Congressman Jack Kingston - First District of Georgia

Washington, Jan 2 - Congressman Jack Kingston (R-GA) issued the following statement after voting against a legislative package intended to avert the fiscal cliff:

“Our ultimate goal in the process was to address tax rates and reduce the deficit.  The package we voted on only addressed the tax issue not the deficit reduction.

“Delaying the spending cuts – the ones already on in August 2011 – is especially worrisome.  Does anyone really believe attitudes toward less spending will be any different in March than they are today?  The fiscal cliff deadline was created in August 2011 and nothing happened in the Senate until last week.  If we did not get religion in sixteen months, I doubt we’ll get it in two.

“According to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, the package we passed last night actually adds $4 trillion to the national debt.  With $600 billion in new taxes, it contains $10 in tax increases for every $1 in spending reduction.  This merely increases the deficit rather than shrinks it and we could have done better.”