[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 136 (Wednesday, September 14, 2011)]
[House]
[Page H6142]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              JOINT SELECT COMMITTEE ON DEFICIT REDUCTION

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Maryland (Mr. Hoyer) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, this week the Joint Select Committee on 
Deficit Reduction began work on a roadmap to bring down our Nation's 
deficit and restore our fiscal health. They heard from Doug Elmendorf, 
Director of the Congressional Budget Office, who reiterated once again 
what we already know, our Nation's current fiscal position is not 
sustainable.
  We also know that the problem we're facing stems, in part, from 
buying things without paying for them, including two wars, tax cuts for 
the wealthiest in America, and a prescription drug program. But what 
matters now is taking action.

                              {time}  1010

  Over the month of August, we heard very clearly from the American 
public that they want us to work together on the issues they are most 
concerned about: jobs and the deficit. Action on one issue will 
directly impact on the other.
  Creating jobs and growing the economy is one of the most important 
things we can do to bring down the deficit. And getting a handle on our 
fiscal situation will give confidence to encourage economic growth and 
job creation. Both the Bowles-Simpson and Domenici-Rivlin fiscal 
commissions supported this tenet by calling for immediate action to 
boost the economy while laying out a plan to reduce the deficit over 
the long term. This is why the joint select committee must succeed.
  We have a responsibility to show Americans and the international 
community that we can meet the challenges we face, that we can join 
together and make the tough decisions necessary to spur growth and to 
bring our debt under control.
  I believe the committee must go beyond the $1.5 trillion target in 
the deficit reduction bill if we hope to strengthen our economy and 
seriously change our Nation's fiscal outlook.
  Over 60 economists and former Members of Congress signed a letter 
encouraging the joint select committee to reach the biggest agreement 
possible, and I want to join with them in that request. In their 
letter, signed by cochairs of both the Bowles-Simpson and Domenici-
Rivlin fiscal commissions, among others, they state, ``We believe that 
a `go big' approach that goes well beyond the $1.5 trillion deficit 
reduction goal that the committee has been charged with and includes 
major reforms of entitlement programs and the Tax Code is necessary to 
bring the debt down to a manageable and sustainable level, improve the 
long-term fiscal imbalance, reassure markets, and restore Americans' 
faith in the political system.''
  I am in absolute agreement with that proposition. As the letter I 
just quoted indicates, the committee must also put all options on the 
table. That's a challenge on the Republican side; that's a challenge on 
the Democratic side. But it must be done because we cannot get to where 
we need to get without doing so.
  The math is irrefutable. We cannot get to where we need to go if we 
ignore revenues or if we fail to ensure our safety net is sustainable 
for generations to come. A balanced approach that looks at defense 
spending, revenues, and entitlements is the only real way we're going 
to put America's fiscal house back in order.
  A balanced approach is also key to making sure everyone pays their 
fair share. We cannot ask the middle class families and seniors to bear 
the entire burden of balancing the budget. The most well-off among us, 
which is most of us, by the way, in this body must also contribute to 
that objective.
  But as we focus on ways to restore our budget balance, we cannot and 
must not forget the immediate jobs crisis that too many families face.
  Any plan to bring down the deficit must start, as Bowles-Simpson and 
Domenici-Rivlin both observed, with getting people back to work. That 
is why I hope Republicans and Democrats will work together to bring the 
President's proposed American Jobs Act to the floor for a vote without 
delay. As the President said, we have 14 months to wait until the next 
election. People without jobs, people's whose homes are underwater, 
people who have lost their homes, they don't have 14 months to wait.
  The jobs program suggested by the President mirrors many components 
included in the House Democrats' Make It In America agenda and will 
help create jobs in the short term.
  All of us, Democrats and Republicans alike, must be invested in the 
committee's success. I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to 
be committed to the success of reaching agreement in this committee of 
12. This is a time to put partisan politics aside and do the hard 
things, very hard things, the courageous things that we have to do for 
our country.
  I believe we're equal to the task. And I say to my colleagues on both 
sides of the aisle, if we are not equal to the task, then all of our 
citizens will rightfully be extraordinarily disappointed, as they are 
today, in their elected representatives on both sides of the aisle.
  Success of this committee, success of this House and the Senate in 
reaching and meeting the challenge that confronts us is essential if 
the confidence level of our own citizens and the international 
community is to be raised and given the level necessary for future 
success.

                          ____________________