Herger Criticizes Washington Spending Spree on Debt Day

Press Release

Herger Criticizes Washington Spending Spree on Debt Day

Calls for Solutions to Rein in Massive Debt

Congressman Wally Herger (R-CA) issued the following statement as ‘Debt Day' approaches. Herger has joined with other members of Congress in calling for a spending freeze and a responsible budget that addresses our mounting debt. His remarks appear below:

"April 26th is Debt Day for the 2009 fiscal year. Debt Day is the day the government has run out of incoming revenue and must borrow money to pay for federal spending. Fundamentally, this means every dollar the United States government will spend between April 26 and September 30, when the federal government's budget year ends, will be money our government does not have. Instead, this spending will be paid for by borrowing from China and other countries to be paid back by future generations.

"Logical thinking would have you assume that with such crushing debt, Washington would be working to bring spending under control. Instead, members on the other side of the aisle have taken the opposite path. Since the beginning of the year, Washington has overseen an unprecedented spending spree.

"Congress has already passed a $1.1 trillion "stimulus" plan and a $410 billion "omnibus" spending bill. And this month, Democrats in the House passed a budget proposal that would increase the federal debt to $17.1 trillion by 2019. These massive spending hikes will trigger massive debt over the next ten years that surpasses all of the deficits of our first forty-three Presidents combined. And they continue to kick the can down the road on dealing with the impending disaster of $43 trillion in unfunded liabilities associated with Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security. It is irresponsible to put this debt on the backs of our children and grandchildren.

"History has shown us that economic prosperity can not be brought about or sustained by government. I believe we need solutions that will promote growth and investment in the American economy. We need to reduce the tax burden on small businesses and middle class families to spark economic activity and enliven our nation's spirit of entrepreneurism. And we need to rein in spending. Across the country Americans are cutting back on expenses to budget responsibly. Washington should be following their example. I've joined together with other fiscally responsible members of Congress in fighting against this reckless spending spree and demanding responsible policy that will leave younger generations a brighter future."

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