[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 1]
[Senate]
[Page 809]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                          GOVERNMENT SPENDING

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, just a brief comment on the statement of my 
friend, the Republican leader.
  He continues bad-mouthing the recovery. We are in a recovery. The 
moral of the fourth quarter is a repudiation of the Republican 
playbook. Growth went down in the fourth quarter because of reduced 
government spending and a reticence of the private sector, as Congress 
fought over the fiscal cliff. That fight came as a result of the 
Republicans being so unreasonable. When we were finally able to work 
something out that was a compromise, it was good for the economy. The 
economy was rejecting the austerity and brinksmanship.
  So let's hope the Republicans will understand that we have to move 
forward, that the Republican playbook of continually complaining about 
spending is something--we know we have to do something with spending. 
We understand that. But there is more to making our economy recover 
than just continually harping on what is going on with spending.
  Everyone recognizes we have to do something with spending, but we 
also have to do something to have a fair program. Is it fair that to 
this point all spending cuts have come from nondefense spending? The 
answer is no. Is it fair that the Republicans continue to want to go 
after Social Security, Medicare, even food stamps that hits the poorest 
of the poor?
  Let's start talking about fairness. Even Presidential nominee Romney 
said he had all these tax loopholes that he believed should be closed. 
We agree with Mitt Romney, and we would hope the Republicans would 
agree with their nominee for President. That is where we should be 
looking--to have a fair approach to what we do with sequestration and 
balancing the budget.


                             The Debt Limit

  Mr. President, later today the Senate will vote on the House-passed 
legislation to suspend the debt ceiling until this summer and remove 
the specter of default hanging over the Nation's economy. I expect this 
legislation will pass on a strong bipartisan vote, sending the message 
loudly and clearly that while we are willing to negotiate, we will not 
engage in another irresponsible debate over whether the U.S. Government 
should pay its bills.
  I would remind my Republican colleagues that most of them voted to 
incur the debts now coming due. Suspending the debt limit will not 
authorize a penny of new spending, but it will ensure we pay the bills 
we have already incurred.
  What are some of those bills we have incurred?
  We have had two wars going on that have been unpaid for with real 
money. We borrowed the money. Every Republican voted for these wars. So 
we should pay our bills.
  I was reassured by the House Republicans' decision last week to back 
off their reckless threat to hold the debt ceiling hostage. Suspending 
the debt limit will not authorize a penny of new spending, but it will 
ensure we pay the bills we have already incurred.
  The legislation before the Senate sets an important precedent that 
the full faith and credit of the United States will no longer be used 
as a pawn to extract painful cuts to Medicare, Social Security, or 
other initiatives that benefit the middle class. A clean debt ceiling 
increase that allows the United States to meet its existing obligations 
should be the standard.
  Congress will continue to work to reduce the deficit but will do it 
without the threat of default. We have already made $2\1/2\ trillion in 
historic, bipartisan deficit reduction--$2\1/2\ trillion. Democrats 
believe we should do more. It is critical that we use a balanced 
approach that couples smart spending cuts with revenue from the 
wealthiest Americans and from closing the wasteful tax loopholes I have 
just talked about.
  Obviously, Democrats would prefer a longer suspension of the debt 
ceiling, which would provide additional economic security and stability 
as we continue to find ways to decrease the deficit. Raising the 
possibility that the United States could default on its obligations 
every few months is not an ideal way to run government. But a short-
term solution is better than another imminent manufactured crisis.
  Every Republican admits that default would rock our financial system 
to its core. However, injecting uncertainty into the system every few 
months also has a chilling effect on the economy. This insecurity does 
not just affect big investment banks or wealthy investors, it costs 
jobs. All around the country, ordinary Americans with 401(k)s and 
college savings accounts are affected. I am glad Republicans set aside 
their plan to gamble with default. It was bad politics and even worse 
policy.
  Middle-class Americans remember the last time the Republicans put us 
through a protracted fight over the debt ceiling in an effort to force 
deep cuts to Social Security, Medicare, and other programs important to 
the middle class. Middle-class Americans remember how the tea party-
driven Republicans forced the Nation to the brink of default in 2011, 
sending the stock market into a tailspin and prompting a historic 
downgrade of America's credit rating. Middle-class Americans remember 
how the economy suffered and our bottom line suffered with it. Middle-
class Americans remember the consequences of the Republicans' 
willingness to threaten a national default. I am relived that this time 
Congress was able to reach a compromise and avert a fight so middle-
class families can get the certainty they badly need.

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