ICYMI: Hensarling on CNBC's Kudlow Report
“When you talk about ‘do-nothing Congress,’ it takes two to do nothing. The House has done something. The Democrat-controlled Senate – they’re the ones who’ve done nothing.”
House Republican Conference Chairman Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas) appeared yesterday evening on CNBC’s Kudlow Report to discuss President Obama’s failed economic policies.
Hensarling on President Obama’s failed policies:
“What we do know is unfortunately we now have more debt racked up in 3 ½ years of his administration than the previous 200.
“The bottom line is we're still on track for the largest tax increase in America's history; no fundamental entitlement reform unless you call the roughly $700-800 billion that he's cutting from Medicare to feed Obamacare.
“Elections have consequences, and the American people will have a decision to make whether or not they want to increase taxes on small businesses, if they think that's the way out of this terrible ‘non-recovery recovery’ that we have in the economy today.”
Hensarling on the do-nothing Democrat Senate:
“This is a bicameral legislature… The House has passed a budget. The Democrat-controlled Senate hasn't passed a budget in three years. We're now facing a terrible sequester to national defense. We’re facing a huge tax increase. The Republican House has acted to remain true to the Budget Control Act deficit reduction levels but [also] to avoid this draconian defense cut. Again, the Democratic Senate hasn't acted, the president hasn't acted, and in fact the president violated the law that he just signed where he has to tell the American people exactly how badly the accounts are going to be hurt in this sequester.
“When you talk about ‘do-nothing Congress,’ it takes two to do nothing. The House has done something. The Democrat-controlled Senate – they’re the ones who’ve done nothing.”
Hensarling on President Obama’s lack of leadership:
“With all due respect to the president… he's been AWOL – Absent Without Leadership – for over a year. I'm not the Speaker, but I bet you the Speaker would agree to keep us in session if the president would agree not to impose these draconian tax increases that Ernst & Young say is going to hit at least a million small businesses, cost us 700,000 jobs, and take us from a ‘non-recovery recovery’ back into a recession.
“It's an election year, it's a very close presidential election. I'm just dubious of claims when somebody has been absent from this debate for a year, to come in at the 11th hour. … I'm somewhat dubious.”
Hensarling on Republicans’ willingness to negotiate:
“All I know is that when I was on the Super Committee, Republicans were willing to begrudgingly agree to tax revenue increases as long as we would have a fairer, flatter, simpler tax code and we would reform entitlement spending for future generations. We were told, ‘No.’
“It’s well-documented—we put it on the table; you [Democrats] didn't put it on the table!”
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For additional information, contact:
House Republican Conference Press Office (conferencepress@mail.house.gov)
