[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 9]
[House]
[Page 12335]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                             REID DEBT PLAN

  (Mr. PITTS asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, the American people can finally see Harry 
Reid's debt ceiling plan. Only 5 days before the deadline set by the 
President, the Senate majority leader finally put something on paper 
and submitted it to the Congressional Budget Office. I think we 
understand why he waited so long to do this. The plan before the Senate 
is filled with gimmicks and does almost nothing to put our country on a 
better fiscal footing.
  Of course, the largest gimmick is claiming to save $1 trillion by 
shutting down wars that are already winding down. Despite having these 
phantom cuts in his bill, Majority Leader Reid gives the President the 
full amount of debt ceiling increase that he needs to push everything 
past next year's election. Once again, the financial security of our 
country would be sacrificed for political expediency.
  By contrast, Speaker Boehner's plan cuts spending by $1 for each $1 
increase in the debt limit. It may not be perfect, but it is necessary 
to keep us paying our bills and prevent a debt rating downgrade. It is 
a start to getting our country back on the path to a balanced budget.

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