Debt and Deficit
Ending the era of trillion dollar deficits and paying off our crushing debt remains one of my top priorities in Congress.
As New England's only representative to the House Budget Committee, I believe irresponsible and inefficient spending from both sides of the aisle has left us with unsustainable increases in our deficit and debt. Deficit spending will have significant impact on the future prosperity of this nation if we do not get it under control. Just as Granite Staters balance their checkbooks, so too must our government strive for a balanced budget. High levels of personal debt have many consequences for individuals; similarly high levels of government debt can severely limit the growth of the economy. As our national debt approaches $16 trillion, not only does it affect the current state of the economy but also impacts our future prosperity and growth. Prioritizing our spending, reforming the drivers of our debt along with spending cuts and caps will set the stage for a future of a balance budget and the reduction of our debt.
Legislative Action:
Helped craft (The Patch to Prosperity: A Blueprint For Renewal) - The Budget for the United States Government for Fiscal Year 2013
- The Path to Prosperity: A Blueprint for American Renewal, follows up on the budget House Republicans passed in 2011, which offered practical solutions to control government spending. That approach stands in sharp contrast to the U.S. Senate, which has not passed a budget in more than 1,000 days. The Path to Prosperity calls for:
- a bipartisan, practical approach to safeguarding Medicare for future generations;
- cuts to government spending to protect hardworking taxpayers;
- tackling and addressing the drivers of our debt;
- restoring economic freedom and ensuring a level playing field for all by putting an end to corporate welfare and special-interest favoritism;
- reforming our broken tax code to spur job creation and economic opportunity by lowering rates, closing loopholes, and putting hardworking taxpayers ahead of special interests.
- Click here to learn more about our budget for FY 2013.
- Click here to read my bi-weekly editorial, "Frankly Speaking: The Path to Prosperity is a Path to New Jobs."
- Click here to watch video of me speaking of the floor of the House of Representatives in support of The Path to Prosperity budget.
- Click here to read my comments after the House passage of The Path to Prosperity on March 29, 2012.
Helped craft and voted for the passage of H. Con. Res. 34 (The Path to Prosperity) - The Budget for the United States Government for Fiscal Year 2012.
- This budget proposal stops spending money the government doesn’t have and lifts the crushing burden of debt. This plan puts the budget on the path to balance and the economy on the path to prosperity. It cuts $6.2 trillion in government spending over the next decade compared to the President’s budget, brings government spending to below 20 percent of the economy, eliminates hundreds of duplicative programs, reflects the ban on earmarks, and curbs corporate welfare bringing non-security discretionary spending to below 2008 levels. Also, it reduces deficits by $4.4 trillion.
- You can learn more about our budget for FY12 by visiting the Budget Committee's website at www.budget.house.gov.
- On April 14, 2011, I took to the Floor of the House to speak in support of "A Path to Prosperity," the Republican House budget proposal for 2012. You can watch the video by clicking here.
Cosponsored and voted for H.J. Res. 2, A Balanced Budget Amendment to the Constitution
- H.J. Res. 2 would amend the Constitution to prohibit federal spending in any fiscal year from exceeding receipts for that year. The balanced budget requirement could be waived in a given year if three-fifths of both chambers approve a law to allow spending to exceed revenues. In addition, the amendment would require a vote of three-fifths of both chambers to increase the statutory debt limit. The language in that bill was the same as an earlier Balanced Budget Amendment that passed the House of Representatives in 1995 with 300 votes from Republicans and Democrats alike. On November 18, 2011, although I voted in favor of it, H.J. Res. 2 failed to receive the two-thirds necessary to pass; the final vote was 261 to 165.
- You can read more about the vote on H.J. Res. 2 by clicking here.
- You can also read my column on a Balanced Budget Amendment by clicking here.
Voted against H.R. 1954 – a “clean” bill authorizing an additional $2.4 trillion increase in government debt ceiling.
- President Obama and Democratic leaders in Congress requested a straightforward up-or-down vote on raising the amount of money that Washington can borrow. They sought authorization for the Treasury Department to borrow more money, without requiring spending cuts or budgetary reforms and for that reason I voted “No” on H.R. 1954.
Cosponsored the Cut, Cap and Balance Act
- As a proud co-sponsor of the bill, it was my preferred vehicle for the debt ceiling increase. It would have made substantial cuts in spending and would have reduced the deficit next year and thereafter. It would have put in place enforceable spending caps to put federal spending on a path to a balanced budget, required the passage of a Balanced Budget Amendment to the Constitution to included spending limitations and required a supermajority for raising taxes–in addition to balancing revenues and expenses in exchange for future increases in the debt ceiling.
- You can watch the video of me speaking in support of the Cut, Cap and Balance Act by clicking here.
Voted for the Budget Control Act of 2011
- Although this is not a perfect piece of legislation, it does begin to change the conversation and direction of the culture in Washington. This bill sets ten-year caps on discretionary spending, creates a Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, and requires both houses of Congress to vote on a Balanced Budget Amendment in exchange for a debt ceiling increase. Overall, this legislation makes $2.1 - $2.4 trillion dollars in cuts and includes no tax increases.
- You can watch video of me speaking about the Budget Control Act of 2011 by clicking here.