Issue Position: Budget

Issue Position

Budget and Spending

Out-of-control spending is one of the most significant threats to American prosperity. For too long, lawmakers from both parties have been irresponsible with your tax dollars, amassing a national debt of more than $17.2 trillion. Under President Obama alone, the debt has increased by more than 50 percent. As the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office explains, "… large budget deficits and growing debt would reduce national saving, leading to higher interest rates, more borrowing from abroad, and less domestic investment--which in turn would lower the growth of incomes in the United States."

As part of the House's effort to cut spending and reduce the debt, I was proud to support S. 365, the Budget Control Act. This bill will result in spending cuts of $2.1 trillion and begin to slow the explosive growth of spending. Because of the Budget Control Act, discretionary spending in Fiscal Year 2014 (FY 14) will return to FY 08 levels -- a remarkable achievement particularly considering the massive spending binge that occurred in the president's first term.

We must act now to ensure that our children and grandchildren do not inherit a mountain of debt and an America that is less free and prosperous because of our mandatory spending obligations. That is why I supported The Path to Prosperity, Congressman Paul Ryan's budget proposal. The Ryan plan would cut spending by $4.6 trillion over the next 10 years, reform the tax code to make it simpler and fairer, and strengthen the Medicare program for today's seniors and future beneficiaries.

President Obama's budget, by contrast, would add more than $8.2 trillion to the national debt over the next 10 years. It also makes unsustainable cuts to defense spending, provides for a $1.1 trillion tax increase, and does nothing to reform major government programs.

Balanced Budget Amendment

In addition to supporting fiscally responsible budgets, I strongly believe that we must add a Balanced Budget Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. That's why I am a cosponsor of H.J.Res. 2, which would prohibit spending from exceeding revenues unless three-fifths of both the House and the Senate vote otherwise. I voted for this Constitutional amendment in the 112th Congress but, unfortunately, it did not receive the necessary two-thirds to pass the House. Forty-eight states, including Tennessee, have balanced-budget amendments. It's time to make your government in Washington live by the same rules.

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