Congressman Denham Reacts To President’s 2013 Budget

2-14-2012 - Washington, D.C. – Congressman Jeff Denham today released the following statement in response to the President’s FY2012 budget:

“After four years of trillion dollar deficits and $15 trillion of debt, we cannot keep spending money we don’t have on failed government programs. The 2009 stimulus promised that if we spend more money, unemployment would be at six percent today. Instead, more than 8 percent of Americans remain unemployed.”

“One year ago, I was elected to turn these trends around. Just last week, the House passed my bill, the Civilian Property Realignment Act (CPRA), which will shrink the federal real property footprint and help reduce our deficit by selling what we don't need and better utilizing what we keep. It’s time we enact more real reforms like CPRA to eliminate waste, get people back to work, and promote economic growth.”

From House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan:

Key facts from the President’s budget:

• Spends Too Much:
  • $47 trillion of government spending over the next decade
  • Proposes a net increase over current spending projections
• Taxes Too Much:
  • In total, this budget imposes $1.9 trillion in new taxes on families, small businesses, and job creators
  • Raises taxes, not to pay down the debt, but to fuel more wasteful Washington spending
• Borrows Too Much:
  • Four straight years of trillion-dollar-plus deficits; no plan to reduce the debt
  • Gross debt at the end of FY22: $25.9 trillion
• Budget Gimmicks & Broken Promises
  • Overstates new deficit reduction by taking credit for savings already enacted
  • Exploits discredited budget gimmick by “not spending” nearly $1 trillion that was never going to be spent

A bicameral fact sheet prepared by the House Budget Committee and Senate Budget Committee:
http://budget.house.gov/News/DocumentSingle.aspx?DocumentID=280065