[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 20 (Tuesday, January 31, 2023)]
[House]
[Page H515]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      REINING IN OUR NATIONAL DEBT

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Pennsylvania (Mr. Thompson) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to discuss 
our national debt. In 2022, Speaker McCarthy unveiled the Commitment to 
America which outlines the Republican platform for governing as we took 
control of the House in the 118th Congress.
  Through our plan, it is critical we support policies that lead to a 
strong, healthy economy, fight inflation, and lower the cost of living. 
We must rein in reckless spending here in Washington and root out 
waste, fraud, and abuse in government.
  For the last 2 years, the Biden administration has been left 
unchecked. Because of their policies, we have seen record-breaking 
inflation, skyrocketing gas and grocery prices, and increases to daily 
expenses. Hard-working families are forced to decide between feeding 
their families or paying the heat and electric bills.
  These economic hardships are brought on by unrestricted reckless 
spending. That irresponsible spending stops now. With $31.4 trillion in 
national debt, House Republicans are committed to finding a reasonable, 
practical, and responsible solution to raising the debt ceiling. Just 
like millions of Americans are forced to make difficult financial 
decisions to make ends meet, we must finally address out-of-control 
government spending if we want to put America on a better fiscal path.

  Mr. Speaker, I heard from hundreds of my constituents who are 
concerned about America's checkbook. On December 16, 2021, Congress 
voted to increase the national borrowing limit to $31.4 trillion, an 
increase of $2.5 trillion more than the previous allowance. This bill 
kicked the proverbial can down the road until now when we are, once 
again, faced with raising the Federal debt ceiling even further.
  In recent years, the Federal debt has ballooned because of many of 
the Biden administration's policies, including the student loan 
repayment pause and forgiveness, Congressional Democrats' 
multitrillion-dollar spending spree, and rising interest rates stemming 
from historic inflation.
  The first step toward reducing the debt is controlling the annual 
deficit. To fully address the drivers of the national debt, Members of 
both parties and the President will have to come to an agreement in 
addressing unchecked mandatory spending and reckless discretionary 
spending priorities.
  Mr. Speaker, as part of my commitment to America, I will continue to 
work to rein in government waste, fraud, and abuse, while limiting 
skyrocketing government program costs and finding solutions on reducing 
our national debt.

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