama and Congress need to create a plan that will enhance economic growth and our competitive posture while at the same time making tough decisions to address the structural deficits that threaten our country's standing in the world and our standard of living at home," Walker said. "Without a credible plan, we could have a crisis of confidence that could lead to dramatically higher interest rates, a steep global economic downturn and much higher levels of unemployment within the next three to five years. We must not let this happen."

Andy Stern, CAI board member and former President of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) added, "We must ensure a sound economic recovery, reduce unemployment, make the necessary investments and changes to enhance our competitiveness and ensure a solid safety net for those who are most in need of assistance while also taking steps to address our structural deficits. This is no longer a long-term problem, nor is it a partisan issue. Dave Walker and the Comeback America Initiative will work to develop and promote non-partisan solutions that can achieve bipartisan support to improve our collective futures."

For more information on the Comeback America Initiative, visit: www.tcaii.org.

ABOUT CAI

The Comeback America Initiative is a non-profit organization that promotes fiscal responsibility and sustainability by engaging the public and assisting key policymakers on a non-partisan basis in order to achieve solutions to America's fiscal imbalances. CAI's goal is to foster a national discussion around the themes in the book "Comeback America," with an emphasis on various specific policy, operational and political reforms to put government on a more prudent, sustainable and accountable fiscal path. The organization's primary focus is federal fiscal issues; however, it will also highlight the larger national fiscal challenge and engage in certain reform initiatives in selected states (e.g., Connecticut) and cities (e.g., Bridgeport, CT).

CAI's BOARD OF DIRECTORS

J. Michael Cook (Chair) - Independent Director, former Managing Partner and CEO of Deloitte Worldwide, and former Chairman of the AICPA

Ernest A. Almonte - Partner, Disanto Priest & Co, former Chairman of the AICPA, and Former Auditor General of Rhode Island

Norman R. Augustine - Independent Director, and former Chairman and CEO of Lockheed Martin Corporation

Michael J. Critelli - Independent Director, and former Chairman and CEO of Pitney Bowes

Harold E. Ford, Jr. - Executive Vice Chairman of Bank of America/Merrill Lynch, and Former Congressman (D/TN)

Mel R. Martinez - Executive Vice President of JP MorganChase, former U.S. Senator (R/FL) and Secretary of Housing and Urban Development

William D. Novelli - Distinguished Professor in Practice at Georgetown University's McDonough School of Business, former CEO of AARP, and Co-Founder and Former President of Porter Novelli

Andrew L. Stern - Senior Research Fellow at Georgetown University's Public Policy Institute, and former President of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU)

Paula Van Ness - Independent Consultant, and former CEO of the Starlight Children's Foundation and the Make-A-Wish Foundations

David M. Walker - Founder and CEO of the Comeback America Initiative (CAI), and former U.S. Comptroller General and CEO of the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO)

Joshua S. Weston - Independent Director, and former CEO of Automatic Data Processing (ADP)

Rev. Jim Wallis - CEO and Editor-in-Chief of the Sojourners

CAI's FUNDING

CAI is not a grant making entity. It receives grants and funds from a variety sources to fund its operations. CAI has received a three-year grant from the Peter G. Peterson Foundation which funds most of its operations.

SOURCE Comeback America Initiative