Celebrating Black Expo, Central Indiana Job Fair and Consequences of Not Raising the Debt Ceiling -- July 19, 2011

Thank you for reading the Carson Courier! For additional information, please visit my website at https://www.carson.house.gov.

In this week's Carson Courier:

• Celebrating Indiana Black Expo's Summer Celebration
• Central Indiana Job Fair
• Not Raising the Debt Ceiling Would Have Serious Consequences

Celebrating Indiana Black Expo's Summer Celebration

The 41^st Annual Indiana Black Expo Summer Celebration is underway. Each year, over 350,000 men, women and children attend this ten-day event located at the Indiana Convention Center and others locations throughout Indianapolis. Indiana Black Expo always offers many opportunities for our community, and this year is no exception. This event is where our greatest minds and most inspiring personalities come together to confront our community's most pressing needs.

I applaud the Indiana Black Expo board and staff for making this an extraordinarily successful and uplifting event. Their hard work has enabled the Indiana Black Expo Summer Celebration to become a signature event of Indianapolis.

Central Indiana Job Fair

I know how hard it is for Hoosier families in this economy. Far too many suffer the financial and emotional strains of unemployment or underemployment. Creating new jobs and protecting existing American jobs from being sent overseas is my number one priority in Congress. I am also doing everything I can to connect job seekers with companies that are currently hiring. That's why I am hosting the Central Indiana Job Fair in cooperation with Ivy Tech Community College and IUPUI.

This event will take place on Friday, August 12th from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at IUPUI's Campus Center in downtown Indianapolis. The job fair will provide attendees with an opportunity to speak with a diverse group of companies from various sectors that are looking to hire new employees here in Central Indiana. I look forward to meeting with job seekers and employers on August 12th.

For more information about the job fair please click here.

Not Raising the Debt Ceiling Would Have Serious Consequences

President Obama and Democrats in Congress are seeking a balanced, bipartisan agreement to reduce our deficit without cutting Social Security and Medicare benefits. While all this talk about raising the debt ceiling might seem far-removed from the struggles many Americans face today, the impact of not doing so is very real. Failing to raise the debt ceiling and not paying our debts to creditors would likely result in the following:

• Social Security checks would be withheld
• Stocks prices would decline sharply, severely impacting those saving for retirement
• Interest rates would climb significantly, depressing home sales and home prices
• Small business would be unable to borrow funds and millions of jobs would be lost
• First responders such as police, firefighters and paramedics would not be paid

Thank you for reading the Carson Courier. Please do not hesitate to contact me with your thoughts and concerns. For more information, visit my website at https://www.carson.house.gov, my Congressional Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/CongressmanAndreCarson and follow me on Twitter @RepAndreCarson. I value your views and your input, which help me better represent the people of Indiana's 7^th District.