Fiscal Responsibility
Over the years, Democrats have shown our commitment to restoring fiscal responsibility by taking actions that have reduced our national deficit while investing in the American people’s priorities. During the 117th Congress, House Democrats delivered the landmark Inflation Reduction Act, which will reduce the deficit by over $300 billion while lowering health care and energy costs and taking action on climate change. In sharp contrast, Republicans jammed their 2017 Trump Tax Scam through Congress without a single hearing, gifting trillions of dollars in unpaid-for tax handouts to the wealthiest Americans and large corporations while leaving our nation with ballooning deficits. They have repeatedly held our economy hostage to benefit their irresponsible ideological agenda, whether creating artificial “fiscal cliffs,” shutting down the government, or bringing our nation to the brink of defaulting on its obligations. With other landmark legislation delivered during the 117th Congress, including the American Rescue Plan, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and the CHIPS and Science Act, Democrats have worked to invest in economic recovery, job creation, all while cutting the deficit in half last year. Democrats are committed to continuing our work to restore sound, long-term fiscal management so future generations can afford to invest in opportunities, secure the American Dream, and ensure workers have the tools to Make It In America.
Republicans are holding our economy hostage to their ideological agenda, putting our nation at risk of default just a week from today. Default would have a real impact on middle class families, and at a time when our economy is still recovering, American families can’t afford to pay the price. Take a look at the numbers:
As Republicans continue to argue for a short-term compromise, which would not give our economy certainty and hurt job creation, business leaders are calling on Congress to quickly take action and compromise so that we pay our nation’s bills and avoid the catastrophic consequences of default:
Wanted to make sure you all saw this AP story where Republican Study Committee Chairman Jim Jordan said that when it comes to the Boehner plan, he is confident "that as of this morning there are not 218 Republicans in support of this plan."
We already know that Speaker Boehner has offered a short-term debt limit plan that would return our country to a state of imminent default within months, subjecting our economy to high levels of uncertainty. Now, CNN has reported that passing the Boehner plan would likely lead the rating agencies to downgrade America’s AAA credit—a step that would destroy jobs by dramatically raising interest rates for millions of Americans.
Wanted to pass along this handy list from National Journal summarizing the consequences of failing to ensure we pay our nation’s bills. These are costs Americans can’t afford. We hope Republicans will take note and work with us on a long-term, balanced compromise that would reduce the deficit and ensure we pay our nation’s bills.
National Journal
Polls show overwhelming support for a balanced plan to reduce our deficit and pay our bills—even among Republicans. House Republicans standing in the way of a compromise and pushing our country toward default are far to the right of most Americans.
Yesterday, Speaker Boehner laid out a debt limit proposal that puts our economy at risk and does not give businesses and the markets certainty they need. Republicans talk about the need to give our economy certainty so that we can create jobs, but rather than move forward with a long-term plan that ensures we pay our nation’s bills and reduces our deficit, Republicans are refusing to compromise and clinging to their ideological agenda.
Tonight President Obama clearly laid out why Republicans must work with us to ensure our nation can pay its bills and take balanced action to reduce the deficit. Democrats agree that we cannot simply kick the can down the road, as Speaker Boehner's proposal irresponsibly does. We must act now to give our economy and the markets certainty. Republicans have walked away from every proposal and have held our economy hostage for too long. With August 2 around the corner, it is time to reach agreement on a long-term solution.
What we're seeing, Lawrence, in my opinion, is a very sorry and irresponsible spectacle of holding America’s credit worthiness, and very frankly the interest of every American, hostage to an increase in the debt limit, which simply says America’s going to pay its bills. What has been offered by Speaker Boehner is a formula that he has rejected, and Mr. cantor have both rejected, saying that if we did just incremental, every six months or every eight months, it would keep the economy roiled and it wouldn't grow. And I think they were absolutely right then, but for political reasons simply to put the President in a corner, they have said no to every deal, to every compromise, to every effort to move this forward to adopt responsible policies which will protect the credit of the United States.
Today, both Majority Leader Reid and Speaker Boehner released proposals on America’s debt limit. Throughout negotiations over the debt limit, Democrats have been more than willing to make hard choices and compromise for the good of our nation, so that America can pay the bills it has incurred; by contrast, Republicans have repeatedly shown themselves willing to drive our nation into a job-destroying default unless they can succeed in enacting 100% of their ideological agenda.