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Udall Statement on Super Committee’s Failure to Reach Agreement to Reduce National Debt

 

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In response to news that the super committee has failed to reach a deficit reduction deal, Mark Udall issued the following statement urging Congress to bring the Bowles-Simpson deficit reduction proposal to the floor of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives and to pass a balanced budget amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

“Today’s news is disappointing and frustrating for Coloradans who want leaders capable of making tough decisions and guiding our nation through difficult times. Our $15 trillion debt is the biggest national security challenge we face, threatening our leadership in the world. Businesses across the country have told us that they need certainty that our nation’s debt won’t crush our economy in order to start hiring again.  And Americans looking for work, at risk of losing their home or struggling to keep a small business running, were counting on Congress to make the first big step toward fiscal responsibility and economic recovery.

“The failure of the super committee means that once again, when it mattered most, Congress failed to do its job. In order to cut our debt, Americans agree that everything needs to be on the table – including spending cuts and revenue increases. Everyone needs to give. Tragically, it seems that some members of Congress were more concerned about a pledge they made to a special interest lobbyist – and protecting their own careers – than in doing the job they were elected to do.

“Where do we go from here? Regardless of who is to blame for the failure of the super committee, we now face automatic cuts across the board, including to defense – cuts that are going to hurt. As one of the small group of senators who pushed two years ago to create what became the Bowles-Simpson Commission on debt and deficit reduction, I’m urging Congress to vote on the Bowles-Simpson plan.  It’s a balanced proposal that will make tough spending cuts, raise some new revenues, shore up Medicare and Social Security and get our nation’s economy back on track.  Congress should also pass the balanced budget amendment that I’ve proposed, which will prevent special interest tax breaks and protect Social Security, while ensuring Congress will never get us into this mess again.”

Read an op-ed by Udall [2] about the balanced budget amendment published this weekend in The Denver Post. In addition, Udall was among the more than 140 members of the House and Senate who called on the Super Committee to “go big” [3] by cutting $4 trillion from the debt over 10 years as proposed by the Bowles-Simpson Commission, economists and others. Udall also has proposed a number of tools to help Congress and the president cut wasteful spending [4].