“We need to cut up the president’s credit card, not give him a new one.”

WASHINGTON – U.S. Congressman Jeb Hensarling, Chairman of the House Republican Conference, issued the following statement today in opposition to the House vote to raise the federal debt ceiling without any accompanying spending reforms.

“I applaud today’s vote by the House to deny this Administration and congressional Democrats a free pass to keep spending our nation further into unprecedented debt. It’s fully clear that President Obama’s plan to raise the debt ceiling without any spending cuts is not only unwise but also unpopular. We need to cut up the president’s credit card, not give him a new one.

“Drawing a tough line in the sand on raising the debt ceiling is one of the most important things that we can do to create jobs today because job creators are not fools. They know that massive quantities of debt will lead to massive quantities of tax increases which ultimately lead to massive quantities of unemployment. By voting against a naked debt limit increase, House Republicans are sending a clear message to job creators that we’re committed to reducing economic uncertainty in order to empower them to employ.

“We’re currently borrowing roughly 40 cents on the dollar, much of it from the Chinese, and sending the bill to our children and grandchildren. The Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff has called our $14 trillion debt ‘the single greatest threat to national security.’ We are on an unsustainable fiscal course that is costing us jobs, slowing our economy, and threatening our future. A vote to increase the debt limit without cuts is a vote for the status quo, and that is indefensible and unacceptable.

“In order to bolster job growth today and avert national bankruptcy tomorrow, we have to stop spending money that we don’t have. This means taking urgent action to reform and save the entitlement programs that are currently our biggest debt drivers. This means attaching serious spending cuts to any increase of the debt ceiling. Defaulting on our debt would be dangerous, but giving a green light to infinite job-killing spending would be downright irresponsible and disastrous.”