U.S.
Congressman John Boehner
Policies
Making it Harder for
Americans to Find Work
WASHINGTON,
D.C. – "After a
long delay, the White House has announced that President Obama will
finally
release his budget on April 10. So
far
the preview we’re getting is not good.
"With
millions of American
families struggling in this weak economy, I had hoped that President
Obama
would use this opportunity -- like President Clinton did -- to work
across the
aisle and balance the budget. Sadly,
media
reports indicate the president’s budget will not balance. Ever.
"What
it reportedly will do is
make modest entitlement savings conditional upon another round of tax
hikes. This would
be a step in the wrong
direction, making savings we agree upon conditional on another round of
tax
increases.
"If
President Obama believes –
as Republicans do – that responsible reforms are needed to shore up
programs
like Social Security, there’s no reason why they should be held hostage
for
more tax hikes. Tax
increases will
impede economic growth and make balance and job creation harder.
"In
all, it’s been reported
that President Obama’s budget will reduce the deficit by a meager $600
billion
over the next 10 years. Currently,
the
budget deficit for this year alone is a projected $845 billion. Given that the president’s
budget will
reportedly increase taxes by at least $600 billion, it appears that
there will
be no net spending cuts. That
means any
deficit reduction under the president’s plan would come solely from tax
hikes.
"Fortunately
for American
families who know that spending is the problem, Republicans are
offering an
altogether different approach. Last
month we passed a balanced budget in the House that cuts wasteful
spending,
unleashes North American energy like Keystone, and fixes our broken tax
code. We’ve also
acted twice in the
House to replace President Obama’s sequester with smarter cuts and
reforms that
protect our national security.
"As
the minority party in
Washington, House Republicans take our responsibility to offer
alternative
solutions seriously because we know that a budget isn’t just abstract
lines on
paper. A budget is
a blueprint, and it’s
an opportunity to help grow our economy and expand opportunity for
everyone.
"And
after five years of
massive deficits, tax hikes, and big government takeovers, it’s clear
that our
alternative vision of freedom and opportunity is desperately needed. Every day we continue to
learn more about how
ObamaCare is increasing costs and making it harder for small businesses
to
hire. Hundreds of
thousands fled the
workforce last month and unemployment remains far above what the Obama
administration promised when it enacted its ‘stimulus’ spending plan.
"We’re
not optimistic, because
the reason President Obama’s budget has all these problems is that the
president fundamentally believes more government and more spending is
the
solution to all our nation’s challenges – but it’s not too late for him
to
follow the House and outline a balanced budget.
One that includes entitlement reforms that are
not conditional on
enactment of more tax increases, which will suppress growth instead of
encourage it.
"After
all, President Obama
already missed the February legal deadline to submit his budget. Why not take a little more
time to get it
right?"
Boehner
represents Ohio’s 8th
District, which includes all of Butler, Clark, Darke, Miami, and Preble
counties, and the southernmost part of Mercer County. He was first
elected to
Congress in 1990.
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