Senators Coburn, McCain, LeMieux and Enzi Challenge Congress to Cut Spending Instead of Raising the Debt Limit

Press Release

U.S. Senators Tom Coburn, M.D. (R-OK), John McCain (R-AZ), George LeMieux (R-FL) and Michael Enzi (R-WY) today filed an amendment (#3303) to the proposed debt limit increase (H.J. Res 45) that would prevent a $1.9 trillion increase in the debt limit and cut spending by $120 billion.

"This amendment will give senators a chance to do what the American people want us to do: end borrow and spend politics. It's time for us to make the same tough budget choices American families make each day. The future of our economy, and even our republic, depends on Congress finding the courage and common sense to say no to wasteful and duplicative spending. This amendment would be an important first step on the road to fiscal sanity and spending-addiction recovery," Dr. Coburn said.

"While the national budget is complex, it isn't rocket science to figure out how to balance it --stop spending more than you have. The federal government needs to cut spending. Period," said Enzi. "There is a lot of anger throughout the country and overspending is one of the reasons. Americans are fed up with the out of control spending and lack of responsibility. This amendment is an opportunity for Congress to take that responsibility."

"Raising the debt ceiling is irresponsible and threatens the prosperity of our children's future," said LeMieux. "Our nation has already borrowed more than $12 trillion dollars meaning every American family owes more than $100,000 dollars. We can't afford to dig the country deeper into debt. The longer we wait to make the difficult choices, the bigger the burden will be on future generations."

The Coburn/McCain/LeMieux/Enzi amendment #3303 does the following:

* Renders the debt limit increase ($1.9 trillion) in the underlying bill null and void
* Rescinds $120 billion in spending (5% from each agency other than DoD and VA)
* Directs the agencies to consolidate more than 640 duplicative government programs
* Rescinds unobligated discretionary funds available for more than two consecutive fiscal years
* Directs GAO to identify duplicative government programs and report the findings to Congress

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