Mr. President, still, at this late, late date I want to remain optimistic that we’ll reach a final deal on federal spending. At least the dueling press conferences are continuing as I speak. I hope the negotiations are continuing by someone somewhere.

Hope Spring’s eternal. Under the banner of hope and change, I hope the Majority leader would change his mind and at the very least bring the House-passed measure to the floor for a vote to fund the military through the end of the fiscal year and avert a shut-down of the federal government. Anything less is irresponsible.

Kansans are now calling my office; have been all day, all week, and all year. Their message is clear: it’s time to stop spending money we don’t have. The House-passed measure is a small step in this direction and would keep the government from shutting down.

Let’s clarify the facts. The national debt is over $14 trillion and grows daily. Some now say $14.6 trillion. We are fast approaching the debt ceiling. I know the majority leadership remembers the last raised the debt ceiling 4 times in two years, and spent twice as much in 2 years as was spent in the last 4 years of the previous administration. If this continues, then by the year 2014 interest payments on the debt alone will be greater than all discretionary spending outside defense. The debate or fuss about which programs must not be cut will cease – they all will be cut, the money will go to pay interest on the debt.

The House of Representatives is doing what it’s majority pledged to do, what it was elected to do – reduce Washington spending. As a logical consequence, no surprise, the House passed a bill to bring government spending back down to 2008 levels. In March, the Democratic majority in this Chamber rejected these modest cuts in spending, and we’ve been operating under a series of short-term continuing resolutions ever since.

Now, we all know government by CR is not governing. The leadership of the previous Congress failed to pass a budget last year, and it failed to pass even a single appropriations bill. We are still dealing with that abdication of responsibility.

We are where we are; the House passed another measure to keep the federal government open for another week, fund our military men and women and their families for the next 6 months, and cut government spending by $12 billion while we negotiate a long-term solution. The thing that is bothersome is that Senate Democratic leadership refuses to bring this measure to a vote. They have the votes to defeat it, but they also refuse to put forth an alternative proposal to cut spending.

Well, the media is referring to this impasse as a “shut-down” of the federal government. But we need to be careful before we call this a government “shut-down.” The people of Kansas and all of America are rightly outraged that funding for our troops and their families is at risk, that funding for most customer service support at the Veterans Benefits Administration are at risk, and that funding for a wide range of economic development and agricultural programs are risk – Ah, but that is not true with regard to one segment of our government. Just as the Army sings “as these casons keep rolling along,” so does the perpetual motion machine of federal regulations. The federal regulation machine is such that even a government “shut-down” can’t stop it.

Earlier this week I came to the floor to talk about the concerns I’m hearing from community bankers in Kansas. According to a summary of the Dodd-Frank Act by Davis Polk, the Act mandates that 11 different agencies create at least 243 more regulations, issue 67 one-time reports or studies, and 22 new periodic reports. Many of these new rules are required to be issued in the next year or two.

Financial regulators have already issued more than 1,400 pages of regulatory proposals. Up to 5,000 pages of regulation are expected. These actions will create additional and significant compliance costs that will impact the ability of every bank to serve its community. These regulations will come on top of the existing regulations, including 1,700 pages of consumer regulations and hundreds of pages of regulations regarding lending practices and operations that banks are already required to comply with.

Now, some folks might think, and naturally so – that if the government is shut down, regulators won’t be on the job either. Wrong, apparently nothing, absolutely nothing can or will stop regulators from regulating. In the case of some financial regulators, agencies not funded by taxpayer dollars, they’ll be on the job and we can anticipate that the burdensome regulation will continue.

What about implementing the costly and controversial health care reform bill? Will a government shut-down slow this hugely unpopular program chock full of regulations? The answer, I am sorry to report, is no.

In the Secretary’s contingency plans for HHS, under a list of what will remain open during this shut down, she believes that “operations of the Center for Consumer information and Insurance Oversight,” the regulating agency under HHS that is working to issue regulations implementing health care reform, “could continue as funding was provided through the Affordable Care Act.”

This is another example of full steam ahead with Obamacare, just like during the health care reform debate. The regulatory overreach that has become a hallmark of this administration is not stopped even by a shut down of the federal government.

For example, regulations like the one issued recently by HHS on Accountable Care Organizations, also known as ACOs, that turned 6 pages of Obamacare into 429 pages of regulations. 429 pages in just ONE regulation. These new regulations empower Dr. Berwick and CMS to make decisions about how medical care will be delivered in this country.

So, government shut down or not, under a cowering business community, the incredible federal regulating machine goes on like a giant creature from a video game: belching fire, smoke, fines, regulations. Nothing, not even a shut down of the federal government can slay the regulating dragon.

Mr. President, this debate is not about party politics. It’s about reducing spending and tightening our federal belt. We are borrowing 40 cents of every dollar we spend. The House has passed a bill to keep our military families whole and the government running while we work out a long-term solution. A federal shut down does not benefit anyone except regulators who, under a shut-down, will continue to regulate unchecked. I urge the Majority Leader to at least bring the House-passed bill to the floor for a vote.

Thank you.