Hoyer Statement on Release of the GOP Budget
Press Types
Press Release
For Immediate Release:
June 19, 2018
Contact Info:
Mariel Saez 202-225-3130
WASHINGTON, DC – House Democratic Whip Steny H. Hoyer (MD) released the following statement today on the release of House Republicans’ budget, which is sixty-five days overdue:
“The budget resolution unveiled today by Chairman Womack, sixty-five days overdue, cannot be considered a serious effort at planning for the fiscal year ahead or the long term. I respect the Chairman, but this effort differs little from past Republican Budgets in its commitment to perpetuating budget gimmicks while putting the burden of deficit reduction on the backs of the most vulnerable, an achievement made even more dramatic by the need to account for the massive deficits resulting from the Republican tax law. More than 20% of this budget’s savings come from fantasy assumptions about economic growth well beyond what the Congressional Budget Office projects, and yet it still requires more than $2 trillion in cuts to Medicare and Medicaid and trillions in additional ‘to be determined’ unspecified cuts.
“This Majority continues to ignore its responsibility to govern. We will not get a serious handle on our debt problem until Republicans work with Democrats in earnest to craft a long-term strategy for fiscal sustainability that will enable Congress to invest in the American people, our national defense, and a stronger economy. I urge House Republicans to stop using the budget process for political messaging and start working across the aisle to tackle the serious fiscal challenges we face – and that their dangerous and flawed policies have exacerbated.”
“The budget resolution unveiled today by Chairman Womack, sixty-five days overdue, cannot be considered a serious effort at planning for the fiscal year ahead or the long term. I respect the Chairman, but this effort differs little from past Republican Budgets in its commitment to perpetuating budget gimmicks while putting the burden of deficit reduction on the backs of the most vulnerable, an achievement made even more dramatic by the need to account for the massive deficits resulting from the Republican tax law. More than 20% of this budget’s savings come from fantasy assumptions about economic growth well beyond what the Congressional Budget Office projects, and yet it still requires more than $2 trillion in cuts to Medicare and Medicaid and trillions in additional ‘to be determined’ unspecified cuts.
“This Majority continues to ignore its responsibility to govern. We will not get a serious handle on our debt problem until Republicans work with Democrats in earnest to craft a long-term strategy for fiscal sustainability that will enable Congress to invest in the American people, our national defense, and a stronger economy. I urge House Republicans to stop using the budget process for political messaging and start working across the aisle to tackle the serious fiscal challenges we face – and that their dangerous and flawed policies have exacerbated.”