Speaker McCarthy Unveils Proposal to Raise Debt Ceiling and Cut Spending Transcript

The American people have elected a divided government, and our government is define compromise. That’s why the House, the Senate, and the White House should be negotiating a responsible debt limit increase right now. If you gave your child a credit card and they kept maxing it out to the limit, you wouldn’t blindly just raise the limit, you’d change their behavior. That exact same thing is true with our national debt. We need to lower inflation, reduce our dependence on China, and lift Americans out of poverty. America has a $31 trillion debt and Washington is on the clock. But what are Democrats doing? President Biden is skipping town to deliver a speech in Maryland rather than sitting down to address the debt ceiling. He’s giving America’s debt the southern border treatment; ignore it and hope that it goes away. In fact, he’s been avoiding the issue for 77 straight days and counting. Now, Senator Schumer, he’s just missing an action.

(01:28)
Rather than find common ground with the House, Senator Schumer is having the Senate vote on a non-binding resolution commending and congratulating the University of Connecticut men’s basketball team for winning the 2023 Men’s Basketball Championship. Now, that’s not all Senator Schumer’s been doing. Just last month, he’s approved March as Maine’s Maple Syrup Month. Talk about taking on big issues. I wonder what May’s month will be about. When President Biden and Senate Democrats waste time, House Republicans are taking action. Today, I’m proud to announce that we are introducing the Limit, Save, Grow Act of 2023. This responsible legislation will be led by our Budget Chairman, Jodey Arrington, would responsibly raise the debt limit into next year and provide more than $4.5 trillion in savings to the American taxpayer. Now, here’s how we do it. First, we limit government spending. Our plan would return discretionary spending to pre-inflationary fiscal year 2022 levels, and then limit the growth of spending to 1% per year.

(02:57)
Now, these are the same levels we had just four months ago. I didn’t hear, Mr. Speaker, a single Democrat complained about that level of spending. These spending limits are not Draconian, they’re responsible. Federal spending exploded in the past two years when Democrats controlled all, and that doesn’t include the trillions of COVID era spending. But limited government spending will reduce inflation and restore fiscal discipline in Washington. If Washington wants to spend more, it will have to come together, find savings elsewhere, just like every single household in America. Now, second, we’re going to save taxpayers money. Mr. Speaker, the pandemic is over. House Republicans have already passed a bill to officially end the pandemic and President Biden signed it into law just last week. Our bill would actually claw back billions of dollars of unspent COVID money that has sat for the last two years. The American people are tired of politicians who use COVID as an excuse for more extreme inflationary spending.

(04:23)
Now, if this money was authorized to fight the pandemic but was not spent during the pandemic, it should not be spent after the pandemic is over. Our proposals also repeal Biden’s army of 87,000 IRS agents. Now, that will save taxpayers $70 billion and it’s going to protect the families and the small businesses from weaponizing the IRS. It will end the green giveaways for companies that distort the market and waste taxpayers’ money. Now, Goldman Sachs just did an analysis and they say the savings from ending these green giveaways are as much as $1.2 trillion. And we would prohibit President Biden’s student loan giveaway for the wealthy. That will protect the 87% of adults without student loans for paying the loans of the 13% who do. And finally, we will grow the economy so we are less dependent on China. Our proposal would restore American energy leadership, make it easier to build things in America, make us less dependent on China and bring jobs back to America. It would also help lift millions of Americans out of poverty.

(05:58)
Right now, there are more job openings than people looking for work, in part because the Biden administration has weakened some of the very work requirements that then-Senator Joe Biden previously supported. Our plan ensures adults without dependents earn a paycheck and learn new skills. By restoring these common sense measures, we can help more Americans earn a paycheck, learn new skills, reduce childhood poverty, and rebuild the workforce. It will also protect and preserve Medicare and Social Security because more people will be paying into it. And we will prevent President Biden’s executive overreach to spend money outside the normal process, which President Biden has abused to the tune of $1.5 trillion in unilateral executive actions. We should welcome and celebrate the benefits of a strong, growing economy. For with a strong, growing economy, we’ll no longer be dependent upon China, we will no longer be the victims to inflation, and we can leave a better future for our kids and our grandchildren.

(07:28)
Mr. Speaker, House Republicans are taking action to lift the debt limit, to limit government spending, save taxpayers money, and grow the economy. President Biden and Senator Schumer have no right to play politics with the debt calling. They’re extreme positions risk provoking the very crisis they claim to want to avoid. They need to sit down, negotiate, and address this crisis. Now that we’ve introduced a clear plan for a responsible debt limit increase, they have no more excuse and refuse to negotiate. I think the Senate can honor maple syrup and basketball teams and negotiate on a debt ceiling at the same time. We owe it to the American people to use this moment in history to deliver the future they want, need and deserve. House Republicans have a plan, the Senate does not, and the President is ignoring the debt crisis. President Biden has a choice; come to the table and stop playing partisan political games, or cover his ears, refuse to negotiate and risk bumbling his way into the first default in our nation’s history.

(09:06)
I urge all my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support this plan to get our nation back on track. So yes, we then curve inflation, end our dependency on China and strengthen and protect Social Security and Medicare. With that, I yield back.