Washington, D.C. – Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi released the following statement today after Speaker Boehner said that he was “not confident at all” that Congress can reach a bipartisan agreement to avoid the fiscal cliff. Moody’s Investors Service announced today it would likely downgrade the U.S. credit rating if budget negotiations fail.
“With our nation inching closer to the ‘fiscal cliff,’ Speaker Boehner’s lack of determination to reach an agreement is due to his party’s intransigence and partisan obstructionism.
“Speaker Boehner plans to keep the House in session for just 8 days in September while urgent fiscal crises continue to threaten our economy. Democrats are committed to staying in session as long as it takes to ensure certainty for the middle class and growth for the economy.
“The ball is in Speaker Boehner’s court. Instead of going out for seven weeks, we call upon Speaker Boehner to work with Democrats across the aisle to restore fiscal responsibility with a balanced approach, create jobs, return fairness to our economy, and strengthen the middle class.”
