Cut, Cap, Balance - Giving the President What He Wants and What He Needs

Statement

President Obama has officially signaled that he is not on the side of the American people.

Today, the House will vote on a common-sense, reasonable compromise to raise the debt ceiling by $2.4 trillion. In giving the President every penny of debt ceiling he has requested, Republicans have asked for immediate spending cuts and a multi-year framework to balance the federal budget.

Even before the House has begun debate on the measure, the President announced he planned to veto the bill if it came to his desk. One has to wonder why the President believes that spending cuts and balanced budgets are "unrealistic policy goals".

He'll tell you it's because the "Cut, Cap, and Balance" Act cuts Medicare and Medicaid. But that is false. Nowhere in the text of the language does it call for specific cuts to specific programs.

The intent of the bill is to set reasonable spending limits based on what we can afford. If future Congresses can reform the budget so we can live within our means and make no changes to entitlements, then so be it. Under the act, Congress is free to structure programs however they wish, so long as we are staying under the caps and over the next decade or so balance our budget.

So why the hyperbole and misinformation?

The only answer is that the President is not serious about cutting spending and has no desire to ever balance the budget.

For further evidence, look no further than his own budget. It never balances and adds trillions to the national debt. He is pained to suggest a single entitlement reform he would support, even though they are the biggest drivers of spending in our budget.

If the President will not take our fiscal challenges seriously, Republicans are right to move forward with a plan that raises the debt ceiling while making immediate spending cuts, limiting future spending, and requiring a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution.

It is the only plan that raises the debt ceiling with significant Republican support. We have put a plan on the table that will cut spending, balance the budget, help our economy and create jobs.

It is now the President's job to explain why he opposes the goals the American people support.

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