Press Release
“Once again, Republicans have passed a budget that places the burden of deficit reduction most heavily on the backs of the middle class and those most in need.
"Congress has a responsibility to keep our government running and serving the American people.
“I’m glad to be here with Alycia and with the other guests as well – thank you very much for being here.
“I think the American people want us to adopt a common-sense path forward and get us to fiscal sustainability. They understand that we haven't been managing the finances of the country the way we ought to be.
“I was pleased to learn that the Obama Administration opened the application process for its Make It In America Challenge grant program today. This competitive grant program, which is a collaboration between the Departments of Commerce and Labor, will help bring manufacturing jobs and innovation back to the U.S. and enable more people to train for new jobs as our businesses expand. This is the kind of investment House Democrats have called for as part of our Make It In America plan.
“Americans expect their representatives to craft a budget that reflects our nation’s priorities and challenges, which is what the House Democratic budget released today by Ranking Member Van Hollen does.
“Well obviously [reaching a budget agreement] will take compromise. We’ve had a very difficult time getting to that. The Ryan budget frankly is a rehash of last year's budget and the budget before that.
House Democratic Whip Steny H. Hoyer (MD) received the “Legislator of the Year” Award from the Information Technology Industry Council this evening in recognition of his support of policies that support businesses, his commitment to stabilizing the economy, and his outreach to the technology community.
“The Republican budget proposal for Fiscal Year 2014, which Chairman Ryan introduced this morning, once again heaps the burden of deficit reduction onto the backs of those who can least afford it while asking nothing of those at the top. Yielding to the extreme wing of his party, which has demanded that he balance the budget in only ten years but refuses to consider any new revenues necessary to do so, Chairman Ryan flouts mathematics and fiscal common sense by imposing severe cuts to programs vital to seniors, women, veterans, federal employees, low-income families, and America’s middle class.
“Today’s report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics signals the strength of our economic recovery, even in the face of uncertainty produced by Congress. With 246,000 private sector jobs created in February and a drop in the unemployment rate to 7.7%, the recovery policies enacted by President Obama and Congressional Democrats continue to promote private sector job growth for the thirty-sixth consecutive month. However, in order to ensure our recovery continues and further increases its pace, we must get our fiscal house in order with a big, balanced solution to deficits and invest proactively in encouraging private sector growth.