Rep. Mark Pocan (D-WI) today attended his first hearing as a member of the House of Representatives Committee on the Budget, chaired by Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI). The hearing, titled "The Congressional Budget Office's Budget and Economic Outlook," featured testimony from Director of the Congressional Budget Office Douglas Elmendorf. Following the hearing, Rep. Pocan released the below statement:
"While I agree with my fellow Wisconsinite, Chairman Paul Ryan, that we must take swift action to put our fiscal house in order, I believe the best thing we can do to reduce our long-term deficits is to get the people of the Badger State and of the country back to work. That means taking a balanced approach to the budget process. We need spending cuts, but we must also preserve investments in items that we know lead to economic growth--infrastructure, education, job training and research and development.
"Congress must be able to walk and chew gum at the same time. We can target job growth while managing our budget in a responsible manner. What we cannot do is continue to sit on our hands as middle class workers in Wisconsin struggle to provide for their families."
As a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly, Rep. Pocan co-chaired the Joint Finance Committee, where he passed a budget during record state deficits that balanced spending cuts with revenue increases while protecting the priorities and services important to the people of Wisconsin.