“I want to commend President Obama for convening a fiscal summit next week, demonstrating his commitment to restoring fiscal responsibility. 

 

“Monday’s summit is the beginning of a dialogue, and will serve as a starting point for a serious conversation on the problems we face and how to deal with them.  While we will take the economic recession into account as we consider options to address our long-term fiscal challenges, we cannot delay action.  By not confronting these challenges, our nation’s budget will be severely constrained, and will limit our ability to invest in priorities and respond to future crises. 

 

“The summit will also lay the foundation for the President’s budget, which will be sent to Congress next week.  I expect that it will be an honest and responsible budget that accurately reflects the deep hole our nation is in, and makes tough choices to begin dealing with the deficit.  I look forward to working with the Obama Administration in the coming months as we work to address these issues.”