Promoting Physical Activity for Americans Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. PANETTA. Madam Speaker, I rise today to urge all of my colleagues in Congress to fulfill our obligation, not just to the people of our districts, but to the people and the economy of our Nation.

Suspending and raising the debt limit simply lets our government pay our bills. It is a very simple responsibility that has been done 78 times since 1960, including 49 times under Republican administrations, and that includes three times during the Trump administration.

We raise the debt ceiling because we have to take into account the spending that we have already committed to, including this time, where 97 percent of the spending was done during the Trump administration.

If my colleagues are concerned with fiscal responsibility, they should know that breaching the debt ceiling will raise borrowing costs and add hundreds of billions of dollars to our debt.

Failure to act on the debt ceiling will not just result in economic catastrophe. It will affect every American family, as borrowing costs and unemployment will rise and markets will crash.

Provoking such a financial crisis through such a sovereign default would be self-sabotage, and it is flirting with brazen irresponsibility. We are better than that. Let's act responsibly, do our job, and raise the debt ceiling.

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