The Lonestar Weekly: May 17, 2012

Statement

Over 1,100 Days Without a Budget

It's been over 1,100 days since the United States Senate, under the leadership of Harry Reid, has passed a budget. Sen. Reid has candidly admitted that the reason he has refused to bring a budget to the floor for a vote is that he doesn't want his Democratic colleagues to have to take a tough vote during an election year.

This shows a disappointing lack of leadership. We've been having elections every other year since the founding of our Republic. A fiscal blueprint for a country over $15 trillion in debt should not be held hostage to politics. But that seems to be the way Sen. Reid would have it. In response, Senate Republicans offered several different budgets on the floor for votes this week. Each was voted down by our Democratic colleagues, including the President's budget, which failed to receive even one vote.

With the United States borrowing 40 cents of every dollar it spends and a national debt now larger than our economy, we must put in place a spending plan that prevents the sort of financial crises we're seeing in countries like Greece and Spain. Every family and business in America has to set a budget, and the federal government should be no different. This means making hard choices to solve a tough problem, which is precisely what Texans expect of the people they send to Congress.

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