Political leaders speak out on the President's budget

RICHARD BURR

 WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Richard Burr (R-NC) issued the following statement Tuesday on President Obama’s budget proposal.

“In 2009, the President promised to cut the deficit in half. Instead, America has witnessed four straight years of $1 trillion deficits under his watch. Our national debt now exceeds the size of our entire economy, yet the President still refuses to lead on this issue.

“Rather than acknowledging the gravity of our economic challenges and proposing a serious budget to rein in spending and spur economic growth, President Obama’s budget offers nothing more than smoke and mirrors to create the illusion of savings. True savings are created by reductions in spending, not by increasing taxes or employing disingenuous math like the President does by counting savings from cuts under the Budget Control Act that is already law.

“The simple reality is that his budget would make our economy even worse. Rather than making the tough choices necessary to get our economy back on track, the President imposes tax hikes that will hurt job creators and our economy, ignores the pending insolvency of Medicare and Social Security, and fails to reduce the debt and rein in spending. Budget gimmicks, such as claiming savings from the drawdown in military operations in Afghanistan even though money was never borrowed for these unplanned operations, are dishonest. A responsible budget is a vital first step to getting our economy back on track, and with nearly 13 million Americans ‘officially’ unemployed today, we need a serious budget that will tackle our economic crisis, work towards job creation, and provide for the security of future generations.”

www.burr.senate.gov

KAY HAGAN

 WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Kay R. Hagan released a statement Tuesday on the President’s proposed fiscal year 2013 budget.

“The President’s budget plan reinforces the urgent need to tackle our country’s twin economic challenges: Boosting job creation and reducing our long-term deficits. Unfortunately, all the American people hear from Washington is partisan bickering, rather than constructive  problem-solving . North Carolinians expect much more. With our debt and unemployment both at unsustainable rates, action, not talk, is what is needed.

“The President’s proposal makes key investments that support our middle class families and promote continued economic growth. Of immediate importance, the budget accounts for an extension of the payroll tax cut through the end of the year for 4.7 million North Carolinians. This extension would mean a savings of more than $1,000 for North Carolina families earning the median income.

“Without a doubt, cuts must be made, but we must make them wisely and responsibly. I will not support any budget plan that fails to meet our responsibilities to our seniors, our military veterans, and our future economic prosperity. Targeted investments in roads, bridges, railroads, broadband and other infrastructure; research and development; and education will ensure the United States remains the economic engine of the world.

“In particular, I am pleased that the President's budget invests $8 billion in one of my biggest priorities — community college job training programs that prepare job seekers for positions in our country's emerging industries. With 3.4 million job openings across the country, we need to ensure our job training programs actually make people “job ready.” My AMERICA Works Act addresses this problem head-on by encouraging community colleges and industry to work together on the skill sets employers need. Jobs are my number one priority — which is why I'm on my NC Back to Work Tour to focus on commonsense solutions that can get North Carolinians Back to Work as soon as possible.

“I will continue to review all of the President's budget proposals to ensure that we bring down our deficits and debt quickly and responsibly, while also making smart, commonsense investments to preserve America's competitive edge.”

www.hagan.senate.gov

PATRICK McHENRY

 WASHINGTON, D.C. – US Rep. Patrick McHenry (NC-10), Chairman of the Oversight Subcommittee on TARP, Financial Services and Bailouts of Public and Private Programs, issued the following statement Tuesday regarding the release of President Obama’s budget plan:

“When this President took office in 2009, he promised to cut the deficit in half by the end of his first term. Today we are three years and five trillion dollars further in debt. The President has refused to work with Republicans to rein in out-of-control spending and in doing so he has broken his promise to the American people.”

www.mchenry.house.gov

ROBIN HAYES
NCGOP Chairman

 RALEIGH – “President Obama unveiled a colossal failure: A budget that has a $1.33 Trillion deficit. This is a direct violation of his pledge to cut the deficit in half by the end of his first term. President Obama’s failure to lead on deficit-reduction proves that he cares only about optimistic sounding campaign rhetoric, and not serious solutions to the debt.

“Last year, Erskine Bowles helped lead a bipartisan debt-reduction panel that laid out a plan to do just that. All of the hard work of the Bowles-Simpson commission was simply scrapped by the President, which is a perfect example of President Obama’s unwillingness to listen to serious ideas about debt-reduction.

“Another major fiscal problem plaguing Washington is the failure of the Democrat-led United States Senate to pass a budget. Just think about this for a second: The iPad didn’t exist the last time the Senate passed a budget.

“Not passing a budget is troubling, but what may be more troubling are Jack Lew’s, the White House Chief-of-Staff, comments … about the budgetary process. Mr. Lew, Obama’s former budget Ddirector, displayed cluelessness in regards to the process required to pass a budget in the Senate. Maybe that explains why Obama, Harry Reid, Kay Hagan, etc. have failed to hold a vote on one.

“As President Obama talks about his plan, it is important to note that we’ve heard his words before, and he’s failed to deliver on his promises. He’s built up a trust deficit with North Carolinians, and that is why next November North Carolina will not vote to send him back to the White House.”