New league of 'deficit hawks' revive attacks

USA TODAY, June, 2008 by Richard Wolf

WASHINGTON -- Eleven years after the last major effort to balance the federal government's books, advocates of fiscal integrity are seeking to make a comeback.

Most notable is Pete Peterson, a son of Greek immigrants and Wall Street chieftain who has vowed to invest $1 billion of his personal fortune to alert Americans that their government is going broke.

He has lured former U.S. comptroller general David Walker to his fledgling Peter G. Peterson Foundation, which will finance advertising, lobbying and grass-roots efforts designed to pressure the next president and Congress.

They're the latest "deficit hawks," but there are others. They are coordinating their efforts with former presidential candidate Ross Perot, who elevated the issue to national...