| WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Representative Marion Berry (D-AR, 1st) acted in accordance with his long standing reputation as a “deficit hawk” and voted to protect the Social Security trust fund, balance the budget, reject the President’s proposed cuts to American agriculture and re-instate common sense pay-as-you-go legislation.
“A budget reflects the priorities of those who write it,” Berry said. “My own priorities come from the values impressed upon me at an early age: Pay what you owe, don’t borrow what you can’t pay back and help those who need it. Congress must restore fiscal discipline, protect the Social Security trust fund from being raided further, increase funding for our Veterans and reject the President’s agriculture funding cuts.
“Foreign countries own nearly half of our total debt; China alone owns nearly $200 billion of American debt. I voted for principles and priorities shared by Americans. America must move out of debt and into fiscal solvency and Congress must take the responsibility to put policy ahead of politics and get the job done.”
Last night, Republican Leaders voted to prevent the Blue Dog Coalition, a group Congressman Berry belongs to, from offering an amendment during the budget debate that would have helped cure the nation’s addiction to deficit spending.
The amendment was a more comprehensive and responsible alternative than the meager attempt at reform contained in the president’s budget and other reform plans being discussed in Congress. The national debt has soared over $2 trillion under the watch of the current administration, with trillions more projected in the next 10 years under current policies.
The Coalition has focused this year on fixing a broken process that allows our nation to run deficits exceeding $400 billion a year, much of which is borrowed from foreign nations like China and Japan.
“The budget Congress passed is a blatant betrayal of the trust of the American people,” Berry added. “Any Member of Congress who claims a desire to save Social Security and then votes for a budget allowing more money to be borrowed from the trust fund is simply robbing Peter to pay Paul.”
Congressman Berry voted against a budget that Congress ultimately adopted because it lacked fiscal discipline, failed to protect the Social Security trust fund, slashed needed agriculture spending and did not represent the values that are the foundation of a strong and secure middle class: national security, prosperity, community, fairness, accountability and opportunity. |
